Pictures of the Week: March 24-30

This week's photo of the U.S. soldiers playing with the puppy amazed me - not because of anything related to the composition or technical element of the photo - but because of the content.

 

Specifically, the apparent age of the soldiers. They look like kids! They are kids. It's amazing how young they are. I look at the soldier holding the puppy and he looks so happy, he could be anywhere...but he isn't. He's in Iraq fighting a man's war.

 

I commend the photographer for capturing this moment.  I imagine it must have stood out as something out of the ordinary given the context of the time and the place.  Yet it seems so normal - a kid and a puppy - and that's what makes it so powerful.

 

View this week's Pictures of the Week and vote for your favorite.

 

- Lee

Enhancing Cell Phone Camera Photos

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned an Adobe Photoshop "Action" that I use to enhance my cell phone photographs. That Action, known as "Smaragdify," was created by Dave Ward and is available from Adobe for free.

Here are the steps to follow to start using this action:

Step 1)  Download Smaragdify Action: Adobe Smaragdify

To use the Action after you have downloaded it to your computer, do the following:

Step 2) Place Smaragdify in PhotoShop Action folder: Unzip the download and you will have a single file named Smaragdify. Find your Adobe Photoshop program folder. Within that folder is a folder named "Presets." Open Presets and find the folder named "Photoshop Actions" and place Smaragdify in that folder.

Step 3: Load Action:  Now launch Adobe Photoshop and find the Action window. You might need to launch the Action window from Photoshop's main menu: Window > Actions.

Click and hold the little black triangle on the top right side of the Action window. This will launch the menu.

 

 

Scroll down to "Load Actions."

 

This will open another window. Navigate to the Adobe Photoshop folder. Find the Presets > Photoshop Actions folder. Then click on Smaragdify.

The Action is now loaded. You are now ready to use this Action to enhance your photos. But first you must know that this Action will create a layer for each enhancement it makes -- but the layers are not flattened, so you can modify any aspect of the enhancements. Don't worry. It will make sense once we go through an example.

 

Example: Now I will show you how I used Smaragdify to enhance one of my photos:

 

I was sailing with friends on the Chesapeake Bay this past winter, and as we headed for dinner in Galesville, the sun, air and wind created a very peaceful vibe. I made this photo with my Treo 650 and hoped for the best:

 

 

It does not capture the mood I felt when I made it. It's flat and lacking soul. Not a good representation of the moment. Here are the steps I took in Photoshop to enhance the photo:

Step 1) Crop and use Curves: I cropped the photo a bit to eliminate the distracting specular highlight created by the safety line on the far left. Then I used Curves to boost the contrast, bring out some highlights, and make the blacks blacker. Just using Curves also brought out the blue and gold in they sky and water.

 

 

Now it looks okay, but I wasn't satisfied. So I used Smaragdify.

Step 2) Make a Snapshot: First, make a Snapshot of this spot in the enhancement journey. In the History window, click the little camera icon. You have just created Snapshot 1. No matter what changes you make from this point on, you can always come back to this Snapshot. (And we will come back when we use the History Brush.)

 

Step 3) Run Smaragdify Action: Now I run the Smaragdify Action. Click on the Action to turn it blue. Then click the play button on the bottom of the window. The Action is made up of something like 70 small enhancements and mini-actions. Let it run and it will tell you when it's done.

 

Step 4) Click Stop: Now it's finished. The image looks very brown -- sepia actually. Read the text and then click Stop.

 

 

Step 5) Play with Layers: Look at your Layers window. You should always have this window, along with History open any time you are working in Photoshop.

I turn-off three of the layers. This eliminates the sepia, the grayscale, and noise the Action creates. Doing this saturates the colors to a point I like.

To turn-off a layer you don't like, just click the box that has the eye. (To turn it back on, just click on the same box again.)

If you like, play with each layer. Just double-click it and a window will pop for that specific effect.

I just leave the layers as they are -- and turn off the three I mentioned.

 

 

Step 6) Flatten: Now flatten the image. To do this go to the Layers menu on the top and drop down to the option "Flatten image."

 

Step 7) Use Curves again: I use Curves once again to bring up the highlights and shadows.

Step 8) Make another Snapshot: This will be labeled Snapshot 3. Why not 2? Because one of the mini-actions in Smaragdify made a Snapshot.

Step 9. History Brush to restore sharpness: Smaragdify applies a Gaussian Blur to the image in a somewhat mysterious fashion. There are times the blur is too much for faces for items I want to be sharp. To correct this I use the History Brush.

