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Photoshop CS6 is in the house!

Rommel — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 07:25:49 +0000

Once I found out the news, I downloaded the beta. Downloading 1.7GB gave me a little time to watch a great video by Russell Brown, reviewing his 6 favorite features of Photoshop CS6.

Watch the video:

From Adobe’s press release:

First Major Release since April 2010 Packed with New Features and Huge Performance Enhancements

SAN JOSE, Calif. — March 22, 2012 — Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced Adobe® Photoshop® CS6 beta, a preview of what’s to come in the next release of the industry standard in digital imaging, is available as a free download from Adobe Labs. Customers can download the beta, try out the experience and provide feedback to the product team. Packed with groundbreaking new innovations, features and incredible performance enhancements, Photoshop CS6 beta is available for the Mac OS and Microsoft® Windows® platforms. The final release is expected in the first half of 2012.

“Photoshop CS6 will be a milestone release that pushes the boundaries of imaging innovation with incredible speed and performance,” said Winston Hendrickson, vice president products, Creative Media Solutions, Adobe. “We couldn’t wait to share this beta of Photoshop CS6 with our customers and are looking forward to hearing from them and seeing the ways they are incorporating the beta into their daily creative workflows.”

New Features in Photoshop CS6 Beta

Photoshop CS6 beta demonstrates Adobe’s focus on huge performance enhancements, imaging magic and creativity tools that offer customers a new experience in digital imaging. Key features include new additions to the Content-Aware tools: Content- Aware Patch allows greater control by letting users select and duplicate an area of an image to fill in or “patch” another, and Content-Aware Move lets users select and magically move an object to a new place in the image.

Customers will experience incredible performance, powered by the new Adobe Mercury Graphics Engine*, enabling near-instant results from popular editing tools including Liquify, Puppet Warp, Transform and Lighting Effects; and a refined, modern interface featuring dark UI options to make images pop. New and re-engineered design tools make creating designs faster and more efficient. Vector layers allow users to apply dashed lines and gradient strokes, searchable layers quickly zero in on any layer, and new type styles let designers swiftly apply type treatments to their designs.

In addition, the Photoshop CS6 beta offers all the features of Adobe Photoshop CS6 and Adobe Photoshop CS6 Extended, such as new 3D editing features and quantitative imaging analysis capabilities. These features will be included in the shipping version of Photoshop CS6 Extended when it becomes available.

Pricing and Availability

The Photoshop CS6 beta is available immediately as a free download in English and Japanese. At installation, users will be required to provide an Adobe ID to complete a one-time login and online product activation. For information on how to install Photoshop CS6 beta, visit www.adobe.com/go/photoshopcs6. Customers can submit feedback via the Photoshop CS6 beta forum.

Users can also connect with the Photoshop team via the community-powered site; on Facebook; YouTube; Photoshop.com blog; or via Twitter.

Canon announces EOS 5D Mark III: 22.3 MP full-frame sensor, 6 fps, 102,400 max ISO, 1080/30p HD, yours for $3,500 (video)

Rommel — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 18:06:08 +0000

Suffice it to say, March 2012 is a notable month for Canon. Not only does it mark the 25th anniversary of the first EOS SLR, but it’s also ushering in Canon’s latest addition to its full-frame DSLR lineup. That gorgeous beast your eyes are feasting upon is the company’s new EOS 5D Mark III. That’s right folks, this isn’t a replacement for the Mark II, but rather an updated variant meant to sit between the workhorse of four years and the company’s soon to arrive EOS-1D X. At a glance, the shooter is nearly indistinguishable from its older sibling, although a closer inspection reveals a new name badge, improved weather- and dust-resistance and some slight tweaks to its top-mounted info display and buttons on the back. Don’t be fooled, however, as there are obviously major changes here worthy of the new moniker. Key specs include a larger 1,040,000-dot 3.2-inch rear LCD, Digic 5+ processor, 22.3-megapixel CMOS sensor, 61-Point High Density Reticular autofocus with 41 cross-types (all of which are borrowed from the 1D X), dual memory card slots (SD and CompactFlash) an extended ISO range of 50 to 102,400 (100 to 25,600, natively), OVF with 100 percent coverage (versus 98 previously), and a maximum 6 FPS burst speed. Naturally, the 5D Mark III is no slouch in the video department: it can capture h.264 footage at HD resolutions up to 1080 at 24/25/30p or 720 at 50/60p, with an effective ISO range of 100-128,000 — and of course there’s a stereo mic input for the microphone of your choice. Better yet, not only does it allow for real-time control of your audio levels during filming, but also monitoring, being the first EOS-series DSLR to come equipped with a headphone jack (!) — something that’s been sorely missing in the world of ILC cameras. We’ve only skimmed the surface, however, so join us past the break for further details and a quick video overview.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III

Although we didn’t get to use the pre-production 5D Mark III seen here, Canon filled us in on many of intricacies, so we’ll have to take its word on the matter for now. In terms of processing speed, the Digic 5+ is rated 30 percent faster than the 5 and a healthy 17 times quicker compared to the 4 found in the Mark II. Paired with its CMOS sensor, we’re told that JPEG shots are roughly two stops cleaner than that of the Mark II and that video will also be noticeably smoother with less artifacting and moiré. For example (with photos), the amount of noise you’d see at 6,400 with the II only creeps up to the III at 25,600. Conversely, Canon cites the 1D X as being one stop cleaner than the Mark III, ensuring its reign as the top dog in the lineup. Of course, RAW images won’t benefit from the in-camera noise reduction, but we’re told that they should still be quite pleasing given the new internals.
When you’re done shooting, you’ll be able to use the camera’s “comparative playback function” — a quick button press allows you to view two photos (and their metadata) side by side on the LCD for on-the-fly checks of how your shots are shaping up. The Mark III also is also capable of shooting HDR images, with your choice of up to seven exposures (up to three stops over and under) to work with. Other features new to this puppy are “in-camera RAW processing, Scene Intelligent Auto mode, two forms of movie compression (ALL-I and IPB), and support for high-speed UDMA 7 Compact Flash memory cards.” By the way, you’ll still be restricted to 29 minutes and 59 seconds of shooting time (Canon’s way of avoiding those European HD camcorder taxes as it has on many of its DSLRs).

