Tag Archive for: Photoshop

I show you how I started and where we are now (Digital Classroom Love for Photography)

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Digital Classroom Love for Photography

It’s been interesting….

It’s been interesting to go through my old work for this episode of Digital Classroom. It was broadcasted on February 14, Valentine’s Day. And we didn’t want to do another model in red.
I thought it would be fun to dedicate a whole episode to Love for Photography.  About the way my photography changed, but also my vision of my work and the way I work with models, sets, lighting, and styling.

I hope you enjoy this very special and personal episode in our digital classroom series.

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Above the recording of the Digital Classroom Love for Photography

 

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TourBox Lite, this will change your workflow forever

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Does the TourBox Lite change your workflow?

Last week we received the TourBox Lite for a review. In this blog, you’ll read how it changed my workflow.

Workflow importance

One of the things I always teach during workshops is workflow.
It might sound boring but having a proper workflow is essential to get not only consistent results but also to simply save time for other important things in life 😀

When we talk about workflow we often talk about settings and the order in which you edit in Lightroom, Photoshop, or your favorite editor.
But there is a lot more.

With the release of the iPad Pro I (and many with me) thought the world would change forever and we would not need laptops anymore… well a few months later I sold my oversized iPhone and closed that chapter. But many years later I bought the 11″ iPad Pro and that changed my workflow forever.

iPad Pro 12.9″

At the moment I’m using my iPad Pro 12.9 for almost 99% of my sessions in combination with Cascable to shoot tethered, and let’s be honest, especially on location, you can shoot all day with the iPad, it has more than enough light output for outside, it’s well protected against the elements and… well it’s not about the iPad today, but it’s a game changer. The iPad Pro is an important part of my workflow.

Retouching with the iPad and a laptop

For me, most of the time is spent on retouching. Like most of us, I love taking photos but retouching… well it has to be done. Don’t get me wrong it’s a lot of fun in most cases, but in a lot of other cases it’s something you have to do and the faster it can be done the better.

In the studio (and at home) when I work in a static setup I use my MacBookPro 14″ M1Pro connected to a 32″ BenQ monitor and retouching is done via an XP-pen drawing tablet (with screen), which works like a charm. But I have to sit behind my desk.

Sometimes I also want to edit on the couch. When traveling, in a hotel, and sitting behind a desk is not always ideal. Having a laptop with a touchpad is doable but not for everything. You just need more control sometimes, especially with selections or skin retouching.

Luckily Apple has a great solution for this.
You can connect your iPad to your MacBook and use it as an input device. In fact, I’m having my MacBookPro on the table and holding my iPad and Apple Pencil on my lap.

Full Photoshop on the iPad

Well ok, there is an app on the iPad called Photoshop. Although it gets better every release, it’s a far cry from the desktop version. So to do proper retouching I still need the full version of Photoshop (at the moment). This is where the connection between the iPad screen and MacOs works like a charm, there is however one HUGE disadvantage.

the iPad is an important part of my workflow

Where are my keys…. oh there

As you can see in the image the iPad mirrors the MacBook and when using an Apple Pencil retouching becomes really close to using a real drawing tablet. Some things are a bit “wonky” but overall it’s a huge improvement over using the touchpad and especially on location this is the biggest improvement in your workflow in years.

But…. we all know that for Photoshop we also need key input.
Try to use Photoshop just with a pen and you will within seconds find out that you can’t do anything. For almost everything, you need keystrokes. Now luckily Apple knows about this so they offer a floating “keyboard” with the most used keys like COMMAND, CRTL, SHIFT, SPACE, etc.

I don’t know about you, but I like it because there is nothing else. But it’s far from perfect. You don’t feel the keys, they take up space and on the iPad screen size is something I don’t want to sacrifice.

Hardware solutions

Over the years I’ve tried several input devices and although they all promise that you will speed up your workflow 10-fold and everything is easier and…. well you know what I mean. In real life, I never really found something that stayed.

Most of the devices I tried are too light, meaning they “walk” over my desk, adding some anti-slip feet helps but it’s something I have to add myself. Other devices were not well-formed which meant I had to move my hand too much and because most buttons had the same form I still needed to look at the device, which made the device useless for me because I could as easily just use a keyboard.

The TourBox Lite changed my workflow

The TourBox Lite changed my workflow

TourBox Lite (2024)

I think I found the perfect solution to improve my workflow.
A left-handed device (yes, read on if you’re like me right-handed). that just hits the nail on the head.

The TourBox Lite is the newest addition to the TourBox family and retails for just under $100 which in my opinion is a very critical price point.

When unboxing the first thing that caught my attention was the weight.
You expect something from that size to be a lot lighter, now I’m not saying it’s TOO heavy, in fact, it’s perfect.
It doesn’t move around on my desk and it’s light enough to carry around easily in your backpack.

