David Hendley on wed 22 feb 06
Mel is correct - there is no going back. In a few more years
everything photographic will be digital.
The sooner you get with the program, the better.
Sure, there will still be artists shooting film and working in
darkrooms - but that will be analogous to we potters who
work in totally outdated ways for artistic reasons.
Today, even photographers who shoot film more often
than not scan the developed film and print digitally.
I know it may seem daunting to learn, but believe me,
it's worth becoming proficient in dealing with digital images.
Just as in all other areas affected by technology, the digital
photo revolution has leveled the playing field.
Now I, sitting at my desk in Maydelle, Texas, can design
brochures and promotional material that is every bit as
professional looking as a graphics arts company.
If I just need a few copies, I can print fine looking ones
on a $50 printer.
If I need more copies or large-size posters, I can put the
file on a CD and take it, or even send it over the internet,
to my local printer, who will print it out.
If I need 500 hundred or more fine-quality cards I can
upload the file on the internet to a printer in Cleveland
(http://www.jakprints.com), and receive the cards via
UPS in a week.
Even as I'm writing, I am making a few dozen 'care and use'
cards that will be included with all my dinnerware sales.
And not some crappy-looking Xeroxed print-out. There
is a close up of my hands making a pot, made to look like
a color charcoal drawing with Photoshop, and shading and
shadowing around the lettering.
Digitally photographing your work is much, much easier.
No need to worry about the color balance of your lights -
the camera has settings for any type of light, it also has
automatic color balancing, and if you still manage to screw
it up you can fix it with Photoshop.
Bowls are notorious for being hard to photograph. There's
just no way to keep a white reflection from showing up at
some point inside a bowl with a glossy glaze. Not a problem
now - just shoot, don't worry about it, and remove the glare
when you edit the photo.
And, please, if you are going to send photo attachments with
e-mail, learn how to size the picture.
In the last 2 days I've gotten HUGE pictures from 2 different
people. They are so large you can't even look at them - about
24 X 30 inches at 72 dpi (monitor resolution). One e-mail was
6 MB and took half an hour for my dial-up connection to
download.
Just about any photo software will let you re-size pictures.
If you want a good image and graphics program but don't
want to spend big bucks, get a free one!
GIMPshop is modeled after Photoshop and will do just
about anything Photoshop will do. It is a free download at
http://www.plasticbugs.com.
The original, simpler GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation
Program) from 1996 is less complicated and easier to learn
for beginners, and is available at http://www.gimp.org.
PhotoPlus 6 is supposed to be another good program along
the lines of an older version of Photoshop. PC Magazine
calls it the best free image editor program. Download it at
http://wwwfreeserifsoftware.com.
So, quit resisting. Just like your mom told you about eating
your spinach, learning how to take and edit digital photographs
is good for you. Your work will be healthier.
Yes, you will have to use all your brain power to get a handle
on it, especially if you are over 40 and didn't grow up using
computers.
But it will truly set you free. And it's fun.
David Hendley
Old Farmhouse Pottery
david@farmpots.com
http://www.farmpots.com
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