Remember the updated button placements on back that we mentioned? Along the left side of the screen you’ll notice a rate button (for starring photos quickly during a shooter and a creative photo button, while on the right there’s now a dedicated Live view toggle, along with a multi-function button near the shutter button (we’re told these placements could change once the final version is set in stone). You’ll also find that the power switch has made its way over to top left, positioned directly behind the now pro bono locking mode dial on the top left. Notably, the inner portion of the circular control-wheel is actually touch sensitive — since you’ll be able to make adjustments to parameters such as exposure and audio levels while recording, it’ll spare your tracks of any annoying clicksthat could result otherwise.

Alright, we get it; all of this info is dandy, but now you want to know about availability, accessories and pricing. The EOS 5D Mark III is slated to hit shelves by the end of March, priced at $3,500 for the body-only and $4,300 as kit with an EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM zoom lens. Also available at launch, will be Canon’s new $630 Speedlite 600EX-RT and its $470 Speedlite Transmitter ST-E3-RT (essentially all the tech of the former, minus the flash itself). Once April rolls around, you’ll also be able to get your mitts on the $390 GP-E2 GPS receiver, $850 WFT-E7A Wireless Transmitter, and of course, the $490 BG-E11 Battery Grip (weather-resistant, with room for two batteries). On a related note, Canon also informed that Mark II will soon be get’s its price reduced, but there’s no word on an exact number just yet. We’ll be sure to get some shooting time in with the Mark III as soon as we can, but in the meantime, check out the galleries and press release below for more of the nitty-gritty.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III (Accessories)

Canon EOS 5D Mark III and accessories (press shots)

Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report

Show full PR text

CANON U.S.A. ANNOUNCES THE HIGHLY ANTICIPATED EOS 5D MARK III DIGITAL SLR CAMERA
Featuring Improved Image Quality, a 61-Point High Density Reticular AF, Six fps High-Speed Continuous Shooting and Enhanced HD Video Recording Features
LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., March 2, 2012– On the 25th anniversary of its world-renowned EOS System, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, is proud to announce its latest model, the new EOS 5D Mark III Digital SLR Camera. Positioned between the extremely popular EOS 5D Mark II and Canon’s top-of-the-line professional EOS-1D X model, the EOS 5D Mark III delivers superb image quality, thanks to a new 22.3-megapixel full-frame Canon CMOS sensor, a high-performance DIGIC 5+ Imaging Processor, a 61-point High Density Reticular Autofocus (AF) System and six frames-per-second (fps) continuous shooting speed. Building upon the trailblazing success of the EOS 5D Mark II, the EOS 5D Mark III also incorporates enhanced video features for professionals in the fields of cinematography, television production and documentary filmmaking, including better noise reduction, longer recording times and a built-in headphone jack for audio monitoring. The EOS 5D Mark III is Canon’s answer to hundreds of thousands of advanced amateurs and emerging professionals looking for a compact, high-quality camera system to help them achieve their artistic vision, whether it be through still or video imagery. The EOS 5D Mark III introduction coincides with Canon’s 25th anniversary celebration of the EOS camera system. Canon’s award-winning EOS system first debuted in March of 1987 with the introduction of the EOS 650 SLR camera and three EF lenses.
“We are extremely excited to announce the highly anticipated follow-up to our EOS 5D Mark II, a camera which has been called a ‘game-changer’ in most professional photography and videography circles. The EOS 5D Mark III will carry on that tradition, delivering better and more advanced features, helping our customers achieve excellent image quality for stills and video,” stated Yuichi Ishizuka, executive vice president and general manager, Imaging Technologies and Communications Group, Canon U.S.A.
The EOS 5D Mark III inherits many features from Canon’s recently announced flagship DSLR, the EOS- 1D X, including a DIGIC 5+ Imaging Processor and a high-performance 61-point High Density Reticular AF array with up to 41 cross-type points and five dual cross-type points available, depending on the lens in use.
The enhanced processing power enables fast continuous shooting of up to six fps, exceeding the speed of the EOS 5D Mark II model by more than 50 percent, and with improved weather resistance the EOS 5D Mark III is a serious option for sports and wildlife photographers.
EOS 5D Mark III Video: The Legacy Continues The EOS 5D Mark II blazed the trail for EOS cameras and Canon to enter the professional video and cinema markets, paving the way for Canon’s recent introduction of the Cinema EOS system of cameras and lenses. Now, the EOS 5D Mark III continues Canon’s commitment to these new markets with new and requested features from cinematographers, television production professionals and independent filmmakers. This new model captures 1080p Full HD video at 24p (23.976), 25p, and 30p (29.97) fps; 720p HD recording at 60 (59.94) and 50 fps; and SD recording at 30 (29.97) and 25 fps, giving cinematographers and videographers more flexibility and options for video capture.
The EOS 5D Mark III includes new H.264 video compression formats to simplify and speed up post-production work: intraframe (ALL-I) compression for an editing-friendly format and interframe (IPB) compression for superior data storage efficiency, giving professionals options to help achieve their ideal workflow. Like the EOS-1D X, the 5D Mark III also includes two methods of SMPTE-compliant timecode embedding, Rec Run and Free Run, allowing video footage from multiple cameras and separate audio recordings to be synced together in post production.
The new full-frame CMOS sensor and DIGIC 5+ processor have enhanced the camera’s image processing performance over the 5D Mark II, significantly reducing moiré and color artifacts in scenes with horizontal lines. The video footage produced will exhibit less moiré than seen in previous DSLR models, resulting in a significant improvement in HD video quality. Accommodating documentary filmmakers, and event videographers using EOS DSLR cameras, the 5D Mark III includes the ability to record video continuously up to 29 minutes and 59 seconds across multiple 4GB files. Long-form filmmakers will enjoy the camera’s automatic file splitting in combination with the extended memory capacity offered by dual card slots.
The Canon EOS 5D Mark III also includes manual audio level control with 64 levels, adjustable both before and during movie recording. There is also an automatic audio level setting, or sound recording can be turned off entirely. A wind filter is also included. Sound can be recorded either through the internal monaural microphone or via an optional external microphone through the stereo mic input. Notably, the EOS 5D Mark III is the first EOS Digital SLR to feature a built-in headphone jack for real-time audio monitoring during video capture.
Newly Developed Canon CMOS Sensor With its completely new 22.3-megapixel full-frame Canon CMOS image sensor, the EOS 5D Mark III becomes the highest resolution Canon Digital SLR released to date. It is eminently suitable for a wide variety of assignments including weddings and portraits, nature and wildlife, travel and landscapes as well as commercial and industrial photography. With a gapless microlens design, a new photodiode structure and improved on-chip noise reduction, the new sensor achieves higher sensitivity and lower noise levels for both RAW image data as well as in-camera JPEGs and EOS Movies compared to the 5D Mark II. The result is outstanding image quality in all shooting conditions, even low light. An eight-channel readout doubles the speed of image data throughput from the sensor to the DIGIC 5+ processor, resulting in better video image quality as well as six fps for still photos.
The low-light capability of the EOS 5D Mark III is evident in its incredible ISO range and image quality in poor lighting conditions. Adjustable from ISO 100 to 25,600 within its standard range, the new model also offers a low ISO 50 setting for studio and landscape photography and two extended ISO settings of 51,200 and 102,400, well suited for law enforcement, government or forensic field applications.
The new 5D Mark III is also equipped with Canon’s EOS Integrated Cleaning System, featuring a Self Cleaning Sensor Unit with a fluorine coating that repels dust and dirt particles.
Canon-Exclusive DIGIC 5+ Imaging Processor The EOS 5D Mark III’s new DIGIC 5+ Imaging Processor is 17 times faster than the DIGIC 4.The EOS 5D Mark III uses that extra speed not only for improved image quality, but also to add no less than nine new features that do not exist on the 5D Mark II. These new features include six fps continuous shooting, HDR and Multiple Exposure modes, in-camera RAW processing, a comparative playback function, Scene Intelligent Auto mode, two forms of movie compression, and support for high-speed UDMA 7 Compact Flash memory cards.