At first glance compared to some other products you might think “There are not a lot of buttons there”.
But let’s be totally honest with each other.
This is NOT a keyboard replacement, it’s a workflow device, and when you look closely at what you really need I have to be honest that I don’t really miss any buttons.

 

TourBox Lite workflow advantages

One of the cool things about the TourBox series is that you can add app 100 actions to the buttons.
They make this possible by using combinations and also double clicks.

I’ve been testing the TourBox Lite for a few days now and for example, in Logic Pro I’m using the double click on the play button. One time means STOP/PLAY but double click means GO BACK TO START. This is an action you use all the time and having it under one button is just genius and feels very natural.

For Final Cut Pro and Lightroom/Photoshop, I’m using the scroll wheels to zoom in and out and change the brush size and that speeds up your mobile workflow a lot.

TourBox lite console

More options

I started this blog post with a story about how the iPad changed my workflow and the TourBox Lite is for me a huge upgrade. I can now just leave my laptop on the table (or floor) and use the iPad Pro with Apple Pencil and the TourBox Lite to work through my whole session without ever needing to touch my laptop. This is huge 😀

But when I’m not using the iPad Pro for retouching I still have it next to my MacBookPro and use it for almost all software I use. The fun thing is that with the other devices I tested I always found out after a few minutes I was using the keyboard and actually forgot that I also had another input device.

The TourBox Lite is designed for left-handed use, and that’s genius.
I’m mostly holding my XP-pen or Apple Pencil in my right hand and my left hand is free to operate the keyboard. But also when adjusting parameters when using Logic Pro and holding a guitar, having the right hand free to hit the strings and the left hand to adjust is really comfortable.

Of course, you can use other devices also with your left hand. But this is I think where I like the TourBox Lite more. Because I don’t have to move my hand. I position it and it hardly has to move. Another huge advantage is that all buttons feel slightly different. My other device uses mostly the same buttons where you have to put stickers under to see what you’re doing. Well in a dark studio, this already doesn’t work and often ends in frustration. And that you only use the dials and buttons on the keyboard, which I think is not the way it should be 😀

So many options, so little time

You probably already picked up that we can program A LOT of combinations but how do you remember everything?
For me, that’s always been a problem.
When I start with a new software suite I try to first learn the most important keystrokes. And luckily it’s often pretty straightforward. But even with a normal keyboard, especially at the start, you have to sometimes look up the keystrokes.

With these kinds of devices for me, that’s always a problem. On the keyboard, I can mostly find my most used keystrokes but when you use several suites at the same time it can become really messy with input devices.

The TourBox software has a really nice option where you can link software to the TourBox. This means as soon as you open the software it will open the preset on your TourBox too. This makes it easy to switch between software but doesn’t solve my problem of remembering what is what.

You can of course just try or maybe even have the editor open on another screen, but I actually love the way TourBox chose to use a HUD solution that can be customized, moved around, and setup exactly the way you like.

When you press a button it will also show up in the HUD.
Now in most cases you will probably only use the HUD for a few days or weeks, after which it should probably be a matter of feel and muscle memory.

In conclusion, did the TourBox Lite change my workflow?

The new 2024 TourBox Lite is a very interesting input device.
It’s small enough to be used on the couch with your iPad. But it has enough buttons and combinations to even help with more complicated workflows.

The price point is spot on, but you sacrifice a bleutooth connection and some extra buttons that you can find on the Elite. But if you have no problem with working with a USB-C cable, I don’t see an issue there.

Are there things to improve…?

Yes of course 😀
I would love to see a small backlight at the buttons. I mostly work in light-controlled areas which means that the TourBox is located next to my keyboard in the studio and there is hardly any light hitting that area. Because all the buttons feel different it’s not a big deal, but it would be nice, and shouldn’t be a problem seeing the TourBox Lite is connected via USB-C anyway.

For me, the TourBox Lite hits the nail on the head.
It has enough buttons, the right price point, great software, auto switching apps, HUD, and of course well designed so you can use it with one hand and minimal movements (great for long hours of work).

I lost my interest in this kind of devices but this one has shown me that it can be done right.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Also, want a Tour box?

When you use this link for your order, you also support our work: TourBox Lite

For BenQ we have a 10% discount code for European customers, if you are in the market for a new monitor, drop us an email for the discount code.

 

Disclaimer:
I was sent the TourBox Lite by TourBox to check out.
ALL reviews I make are 100% my real opinion and not motivated by manufacturers, our readers demand and deserve a real and honest review and that’s what I do.