It gets a little tricky to explain how this works. To use the History Brush, we use the two Snapshots created earlier. We will paint from Snapshot 1 onto Snapshot 3.In effect replacing pixels from one Snapshot with those from another.

 

 

Click on Snapshot 3 to turn it blue. Click the far left box on Snapshot 1 to turn on the History Brush icon.

On the Tool Window, click the History Brush

 

 

The effect can be controlled by the tools settings. I usually start with a low setting then ramp up if needed. By selecting 32%, I am mixing Snapshot 1 with 3.

 

 

For this image I wanted a bit of sharpness brought back to the man's head and waves.

Here is my final image. I like the dark edges that Smaragdify adds. It creates a mood that I like, gives my cell phone images a style, and masks the poor quality of the camera.

 

And the before and after:

 

Send us some of your images that you have enhanced using Smaragdify!

- Cliff

Pictures of the Week: March 17-23

 

This week's photo of the group of U.S. soldiers from Gator Company 2-12 Infantry Battalion unwinding in their combat outpost, nicknamed "The Swamp," is a compelling image for a number of reasons. It is well composed, with the viewers eye drawn to the interplay of the soldiers directly below the overhead light. In almost the same fashion that one would enter the room, your eye follows the path toward the light. This moment of relaxation is something we rarely see in the images that move from Iraq. Although the soldiers appear to be at ease, there also seems a certain unease about it, as if the moment could end at any moment.

 

See all the photos in our latest Pictures of the Week gallery. And don't forget to vote for your favorite picture. Which image did you find most most compelling?

 

-Lee

Scoopt!

The lines that separate the amateur and the professional photographer seem to continue to creep closer and closer with the growth and adoption of digital photography among consumers. And Getty Images, one of the many photo agencies that provides photography for use on AOL throughout our many areas of programming, recently announced that they acquired Scoopt. The vision of Scoopt is to make "citizen journalism more accessible to the mainstream media." 

 

If amateur photographers find themselves in the right place at the right time, it's possible for them to submit their photos to Scoopt and have them available for use by media outlets across the world. Take, for example, this photo of a raging fire at the historic National Hotel in the Fremantle area of Perth, Australia, captured by Adrian Cheng and submitted to Scoopt:

 

 

It was a "citizen photojournalist" who captured compelling images from the crash of an Air France jet in Canada in 2005. The same was true during the London subway bombing, when citizen photojournalists captured scenes inside the tunnels in the aftermath. AOL also has its own area for citizen photojournalists to upload their photos: Submit Your Photos, and to participate in, AOL Citizen News Photoblog.

 

So the next time you think of leaving home without your camera, think again. It's just possible you might be in the right spot at the right time and make a photograph that could be seen around the world.

Northern Short Course, Part III

Our all-day multimedia "shootout" at the Northern Short Course conference was challenging and invigorating. (See our NSC Part I and Part II blog entries below for more on the NSC.) We split up into groups of three people and headed to the Providence Children's Museum. The juggling act of recording audio, shooting pictures, and gathering personal information from the people we were photographing began!

 

We focused on several aspects of the museum but spent the majority of time in Ms. Lambe's educational class. She was teaching air pressure. I experimented by photographing and recording audio of her blowing up a balloon, and releasing it to fly across the room on a tether. Thoughts rushed through my mind: Which audio clips matched which images? Did I capture the best audio? Did I hold the recorder at the right distance from the subject's face?

 

When recording audio, minute details of the room were of great importance. Hard table and floor surfaces, placement of the microphone, and ambient sound became concerns. Periodically the three of us assessed what we had, and what we lacked.

 

The juggling act of pulling all the elements together continued during editing. We had gathered 40 minutes of recorded audio -- any more and we'd have too much audio to go through to make deadline. Editing the audio first helped us determine which images to use. What was the most vibrant, distinct audio clip? Listening to the audio at least 20 times, we made sure the balloon audio from Ms. Lambe's class was concise, clear and crisp. It synched with the photographs to create a step by step re-enactment of the air pressure lesson.

 

 

 

The air pressure lesson.

 

Our original focus changed due to the strong audio. Originally we wanted to focus on the water room, but we shifted focus to Ms. Lambe's classroom because of the strong balloon audio. It was then that I realized audio's impact; it has the ability to dictate the image selection and order.

 

Inside the water room.

 

Using Sound Forge editing software, we decided which combination of audio clips and photos were most effective. We fumbled through editing the sound and had fun testing various effects like "vibration" and "blur." We imported the photos and MP3 sound files into Soundslides, a very intuitive program. With a completed basic presentation at deadline, we relaxed for the first time. Everyone who participated in the "shootout" watched each other's presentations, and we were amazed at the multiple ways of telling the same story. I walked away with a new appreciation of the entire information gathering process -- from shooting, to gathering sound, to editing, packaging and publishing.