Another extremely valuable feature enhanced by the DIGIC 5+ Imaging Processor is the EOS 5D Mark III’s choice of reduced resolution M-RAW (10.5 megapixel) and S-RAW (5.5 megapixel) recording modes. These settings are particularly useful to wedding photographers for candid photos that do not require the EOS 5D Mark III’s 22 megapixel full resolution, because they take up less space on the memory cards and speed up post-processing without losing the critical benefits of RAW image data, such as highlight and shadow control as well as white balance adjustment. M-RAW and S-RAW also preserve the full field of view rather than cropping the image or resorting to JPEG mode to reduce resolution.
High-Performance 61-Point High Density Reticular AF For still photographers, Canon has included its new 61-point High Density Reticular AF System, originally introduced with the top-of-the-line EOS-1D X professional camera. A significant advancement over previous 5D-series AF systems, the new 61-Point High Density Reticular AF included in the EOS 5D Mark III is the most sophisticated SLR AF system Canon has ever released. All 61 points are manually selectable and sensitive to horizontal contrast with maximum apertures larger than or equal to f/5.6. The camera’s twenty one focusing points in the central area are also standard precision cross-type and effective with maximum apertures larger than or equal to f/5.6. The center five points are ultra-high-precision diagonal cross-type points for maximum apertures larger than or equal to f/2.8. The 20 outer focusing points function as high- precision cross-type points with maximum apertures larger than or equal to f/4.0. Other innovations of the new 61-point High Density Reticular AF include expanded AF coverage area, superior focusing precision and low-light sensitivity to EV -2, and greater low-contrast subject detection capability compared to earlier EOS AF systems. (See image below for AF point configuration)
All AF functions now have their own menu tab for quick and easy access (formerly AF custom functions in previous EOS models). A new AF Configuration Tool allows for customized setting of tracking sensitivity, the acceleration and deceleration of tracking subjects, and AF point auto switching, all of which are easily accessed and adjusted via the new AF menu tab. A built-in Feature Guide advises photographers on which settings to use according to subject matter.
The EOS 5D Mark III uses the same high-performance AI Servo III AF tracking algorithm as the flagship EOS-1D X professional DSLR. This new feature works together with the 61-point High Density Reticular AF system to provide superb tracking performance that blends very well with the new camera’s 6 frames-per-second high-speed continuous shooting capabilities.
Similar to the AF point selection options offered in the EOS 7D and EOS-1D X camera models, the EOS 5D Mark III offers six AF point selection modes: Spot, Single Point, Single Point with surrounding four points, Single Point with surrounding eight points, Zone selection and Automatic AF point selection.
iFCL Metering Complementing the EOS 5D Mark III camera’s 61-point AF system is Canon’s 63-zone iFCL dual layer metering system. The ‘FCL’ stands for ‘Focus, Color and Luminance,’ and references the fact that the metering system not only measures color and luminance data, but also analyzes the data provided by each point of the AF system. Canon’s iFCL metering keeps exposure levels stable from shot to shot, even as the light source changes. The camera’s autofocus information is also used to help determine which area of the scene is of greatest importance in determining exposure.
HDR Mode The EOS 5D Mark III camera features a built-in HDR mode, merging three images at various exposure levels into a single image, in-camera, for stunning photographs of landscapes and architecture with enhanced tonal gradation beyond the range of the naked eye. The exposure levels in the camera’s HDR mode can be set to cover a range of up to ±3 stops, in a choice of five settings: Natural, Art Standard, Art Vivid, Art Bold and Art Embossed providing unique visual effects. Individual source images can be saved as separate files, and the HDR mode has an optional automatic alignment function that can be useful for hand-held shooting. The EOS 5D Mark III’s standard Auto Exposure Bracketing function has been upgraded to allow for up to seven exposures per sequence, and exposure compensation can now be set for up to +/- 5EV.
Multiple Exposure Mode The EOS 5D Mark III is the second EOS Digital SLR after the EOS-1D X to feature Multiple Exposure capabilities with the ability to combine up to nine individual images into a single composite image, with no need for post-processing in a computer. Four different compositing methods are provided for maximum creative control, including Additive, Average, Bright and Dark. Compositing results can be viewed in real time on the camera’s LCD monitor, and there is a one-step Undo command that allows photographers to delete an image and try again if desired. The EOS 5D Mark III camera’s Multiple Exposure mode even allows photographers to specify a previously captured RAW image as the starting point for a new Multiple Exposure composite image, or shoot continuously when photographing moving subjects.
Comparative Playback A new feature seen for the first time in the EOS System on the 5D Mark III is Comparative Playback allowing photographers to display two images side by side on the camera’s 3.2-inch LCD screen. The images can be displayed with a histogram to check exposure levels, or magnified to check for focus or facial expressions.
Durability, Reliability and Other Features The EOS 5D Mark III features a rugged camera body with magnesium alloy body covers and a stainless steel lens mount. The new camera also has dust- and moisture-resistant design with improved gaskets and seals. Although not quite as weatherproof as an EOS-1D-series camera, the EOS 5D Mark III does feature improved weather resistance over the EOS 5D Mark II model. The EOS 5D Mark III’s newly developed shutter unit has a durability rating of 150,000 exposures, and shutter release lag time has been reduced to 59 milliseconds, making the shutter button very responsive. Canon’s locking mode dial is standard on the new model and a new custom function allows photographers to shut off other dials to prevent inadvertent operation.
The EOS 5D Mark III uses the same LP-E6 lithium-ion battery pack as other popular EOS cameras like the 5D Mark II, 7D and 60D. Battery life is estimated at 950 exposures at normal temperatures, an improvement of 100 exposures more than the EOS 5D Mark II. The EOS 5D Mark III body weighs approximately 33.5 oz. with a battery installed, and the dimensions are approximately 6.0 x 4.6 x 3.0 inches.
