Photography How-Tos

Create Picture Frames in Photoshop: Part 2

In Part 1 of this tutorial, you learned how to create a picture frame, fill it with a photo, and change the perspective so the framed photo faces right or left. Now discover how to apply all those steps to any photo with one simple click. The secret? Automation courtesy of Photoshop's Actions and Droplets.

Create Picture Frames in Photoshop: Part 1

Using Photoshop, you can create a silver, gold, or wood-grain picture frame, fill it with a photo, and transform both frame and photo so that they're skewed in different perspectives. The realistic results are easier to achieve than you might think!

Get Rid of Red Eye

In this one-minute video, you'll learn how to remove red eye from any photo using a hidden tool in Adobe Photoshop.

Photography How-to: Learning to See in Black and White

Everything from portraits to landscapes can be more powerful when they're black-and-white photos. Once you know how to recognize tonal contrast, texture, shapes, and patterns, your monotone images will be anything but monotonous.

Photoshop How-To: Fill a Face Full of Words

Using one photo and three layers of text, you can create a powerful image in Adobe Photoshop.

Photography Fundamentals: Work the Scene

To create an image that provokes an emotional response from your viewer, you usually need to work the photo. See how one professional photographer hones his shots.

Turn a Red Car to Gold in Photoshop

It's fun and useful to change the color of one object in a photo. While you can do it easily enough in Photoshop, the Hue/Saturation technique most people try usually doesn't work well. Instead, use my foolproof method.

Photoshop How-to: Ship in a Bottle

Even if you were all thumbs in shop class, you can make a glass bottle; place a ship inside it; float it in water; and top it off with a cork. The magic is made possible by Adobe Photoshop.

Easy, Efficient Image Effects with Lightroom Presets

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom presets can give you all kinds of images effects, from subtle to surreal, with one click. Learn how to make your own and where to download free presets online.

Photoshop How-to: Give a Horse Wings

Pegasus (a horse with wings) may be a mythical animal, but you can bring it to life in Photoshop.

So You Think You Know Photoshop?

The new features in Photoshop CS5 have obscure--but handy--uses you probably haven't explored. Get the most out of your investment: Learn how to unearth these hidden gems.

Photoshop How-To: Merge Two Images for a Custom Collage

Few projects have the budget for custom photography. Yet if you use too much stock photography, you may look like everyone else. The solution: Combine photos into something unique using Photoshop.

For Better Photos, Learn How to Recognize Good Light

Understanding the power of light is more important than a fancy camera or expert Photoshop skills. Learn the best times of day to photograph and why the way the light hits your subject matters more than the subject itself.

Turn a Photo into a Planet Using Photoshop

Learn how to turn ordinary photographs into intriguing images that look like miniature planets. Careful set-up and Photoshop's Polar Coordinates filter are key.

Turn a Photo into a Painting in Illustrator

Follow one artist as she walks you through the process of creating an illustration using a composite photo as a guide.

Composite Landscape Images with Photoshop

Sometimes a landscape photo has just the composition and mood you're going for. Other times, it seems like nothing you can find is quite right. When that's the case, don't settle for second-best. Join two photos to create the perfect composite landscape!

Create Custom Photo Layouts in Lightroom 3

Harness the new print options in Adobe Lightroom 3 for creating your own layouts, with customized background colors, borders, identity plates, watermarks, and more. Then output your photo layouts to print or to electronic files.

Splash an Image with Water Droplets Using Photoshop

You can use Adobe Photoshop's displacement maps to create refraction effects, such as the view through water droplets. And once you've created the water and the displacement map, you can swap out the background and replace it with other images!

Histograms Are the Best Photography Tool You Already Own: Part 2

When your camera's histogram is telling you things aren't quite right, let the Exposure Compensation control fix things quickly.

Histograms Are the Best Photography Tool You Already Own: Part 1

Whether you're shooting photos or editing them in software, understanding the histogram will help you produce better images. Here's your guide to decoding the messages in this powerful tool.