 

- Sara

Pictures of the Week: March 10-16

This week's image of mirrors reflecting a collage of photographs by David Hockney at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles is an appropriate photo to highlight.

 

 

Having just returned from the National Press Photographers Association's Northern Short Course (See our NSC Part I and Part II blog entries below), I have been thinking more about photographs and the ways that they impact us. Photography, like most art, is very subjective. Each of us may be affected differently or have a different interpretation of what the photographer was trying to convey. We may choose to focus on a particular element or scene from a photograph ... or we may choose to take in the entire image. Either way it's a personal choice and experience.

 

The photo serves as a reminder to reflect on what we are looking at. What do you think? What do you see?

 

See all the photos in our latest Pictures of the Week gallery. And don't forget to vote for your favorite picture.

 

-Lee

Northern Short Course, Part II

I attended the NSC because of my interest in adding audio to our AOL Visions photo galleries. I had heard a lot about the Soundslides program as well as the Audacity sound editing software, and since Will Yurman was going to be conducting a full day's worth of seminars on the subject, I decided to go.

 

Will did a great job in conveying the process of gathering and editing audio. It was a great starting point for the inspirational seminars in the days that were to follow. To see some of Will's work visit: http://willyurman.com/ and check out our earlier NSC blog.

 

The next day, I attended a lecture by David Leeson. His presentation was dramatic. When David talked about the need to start to shooting video, it bordered on a bootcamp-like experience. And when he extolled the virtues of shooting video, it approached a religious ferver. He teetered between being a drill sergeant at a boot camp and a preacher at a religious revival. He always kept your interest and was able to both surprise and challenge you with his ideas.

 

He spoke about the difference between still photography and video photography and said he moved to video because he was "sick of leaving moments behind." He feels that the role of the photo is to communicate a powerful message and to touch hearts and minds, and that if we replace the still camera with a video camera -- while continuing to use our trained photographic eye -- then we enhance the experience with moving images and sounds. One of the pieces that was edited by David is a citizen journalism piece that captured an ambush of Canadian troops: Ambushed in Afghanistan (click on "podcast" and then scroll to find the link). It truly makes you feel as though you are there, which is exactly his goal.

 

 

For more on David Leeson, take a look at his work on these sites:

www.davidleeson.com
www.bestofvideojournalism.com
www.creativealchemist.com

 

The final day was a series of lectures. some of the highlights were:

▪ David Leeson, once again, talking about the creative process and displaying his 31 Days (click on top right "31 days" link) project, in which he created a self portrait every day for 31 days for a multimedia self portraiture project. An example:

 

▪ Preston Keres, from The Washington Post, displaying incredible sports photography and a couple of multimedia projects including this one: Drumline.

 

▪ Brian Storm, from MediaStorm, pushing the envelope of what can be done with multimedia as displayed in:

Iraqi Kurdistan

The Sandwich Generation

BLOODLINE: AIDS and Family

 

▪ Sam Abell, from National Geographic, who touchingly spoke on "The Photographic Life," displaying a lifetime of work of powerful photography. He still shoots film and prefers to use a simple set up of a 28mm or 90mm lens. Although his approach may seem to be in contrast to the multimedia-centric content of the conference, he simply drove home the point that it is not about the medium or the equipment, but rather about the "eye" and touching people and inspiring others.

 

You can read more about Sam Abell at DigitalJournalist.org. I hope you enjoy the great work you can find on all these links.

 

- Lee

Northern Short Course

This past weekend several AOL photo editors went to the National Press Photographers Association's Northern Short Course in Photojournalism in Warwick, R.I. I've been to many of these over the years, and this three-day seminar was one of the best I've ever attended.

 

The work that other photojournalists are doing in the field truly is inspirational. Multimedia news gathering was a primary topic of discussion during the conference, and I wanted to share one of the presenter's Web site with you: www.willyurman.com. Appropriately enough for March Madness, he showed his "hoops" slideshow, and it was one of my favorites (click on the "work" link at the top of his site, then click on "stories" and you'll see the "hoops" link). 

 

 

Will Yurman works at the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. Check out the documentary work he's compiling on the victims of homicide in Rochester in 2007 called "Not Forgotten." You can get to it by going to the newspaper's multimedia area and scrolling down until you see the link to it. Very powerful.