The EOS 5D Mark III incorporates Silent shooting modes, available for low-speed continuous shooting as well as single exposures. This feature is ideal when photographing in quiet environments. For better file management especially when working with multiple cameras, the new model also supports custom file names. There is also a new image rating feature that lets photographers rank their photos from 1 to 5 stars for quick editing.
The EOS 5D Mark III features a 3.2-inch Clear View II LCD screen with 1,040,000 dot resolution. This is the same screen that’s used in the top-of-the-line EOS-1D X. The camera’s optical viewfinder has been upgraded to approximately 100 percent coverage, and it features an Intelligent Viewfinder display with an optional grid on demand. The EOS 5D Mark III also has a built-in Dual Axis Electronic Level that can be displayed on both the LCD screen and the optical viewfinder.
The EOS 5D Mark III accepts both Compact Flash Type 1 and SD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards in a dual card slot configuration. Three recording methods are supported: Record the same data to both cards, record different file sizes or types to each card, or automatically switch to the second card when the first card is full.
Accessories The EOS 5D Mark III DSLR also has a number of new optional accessories, including the new Canon Wireless File Transmitter WFT-E7A featuring wireless LAN support for 802.11 a/b/g/n signal protocols for various network environments. The WFT-E7A connects to the camera through its USB port and includes a built-in gigabit Ethernet connection, time syncing for multiple cameras on the same network, FTP mode, EOS Utility mode, WFT Server mode and Media Server mode. With this new WFT model, professionals can synchronize clocks on multiple cameras and use the unit to support linked shooting when utilizing multiple cameras. In addition, Bluetooth-compatible equipment can be easily linked to the device as well.
The EOS 5D Mark III also has an optional Canon GPS Receiver GP-E2, which can be connected to the camera via the accessory shoe or a USB cable. With a GPS logging function built-in, the GP-E2 will log latitude, longitude, elevation, and the Universal Time Code – and allow viewing of camera movement on a PC after shooting. With its built-in compass, the GP-E2 receiver will also record camera direction when shooting, even when shooting vertically. The Canon GPS Receiver GP-E2 is compatible with the EOS-1D X and EOS 7D as well as the EOS 5D Mark III.
Battery Grip BG-E11 is an optional accessory for the EOS 5D Mark III that accepts one or two LP-E6 lithium-ion battery packs or a set of six AA-size batteries. This new grip has a multicontroller and a multifunction (M.Fn) button together a with a full set of grip controls for easy operation when shooting portraits or other vertical format photos. The BG-E11 is made from sturdy magnesium alloy and has the same degree of weather resistance as the EOS 5D Mark III.
Speedlite 600EX-RT In addition to the EOS 5D Mark III, Canon is also announcing the first professional Speedlite on the market with a built-in wireless radio transmitter, the new Speedlite 600EX-RT. The new Canon Speedlite 600EX-RT is the flagship model in the Speedlite line, ideal for wedding portrait and photojournalism. Compatible with all EOS Digital SLRs, this new model eliminates the need for accessory radio slave units and their inherent limitations. Speedlite 600EX-RT features Master-Slave two-way transmission, letting the photographer control the Speedlite settings directly from the “Master” camera.
Radio-based Wireless E-TTL can be performed with up to 15 Speedlite 600EX-RT “slave units”, used off-camera up to 98.4 feet (30m) away, and triggered by either a “Master” 600EX-RT on-camera, or the optional new Speedlite Transmitter ST-E3-RT. Used with the EOS 5D Mark III or EOS-1D X, up to five groups of flashes can be completely controlled, independently, off-camera. And, it remains fully compatible with Canon’s legacy optical-based Wireless E-TTL technology, for users already committed to existing EOS Speedlites. The Speedlite features enhanced weather-resistant construction – matching that of the EOS-1D X camera body – and a more reliable electrical contact. The flash head zoom range now reaches from 20mm to 200mm.The Speedlite also allows remote shutter release of a single EOS camera, or Linked Shooting (simultaneous firing of up to 15 cameras, when one “Master” camera is fired), and includes gelatin filters and a dedicated filter holder to help photographers match ambient light.
Speedlite Transmitter ST-E3-RT Canon is also introducing the new Speedlite Transmitter ST-E3-RT. Providing full support of Canon’s new radio-based wireless flash technology, the new ST-E3-RT can control up to five groups of flashes, up to 98.4 feet (30m) from the camera. The remote shutter release capability enables photographers to either fire a single camera remotely (by pressing a button on the ST-E3-RT), or to fire up to 15 EOS cameras with Canon’s Linked Shooting feature. Making it easy to control and adjust, all of the Speedlite Transmitter features are accessible through the Flash control menu of the EOS-1D X and EOS 5D Mark III cameras.
Pricing and Availability The Canon EOS 5D Mark III Digital SLR camera is expected to be available at the end of March 2012 and will be sold in a body-only configuration at an estimated retail price of $3,499.00. The EOS 5D Mark III will also be available with the EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM zoom lens in a kit for an estimated retail price of $4,299.00. The Wireless File Transmitter WFT-E7A is scheduled to be available by the end of April 2012 at an estimated retail price of $849.99. Availability for GPS Receiver GP-E2 is expected by the end of April 2012, with an estimated retail price of $390.00.Battery Grip BG-E11 is scheduled to be available at the end of April 2012 for an estimated retail price of $490.00. The Speedlite 600EX-RT and Speedlite Transmitter ST-E3-RT are also scheduled for end of March 2012 availability at estimated retail prices of $629.99 and $470.00 respectively.
About Canon U.S.A., Inc. Canon U.S.A., Inc., is a leading provider of consumer, business-to-business, and industrial digital imaging solutions. With $45.6 billion in global revenue, its parent company, Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ), ranks third overall in patent holdings in the U.S. in 2011† and is one of Fortune Magazine’s World’s Most Admired Companies in 2011. Canon U.S.A. is committed to the highest levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty, providing 100 percent U.S.-based consumer service and support for all of the products it distributes. Canon U.S.A. is dedicated to its Kyosei philosophy of social and environmental responsibility. To keep apprised of the latest news from Canon U.S.A., sign up for the Company’s RSS news feed by visiting www.usa.canon.com/rss.
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†Based on weekly patent counts issued by United States Patent and Trademark Office.
All referenced product names, and other marks, are trademarks of their respective owners.
Availability, prices, and specifications of all products are subject to change without notice. Actual prices are set by individual dealers and may vary.