Creating awesome zebra patterns with Photoshop AI

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Creating patterns with Photoshop AI

 

WOW.
I knew that the generative fill from Adobe was great. But sometimes it all works great in demos, but not in real life. And to be honest that was a bit my experience so far. It was a bit hit-and-miss. But Adobe constantly improves and that’s visible. In today’s blogIn today’s blog, we take a look at what Photoshop AI did in this amazing zebra set with stylist and model Nadine

 

Generate fill in Photoshop

I don’t use generative fill a lot to add things to a scene. Mostly to extend backdrops, add some hair or skin, etc. You could say I use it to speed up my workflow but not really change my images. Well ok, during the cosplay workshop, we go all out but that’s also clearly visible 😀

 

Creating zebra patterns with Photoshop AI

Today some images we took with our model/stylist Nadine.
For months, I had this idea with zebra prints. And we started buying material until we thought we could pull it off.
Nadine owns a great vintage store so the clothing was not a real problem in this. The main issue was that we did not really have enough material to cover the whole wall and for the floor, we only had a relatively middle-sized rug.

 

As you can see in the images…. Photoshop did very well. I was mostly impressed by the perspective on the floor.
In some images I actually hid some zebras in some of the final results… can you spot them? 😀

creating patterns with Photoshop AI

this is the best example of what Photoshop AI can do. It added more patterns.

creating patterns with Adobe AI

Make a close up and you don’t need extra patterns 😉

Creating patterns with Adobe AI

Only the backdrop in the middle and the rug is real, Adobe Ai did the rest

 

Another blog with styling from Nadine

and another Christmassy styling with Nadine 

 

As a Star Trek nerd I love these workshops

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One (of the many) things I love about my work is that no workshop or shoot is the same.
I actually never prepare my workshops or demos, this way I keep it fresh for myself but also for the attendees that visit our workshops regularly.
This also means that I often listen to the questions the attendees have before the studio part starts (the Q&A) and base my workshop on those questions.

Besides the group workshops I teach weekly in our studio in Emmeloord I also do 1:1 workshops of course. And the cool thing about these is that some people just show up and use it to ask loads of questions and practice in the studio, but there are also workshops where there is a whole story board and idea behind the workshops.

When Gabe asked me if it was possible to do a 3 day workshop with me and work towards end results with several Cosplay outfits I was really looking forward to it, but than Corona hit and travel wasn’t possible for over 2 years. But finally this year Gabe was able to travel to the Netherlands.

Today I want to share three images I shot myself during the workshop.
All three were shot agains the emerald punch from ClickPropsBackdrops. I did this because it is a backdrop that blends really nicely together when you want to add some special effects. Now the idea was to test out the new AI options in Photoshop…. and I actually loved the outcomes, I hope you like them too.

For the first one I thought about the first series and the strange “fake” planets they would visit and where there was always something going wrong of course. So I thought it would be nice to create a sand planet with an obvious fake planet in the night sky.

When I cut out our model Jona and placed her on a separate layer the idea was to create a sand planet where she would be standing. But Photoshop AI had a much better idea and created exactly what you see here the sand part. I immediately admitted AI won here with the idea. I started adding some alien tentacles and bones, a night sky and the planet. Some mist effect and small details and in all honesty it didn’t take me long but most of all I think this way of using AI is SO much better than just using it to go from text to image for a whole scene. The fact Photoshop clones the background and makes everything fit is just insanely handy and really triggers your creative mind.

So for the next one I went a step further
We knew what I wanted as an end result, so the smoke and phaser are all real.
When I had the base image I started adding the light bars on the floor, the hallway was two separate parts, all the lights are of course fake. but the colors were determined before the shoot itself. And this makes it much easier but also more frustrated to get to your end result.

In this case it was exactly what I wanted. Blue light from a large window (like the engine room), a dark corridor with blue and red lights (like an alarm) some smoke and ambient effects and a phaser firing. And the AI did exactly that… wow.

Full of confidence I started with the final image. Picard period.
Well I can say that the end result is what I wanted, but this time is was a disaster to get there.
Loads of times I got messages I broke the rules of Adobe because asking for certain words or selections. So I decided to started with much smaller parts and build it up part by part. This went a lot better and especially the sides have turned out pretty cool. In the back I wanted a large window with a warp trail and although it could have been nicer I think this one looked the best.

And of course we also did one just agains the backdrop.

Working with AI in Photoshop beta is pretty awesome.
But literally in three images I had three different experiences, and I had this before.
Sometimes the AI seems to read your mind and does exactly what you want it to do, or even better, and almost every “guess” is right.

Sometimes it just does what you want, sometimes you refresh the idea and you put it together.

And sometimes it just doesn’t want to do anything.
You type in realistic laboratory wall with computer panels and cables and you end up with something that could have come out of a lego movie and doesn’t make sense at all, and that’s how that last image actually turned out. Where with the second one everything just clicked together the last image was really an image I almost gave up on, but when I switched to much smaller parts I really came together I think.

Hope you guys enjoyed this overview of the Star Trek series.
Gabe brought all the clothing and from our side we would love to thank him not only for visiting us but also for giving me a great few days shooting cosplay :D.