#GivingTuesday Roundup: Top 10 Wedding Planning Apps for fall 2014

Winter’s coming – and so is the wedding season! Holidays, vacations, weddings, and family time are things on everybody’s mind and people are waiting for the festivities to begin. To help, particularly those, who are tying the knot this season, we bring some of the best applications available for all the would-be-married couples in this article.

Elements Plus filters, masks and more

Independent author Andrei Doubrovski has rolled out Elements+ 1.0, his new enhancement patch for Adobe Photoshop Elements 8. Elements+ is a handy add-on that unlocks the undocumented advanced functions in Photoshop Elements featured in the latest versions of Photoshop.

Elements+ is JavaScript-based, so the script behavior will depend on current circumstances. The unleashed features can be accessed via dedicated dialog boxes that include undocumented commands and panels for exploring and using the hidden (officially unsupported) contents, such as paths, color channels, and more. The kit includes smart filters, vector masks, and many more advanced tools normally hidden under the hood.

 

Art Fotografic releases Album

Album DS 6.x now includes pre-defined product selections for many of ACI's products including all available sizes of their Art Books and Memory Books. Included in the book size options are sizes for covers, spreads and other options including their hinged paper. Customers who purchase or download the demo will see ACI listed as a company option in the new/open menu of Album DS and can easily begin new projects for ACI and even resize existing album or design projects to fit ACI's specifications automatically. Once a project is complete it can easily be sent to ACI via their Studio Art Suite online ordering system.

Existing Album DS customers can easily add ACI's products by using the Album DS Updater. Video instructions on updating Album DS are available on both ACI's website and on Album DS's website. ACI customers who do not yet own Album DS can visit American Color Imaging and get a code good for 10% off of Album DS plus a free copy of the deluxe DVD version ($50 value). Purchasers will receive download links immediately upon purchase to allow for the enjoyment of Album DS and ACI's presets right away and the deluxe DVD will be mailed out. There is a free fully functional demo version available from the Album DS website, plus video tutorials and a written PDF manual are also available with the demo or full versions.

Is it getting more difficult to believe news photos these days?

Is it getting more difficult to believe news photos these days?

Most people haven't noticed, but it's getting more and more difficult to recognize reality in photographic journalism. While the unwary public soaks up newspaper and broadcast news reports which show stark photography, those of us who know what can be done with today's software are taking a more careful look. A recent photo in the local newspaper editorialized the aftermath of a house fire. Most people looked at the story it told. I saw it -- but I also saw the affects of over-sharpening and was alerted that the image had been manipulated. As a journalist myself, I've come to scrutinize the images as much as the content.