Take a few more Photoshop brushes (like 80 of them – FREE)

Rommel — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 11:32:51 +0000

by Stelian Subotin

Brushes for Adobe Photoshop are known to be one of the most used add-ons since they don’t just enhance your designs, but also help give your works a new, fresh and stunning look. Those of you who have a love for brushes may probably know a number of them listed in this post. Nevertheless, new brushes are being designed for Photoshop and hence, you will surely find ones you’d like to try out without any delay! Enjoy!
Retro Photoshop Brushes

Watercolor Related Brushes

Real Brush Stroke Set

Grunge Typo Brushes

Photoshop Splatter Brushes

Acrylic Photoshop Brushes

Floral Deco Brushes

Free Grunge Splatter Photoshop Brushes

Free Splatter Brushes

Photoshop Cracks Brushes

Free Splatter Brushes

Vector Photoshop Brushes

Messy Spraipaint Photoshop Brushes

Free Hi-Res Watercolor Brushes

30 Free Photoshop Swirl Brushes

Hair Brushes Set

Paint Stroke Photoshop Brushes

Halftone Brushes

Free Halftone Photoshop Brushes

Photoshop Hyper Brushes

Winter Breeze Brush

Extremely Abstract Brushes

Sui Generis Brushes

Energy Photoshop Brushes

Abstract Curves Brushes

Serenity Brushes

Silicon Photoshop Brushes

Galactic Photoshop Brushes

Unreal Photoshop Brushes

Refresh Photoshop Brushes

Abstract Paint Brushes

3D Abstract Lines Brushes

Coffee Happens Reloaded Brushes

Splatter and Watercolor Brushes

Grunge Photoshop Brushes

Grunge Alphabet Brushes

Grunge Photoshop Brushes 3

Grunge Set Photoshop Brushes

High-Tech Reloaded

Grungy Brushes New-Set

Stars Brushes 2

Hi-Res Photoshop Fabric Brushes

Quad Grunged Brushes

Skin-Texture Photoshop Brushes

Fur Photoshop Brushes

Photoshop Brushes

Skin Care Photoshop Brushes

Nebulae Photoshop Brushes

Angel Wings Photoshop Brushes

Cool Photoshop Brushes

Cloud Photoshop Brushes

Floral Photoshop Brushes

Fingerprint Photoshop Brushes

Rising Sun Photoshop Brushes

Japanese Photoshop Brushes

Miss M Photoshop Brushes

Fences Photoshop Brushes

Manga Photoshop Brushes

Bubble Sparkle Brushes

Photoshop Tech Brushes

Skin Care and Cosmic Brushes

Photoshop Hurricane Brushes

Eyelash Brushes

RisingSun Photoshop Brushes

Photoshop Blood Brushes

Ornament Photoshop Brushes

Bat Demon Wings Brushes

Download Source

Demon Free Photoshop Brushes #2

Cloud Photoshop Brushes

Fur Photoshop Brushes

Fairy Tale Photoshop Brushes

Green Lotus Photoshop Brushes

Burnt Paper Brushes

Abstract Photoshop Brushes

Moon Photoshop Brushes

Photoshop Brushes Part 3

Random Splatter Brushes

Photoshop Brushes Vector Brushes

Influenced Photoshop Brushes

Technical Photoshop Brushes

Creepy Halloween Photoshop Tutorials You Should Try

Rommel — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:00:59 +0000

When Halloween approaches, most of us feel like creating horrific and terrifying designs to make the season even more spookier. We tend to look for ways to increase our sense of fright and to truly experience fear. Designing such artwork is easy if you have the acquired skills and tools to illustrate creepy designs.

Scary illustrations do not only mean creating monsters. It should look realistic. If truth be told, not all artists are able to portray and/or create scary and realistic images.

In this next post, a compilation of Halloween Photoshop Tutorials are showcased to help you in creating the perfect and scariest image possible. Take time to read through these and learn a trick or two on how to make your Halloween designs truly terrifying!

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Create a Fantasy Horror Scene in Photoshop

Create a fantasy horror scene in Photoshop.

Mysterious Night

In this tutorial, you will learn how to create a mysterious night.

Design a Poster for a Terrible Film

This tutorial will let you design a poster for a thrilling film.

Grunge Manipulation in Photoshop Tutorial

The tutorial teaches you how to make your own ‘grunge’ manipulation in Photoshop.

42 Freakish Zombie in 11 Steps

Learn how to construct a freakish zombie in just 11 steps.

Create a Quick Vampire Scene in Photoshop

Construct a scary vampire environment with just this simple steps.

Monsterosity Makeover

You will be able to makeover a monster using this tutorial.

Dark Eye blend Modes and Gradients

Create a dark eye blend modes and gradients with this tutorial.

Skull Face

You can create a lovely top-hatted woman and turn her into a grim reaper-esque figure in this tutorial.

Halloween Photo Effect the Evil Eye

In this tutorial you will be shown how to used the lens flare filter in Photoshop in creating sinister B-movie glowing eyes.

Decay

In this tutorial, you will learn the technique in creating an image of decaying.

Photoshop Tutorial Creating a Zombie

In this CS2 tutorial, you will learn to make people’s face rot, expose their skull and turn them into zombie.

Showthread

Create a showthread in this tutorial.

Grunge Dark Art Tutorial

You can create a grunge dark art in this Photoshop.

Vampirize Gwen Stefani

In just a a few simple steps, you can create a perfect “vampire look’ of anyone’s picture using Adobe Photoshop.

Dark Art Tutorial

Learn how to create a dark tutorial.

Easy Zom Photoshop Tutorial

Some easy steps in creating a zombie will be shown in this Photoshop tutorial.

Design a HalloweenPumpkin Wallpaper in Photoshop

This tutorial, you will learn how to get this nice effect on any pumpkin picture, how to play with the colors, apply some layer blending modes to skip the extraction process, and more.

Create a Vintage Horror Movie Poster for Halloween

You can create a vintage horror movie poster for Halloween in this tutorial.

Dark Book Of Photoshop

Create a dark book of photoshop with this tutorial.

Texturing Basics

With the help of this tutorial you will be shown how to use textures to dramatically change the look of pictures in a few easy steps.

Good and Evil

This tutorial is a demonstration on how to make one side of the photo light and colorful while the other in contrast, will be dark, evil, and brooding.

Photoshop Burning Flesh Effect

Follow this step by step process in creating realistic burning effect on human skin.

Realistic Blood

In this tutorial, you can create a sort of bloody mouth look with a dark and quite dynamic style of flow.

Carving a Virtual Jackolantern

Learn how to carve a virtual Jack O’ Lantern with this tutorial.

How to Create a Severed Arm in Photoshop

Severed arm with fleshy stumps and strings of sinew can be created with this tutorial.

35 Photo Retouching Tutorials

Rommel — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 19:58:28 +0000

Whether you want a glow effect on the bride’s face in her wedding photographs, or want to make an ordinary face more attractive by removing her blemishes or wrinkles, Photoshop is a widely used tool for photo retouching. Photoshop is known as best remedy for giving a fresh look to an old or dull photograph. Today we present some nice tutorials which will take you through different aspects of Professional Photo Retouching.

Photo Retouching Photoshop Tutorials

Rose The One – The sexy pink tutorial
Author has given a pink tone to the original photograph. This effect is just suitable for indoor photos as its background is based on a light color, a bit dreamy, so a background with high contrast between dark and light doesnt fit this tone.