 

Will spent the day Thursday presenting multimedia news gathering techniques and the packaging of the audio and photography using a software program called Soundslides. Friday, a group of people went on a "multimedia shootout" to put into practice what Will went over in the seminar the day before. One of my colleagues participated in the shootout, and she'll be describing her experience in that in an upcoming post.

 

Saturday we spent time listening to a lineup of great presenters who described the work they have been doing and that they're currently engaged in. Beginning with David Leeson, of the Dallas Morning News, a Pulitzer Prize winner who truly is operating on different plane of existence, we listened to a half-dozen inspiring presenters who showed us incredible images and presented terrific story-telling experiences, including Brian Storm, who is president of MediaStorm, Thea Breite of the Boston Globe, and Sam Abell, who has worked for National Geographic since 1970.

 

There were lots of other seminars, and although we couldn't make it to them all we'll post a few entries about the ones we did sit in on (so please stay tuned to this blog). In the meantime, check out some of the links above and experience the great visual reportage being done out there across the Web.

 

- Gary

Pictures of the Week: March 3-9

India seems to be a country full of color ... and this week's photo from the Holi festival celebration of the girls throwing around the vivid colored powder is a perfect example. Holi is a festival of colors and signals the onset of spring. It's a time of year that we all welcome as the seasons change to warmth and rebirth. The contrast of the blue powder captured in midair against the orange and yellow background colors really draws your eye into the image and compels you to explore the details of what the photographer captured.

Find out more about this photo and see all the pictures in our latest Pictures of the Week gallery. And don't forget to vote for your favorite photo.

- Lee

Cell Phone Camera

The best camera to own is the one you will always carry with you.

 

This is the advice I give whenever someone asks me “what camera should I buy?” I spent the past 26 years carrying thousands of dollars of photo equipment with me as a photojournalist. Now that I'm a photo editor and commute to work on my motorbike, I don't carry a bag full of professional cameras. In fact, I don't carry a camera with me at all – I've got my cell phone.

 

 

Last spring I bought a Treo 650 to replace my old phone and Palm T2. It has a measly 0.3 megapixel camera, but I've learned a few tricks to make it deliver the images I desire. (And I follow my own advice that the best camera is the one you always have with you.)

 

Having a cell phone camera has reinvigorated my desire to shoot personal images. And its small size and silent operation makes it easy to be a fly on the wall while I shoot. But it does have its limits. For instance:

 

Sharpest focus is about 4 feet from the phone.

Left side of lens is blurry.

Constant magenta cast.

Unable to resolve detail inpoor light

 

 

But I've learned to make these defects work for me. I don't shoot with the idea of obtaining highly detailed images. All it takes is a bit of work in Adobe Photoshop, and I'm happy. I use a Photoshop action that creates the effect of a Holga plastic camera and then make my own adjustments.

 

To learn more about my Photoshop tricks to enhance cell phone camera images, tune in next Tuesday, March 13.

 

   

 

 

 

Don't forget to post some of your cell phone camera images below !   And remember to check back next Tuesday for PhotoShop tricks to enhance your phone camera images.

 

- Cliff

Did You See That?

Shaun Livingston of the Los Angeles Clippers grimaces in pain after dislocating his knee against the Charlotte Bobcats during the first quarter at the Staples Center Feb. 26 in Los Angeles.

It's like a train wreck -- as much as you might want to look away, it's strangely fascinating and horrific all at the same time. Sometimes people don't get paid enough for a job like this, considering Shaun Livingston should have another 50 years of life left in this world, but may have to start finding a second career at age 21.

 

Other rubbernecking opportunities available in this gallery:

Most Gruesome Sports Injuries - AOL Sports

 

And our continuing weekly efforts at:

AOL Sports: Did You See That?

 

Enjoy!

 

- Mike Heffner

Pictures of the Week: Feb. 24 - March 2

Can you believe the appearance of human emotion and feeling that is displayed in this week's photo of the baby orangutan and the tiger cub? 

The 5-month-old female Orangutan, Irma, truly appears to be comforting Dema, a 26-day-old endangered Sumatran Tiger cub, as they cuddle at the Taman Safari Indonesia Animal Hospital in West Java, Indonesia. Both animals had been rejected by their mothers. I think it's incredible and so very touching -- a real moment of affection and caring between these two "kids" who appear to be such good friends now, but who will ultimately need to be separated for their protection.

The natural world never ceases to amaze me. What do you think? Did this photo touch your heart as well? Find out more about this photo and see all the pictures in our latest Pictures of the Week gallery. And don't forget to vote for your favorite photo.

- Lee

Tags: Pictures of the Week