Masking Exercise

By taking several images in sequence, you can layer them in Photoshop to create a photo like the one above.

Above, I took 5 shots in a row as the girl walked across the frame. Although I held the camera as still as possible, I was not using a tripod, so I had to align the images before masking.

1. Shoot several images in a row with the same framing, having a subject move throughout the frame
2. Open each file in Photoshop. Start with one image, then Select > All, and Copy > Paste each image on top of that initial photo, creating a stack of layers like you see above.
3. Unlock the background image by double clicking on it, then hitting "OK" when you see the window pop up labeling it now "Layer 0".
4. Highlight all the layers by shift clicking them.
5. Go to Edit > Auto Align Layers. Click OK for the "auto" version.
6. Now that the images are aligned, you can begin to mask. Add a mask to all the layers except the bottom one. Invert each mask to make it black.
7. Using a soft white brush, paint on the mask over the area where the girl stood in each frame.
8. Crop if necessary

Putting Images Online

Standard Image Size for web:
-No longer than 1000px on any side

Resize Images for Web Using Scripts:

To quickly and easily change a whole folder of hi-res photos into web-size JPGs use Scripts.

File > Scripts > Image Processor:

 Select the folder you want to convert. Choose your hi-res Master files (psd/tiff/hi-res jpg, etc). It will make duplicates of everything so don't worry about "hurting" your Master files. A new folder called "JPEG" will be stored in your original Master files folder when you choose "save in same location".

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Embedding Copyright, Naming Files & Watermarking:

File naming: Using Bridge, you can rename all your files to be consistent and have your name in them, for example, gleeson_web_01.jpg, gleeson_web_02.jpg, gleeson_web_03.jpg...
*I like to name my files with "web" or "Print" in the title so I know which size each JPG is and don't accidentally print a web size image. In Bridge TOOLS > BATCH RENAME (be sure to have the images you want to rename highlighted for it to work).

Copyright: In Bridge, you can create a new Metadata template with all your info in it. Go to TOOLS > CREATE METADATA TEMPLATE. Then in the future, you can apply this to any image you want by going to TOOL > REPLACE METADATA.


Creating an Online Portfolio:

If you don't have a website, you may think about trying this free online portfolio service called Carbon Made: http://carbonmade.com. Here's an examples of a portfolios by a former students of mine: http://hanspurwa.carbonmade.com/ 

Another option that connects to Flickr is http://pullfolio.com

I use Photo Biz, photobiz.com, for my website www.eringleeson.com. It's a drag and drop template for people like me who don't know HTML and web design. Super user friendly, and is about $15/month.

Some free blog formats that are available are Blogger (via gmail), Wordpress (highly customizable templates), Tumblr (built in social media). Each of these offer templates you can buy.

For example, my website/blog The Forest Feast is a Tumblr blog. Although my template is not as customizable as a Wordpress template might be, I wanted to built in social media aspect to attract followers and drive traffic. I bought a $75 template from Pixel Union, and because I wanted something more memorable than forestfeast.tumblr.com, I went to Go Daddy and bought the domain name www.theforestfeast.com and had the 2 connected, for approx $15/year.

Sharpening

Sometimes if you focus is a little off and you want to sharpen an image, you can do it easily as follows:

1.) Duplicate the background and call this new layer "sharpening"

2.) Go to FILTER > SHARPEN > UNSHARP MASK

3.) Adjust the Amount  &  Radius (radius usually no higher than 3). These numbers depend on file size.  Eye-ball it then click the preview box on and off to see how it looks.

4.) When you're done, hit OK and you can always decrease the layer opacity if it's too strong. Alternatively, you can make a mask, invert it and paint white just over the areas you want sharper (like the eyes of a portrait for example.)