How to fake reflections in Photoshop
Adding a reflection is a great way to draw attention and improve a dull water/sea/river photo.In this tutorial, author will explain you how to do it in post-processing.

Adding color to your subjects in photoshop
Most of us now use a handy little tool “Actions” in Photoshop for correcting an stylizing our photographs. But if you want your subject to pop, and actions sometimes seem to flatten the colors of your image especially of your subject then ypu must go through this article.

Soft and dreamy movie effect
Author will create a soft, dreamy effect on the face also make it stand out with warm color from the background darkened. With few simple steps your photograph can get a special effect like its in a movie scene.

Reducing Wrinkles With The Healing Brush In Photoshop
In this tutorial, author will tell about the Healing Brush, by far the best photo retouching tool in all of Photoshop, and how we can use it to easily reduce distracting skin wrinkles in an image.

Color your Black and White Photos Easily
Ever had a photograph you wished was in color? Read on and find out how to color it in using nothing more than the Brush Tool and Curve Adjustments.

Removing Skin Blemishes With The Spot Healing Brush
In this Photoshop tutorial, author will tell about ne of the most amazing and time saving photo retouching tools available, the Spot Healing Brush, the first of three image “healing” tools in Photoshop.

Blending exposure and adjusting light in Photoshop
This tutorial is a advanced version of exposure blending where you take one RAW shot that is exposed correctly for the land and then sky is recovered afterwards and saved as a second file. These two files can then be blended together using masks. This tutorial will also show you how to use photo filters to alter the light in your image.

How to add vignette to photos in Photoshop
Vignetting is the process of darkening the corners of a photo as it can help direct the eye on a particular subject of the photo, minimising distractions. Vignetting can also improve photos by giving them an artistic look and making them somehow more interesting. Author has used this technique to draw the focus on building rather thatn on tourists.

Improve photos by straightening the horizon in Photoshop
In this tutorial, author has straightened the horizon of the photograph as the horizon, especially in a landscape or seascape photo, can make or break your photo. A tilted horizon is not a good idea, unless it can aid the effect you’re trying to achieve.

Basic exposure blending in Photoshop
One problem you can encounter in photography is lack of dynamic range. The dynamic range is the range of light levels that can be seen from black to white. In this tutorial author will share with you some techniques for basic exposure blending.

Complete portrait retouching
In this tutorial author will tell you how to make a complete portrait retouch. You will know how to remove blemishes, retouch and enhance the skin, eyes, eyebrows, lips, as well as improve the highlight and shadow to make your picture look natural, vivid and beautiful. During this process many different techniques are shown and everything is explained in detail.

Adjusting skin tones in Photoshop
In this tutiorial, author have answered a common question about how to adjust skin tones in a photo. This can be anything from someone coming out looking a bit overly red to hiding a rash that isn’t normally there.

Post-Processing Infrared Photographs in Photoshop
In this tutorial, author will share his method to editing those starkly ‘red/magenta’ photographs or we can say Infrared Photography.

Selective Noise Reduction using Photoshop
Its every photographers nightmare. That fuzzy grain and colour dotting that seems you ruin your images. Noise. It lives in the shadows, loves high ISO’s, grows as you correct underexposed images and it destroys detail throughout a shot. Author will share you about how to beat this noise.

High Key Glow Effect In Photoshop
In this Photoshop tutorial, we’ll learn how to create a high key glow effect, which is a fancy way of saying we’ll be applying a glow only to the highlights in an image. This effect works especially well with wedding portraits since it’s great for adding a romantic, magical look to your photos.

Quick-Masking Soft Light Leaks on Photographs in Photoshop
This is a tutorial on how to recreate light leaks on photographs similarly to the those found on film photos that have been exposed to light via a crack or gap in the case. It is not as sharp and defined as most light leaks, as a softer finish is more appealing in this case.

How to improve your dull and boring landscapes in 5min
Dull and boring photos can be improved in an instant using the magic of post-processing. In this article you’ll get a chance to see author’s workflow of transforming dull and boring landscapes into dramatic photos.

Action Zoom Blurring Effect In Photoshop
In this Photoshop photo effects tutorial, we’ll learn how to add some action and a sense of motion to a photo with a zoom blur effect. We’ll use Photoshop’s Radial Blur filter to add the initial blurring, then we’ll bring back some of the original image using a layer mask and the Gradient Tool.

Lomo-Effect on Photographs in Photoshop
The Lomo-Effect on photographs is used frequently to provide an old photograph feel or simply a colour manipulation.Author will explain you how to achieve this effect.

Photo Treatment: A Delicious Hamburger
In this tutorial author will edit a photo of a hamburger, making it looks more delicious but not very artifical. Light and a few adjustmes like deleting little holes of the bread makes a lot of difference.

Quick Tip: Precision Colour Control in Photoshop
n this quick tip, Author will show you a simple and easy way to take control of the colours in your Photoshop documents using the power of adjustment layer

The Color Replacement Tool In Photoshop
The Color Replacement Tool is not the most professional way to change colors in an image and won’t always give you the results you need, but it usually works well for simple tasks and it’s such an easy tool to use that it’s worth giving it a try before moving on to more advanced and time consuming methods.

How To Repair Scratches, Tears, and Spots on an Old Photograph
In this tutorial you will learn how to repair cracks, scratches, and spots. Author has purposely avoid using some of the quick fix tools such as the healing brush so that you can gain an understanding of the basics of photo restoration.

Faking a Dental Ad: From Gorgeous to Gross – Reverse Cosmetic Dentistry
In this reverse cosmetic dentistry tutorial, where author made an ugly set of teeth for a dental template’s “before” photo, and kept the original spotless smile as the after in the Delicious Smile Template.

Photo Effects With The Dissolve Blend Mode In Photoshop
In this tutorial, author will tell you about a lesser known but useful tool of photoshop, known as Dissolve Blend Mode. After applying a simple sepia tone effect to the image, he will add a bit more of an artistic look to it by combining the Dissolve mode with one of Photoshop’s filters. Then he will tell how to use Dissolve to easily create a speckled photo border

Photoshop Tutorial – Photo to Pencil Sketch
This tutorial will show you how to easily transform a photograph to a pencil sketch using only Photoshop’s built in tools and filters.

Photograph Retouching Tutorial
Here is the step by step detail on how to retouch photo using Clone Stamp Tool in Photoshop.

Smoothing Skin With Photoshop CS5
In this tutorial, Author will show you how to use the Surface Blur filter in Photoshop to achieve a smooth skin effect without blurring out the details of the skin texture.

Gritty HDR Photo Effects
In this tutorial, author will show you how to give your photos a grunge look with this popular Photoshop effect. Although this Photoshop effect is commonly referred as HDR Photo effect, it is it can be done with regular, non-HDR photos.

Refine Edge Tool: Remove Flyaway Hairs Photoshop CS5 (Video)
Using the Refine Edge tool, you will learn how to quickly and effectively remove flyaway hairs and other distractions from your images.

Outlining The Action In Photoshop
In this Photoshop photo effects tutorial, author will tell you how to highlight the main subject of a photo with a simple outline and he will throw in a blur effect to further reduce the importance of the background.

Photo Souping up By Photoshop
There are times when a regular photo just doesn’t cut it and you need your photo to pack a punch. Here is one technique that you may find useful. As with all photo-based techniques, it doesn’t really make up for having a crappy photo but a general re touching.

High Speed Motion Trail Effect In Photoshop
In this photo effects tutorial, we’ll learn how to add a sense of speed to an object using an easy to create motion blur effect! This “speed trail” effect is very popular in sports photography since it’s a great way to add motion, direction and excitement to an image.

The 300 Effect
In this tutorial, author will walk you through the steps to create 300 effect using adjustment layers and blend modes to achieve this high-contrast 300 look.

10 Hidden Modifiers Tricks in Lightroom

Rommel — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 16:16:35 +0000

Lightroom is a pretty diverse program, which is simple to start learning, but contain hidden depths. Here’s some shortcut tricks that use modifier keys to access hidden features.

1. Straighten your Photo: Press ‘R’ to go to the crop mode in Develop. Press the Control key on PC, Command key on Mac. Then click on a point and drag to a second to let Lightroom rotate to make that line straight.

2. Quick Develop. You can access hidden settings in Quick Develop by holding down the Alt Key on PC, or the Option Key on Mac. This will change the Vibrance and Clarity controls into Saturation and Sharpening.

3. Print. In Custom or Print Package, hold down the Alt Key on PC, Option key on Mac, and drag a cell to make a duplicate copy of the cell, image included.

4. Catalogs. Hold down the Control Key on PC, Option key on Mac, when starting Lightroom to bring up the Select Catalog dialog box. From here you can choose between recent Catalogs, pick an alternative, unlisted, Catalog, or even create a new one.

5. Web. In the Web Module, you can cheat to access settings not available to you via the normal UI. Use the shortcut ‘Shift Control Alt /’ on PC, ‘Shift Command Option /’ on Mac, to turn the Appearance panel into a list of internal CSS tag items. To go back to normal, simply use the same shortcut again.

6. Color Picker. When you’re using the Color Picker in Slideshow, Print, or Web, sometimes you’d like to keep consistent colours between the work you’re doing, for example, using your brand colours. Find the colours via the Hex (or click on the word HEX to change to RGB) settings, then Alt/Option click on the swatches to save the colour for reuse elsewhere.

7. Setting your clipping points. Hold down the Alt/Option key and go to the Basic Panel in Develop. Drag Exposure, Blacks and Highlights in turn to see the points that are currently clipping. For example, clicking Exposure with Alt/Option held down will make the central area black. As you drag the slider, you can start to see the areas that are clipping. The colour represents the which channels are clipping, so red means the red channel is clipping etc. Recovery also makes the screen black, whereas Blacks will make the screen white.

8. Reset. Holding down Alt/Option will turn titles into Reset buttons. For example Presence becomes Reset Presence. Clicking this will reset all the Presence sliders.

9. Delete. Delete brings up a Remove/Delete box, or removes from a Collection. What if you want to get right of it no matter where it is? Here’s a dangerous shortcut to learn. ‘Shift Control Alt Delete Shift’ on PC, ‘Shift Command Option Delete’ on Mac. This is the ‘terminate with extreme predjudice’ command. It even deletes from within a collection. Use with care. Undo does not work with this command.

10. Change Import and Export. Holding down Alt/Option in Library will change the Import to Import Catalog, and Export will change to Export Catalog.

Review: Adobe Lightroom 3 (geek.com)
The Best Plugins for Lightroom (brighthub.com)
Lightroom 3: Sharpening Tool Tutorial (brighthub.com)
Round Tripping with Lightroom (digital-photography-school.com)

Skin smoothing – Camera Raw style

Rommel — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 16:07:48 +0000

: Image via Wikipedia

Flawless skin can be key to successful portraits of ladies. Make their skin creamy soft by tapping the K key in Adobe Camera Raw 5 to call up the Adjustment Brush. Set the Clarity slider to ~40 for starters. Brush over the skin you want to smooth. Want it smoother? Drag the slider farther to the left. This is a great way to get proofs out quickly without losing gallons of time with the Healing Brush tool in Photoshop.