Written by T. Michael Testi

Have you ever wondered how professional photographers make their subjects stand out from the background? You may see an insect on a flower that is in focus and everything else is blurred. This is a standard trick used by the pros that is called selective focus. One method of doing this is to control depth of field in the camera by using a large aperture lens to produce a narrow depth of field.

Another method is to hand-manipulate the image in an image editing program such as Photoshop, but that can take time and some skill to get it to look good without that manipulated feel — that is, until FocalPoint from onOne Software.

FocalPoint gives you the ability to use selective focus to remove distracting backgrounds and allows you to force the viewer's line of sight directly onto the subject. While this is often used in macro photography, it is also very popular in portrait, wedding, commercial, and editorial photography as well.

To run FocalPoint on Mac you need OSX 10.4.10, 10.5 or higher with either 1 GHz G5 or Intel core processor. On Windows you need XP SP2, Vista, or later, 1GHz Pentium 4 processor or equivalent. And then you need Photoshop CS2, CS3, or Photoshop Elements 4 (on Mac) or Elements 5 (on PC) or later. You'll need a minimum of 1 GB ram (2 GB recommended), 25

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From the review that calls the K20D "Highly Recommended":

"In short, the K20D is a great stab at making a photographers' camera - a camera for people who love taking images, are happy to invest in lenses (perhaps the primes that can make the most of those 14.6 million pixels), but aren't going to be recouping the cost of their equipment through regularly selling images. It offers a very pleasant, near pro-level, photographic experience at a reasonable cost and in a body that feels solid, well built and as if it was designed by someone who used one themselves.

Because the K20D offers so much that the enthusiast photographer would enjoy, it would be churlish to let the sensor-based flaws, which have little impact in real-world shooting, prevent us giving the camera our highest award. This isn't to say it's a faultless camera or one that's suited to everybody but one with only minor drawbacks that should only dissuade a small number of potential buyers."

Link: DP Review's IN-Depth Review of the K20D

Our tutorial this time will show you how you can achieve high-key effect in a Black and White portrait with only 4 easy steps in photoshop.

Here are our before and after portraits..

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For some amazing long exposure photos, have a look at the work of Alexey Titarenko.

Sony has flooded the entry-level dSLR market this year (2008) with three offerings in this category, the A200, A300, and A350. These models share very similar specifications, with resolution, Live View, and the LCDs being the main differences between them. The 14.2-megapixel Alpha 350 or DSLR-A350 is what I consider the "top model" from Sony in this field. Like the A200 we reviewed earlier in the year, the A350 offers an APS-C sized imaging sensor with Anti-dust system, Alpha/Minolta A-type bayonet lens mount, Super SteadyShot image stabilization system, D-Range Optimizer, 9-point AF system with Eye-start option, 40-segment metering, etc. Sony has improved this model with more resolution, Live View function and a large variable angle 2.7-inch ClearPhoto LCD screen. However, the burst or continuous capture rate has dropped to 2.5fps compared to the 3fps of its sibling.

Like all of the Alpha models, I was pleased with the ergonomics of this camera. The A350's body design is almost identical to the A200. The differences include the variable angle LCD, Live View/OVF (Optical ViewFinder) switch on the top, and the "Smart Teleconverter" button on the back. I found this button to be pretty much useless. It can only be used in Live View mode, and by lowering the image size, it acts like a digital teleconverter (1.4 or 2x). This function reminds me of the digital zoom feature you find on many consumer digicams. We feel that this button could have served a much better purpose, and hope that...

Nikki and Matt really did it right with the help of Jill Watson. They spared no expense in the decor or their attire which is easy, but they also had very cool and unique ideas to make the day really stand out.

This is the morning of 5K they organized complete with t-shirts, aluminum bottles, and a banner all with their custom 'Race to the Alter' logo!I had no idea they'd take it so seriously!!! These guys are fast!
The superheroes did well but couldn't keep up with Matt and his guys:)
After running (and skateboarding) part of the run, they we kind enough to have a room for us (myself and Alex, Elysium Productions) to rest, get cleaned up and get ready for a great lunch and then the wedding.

She couldn't decide on which shoes to wear!!




Their first meeting on...

Introducing the amazing 10.2-megapixel Samsung NV24HD camera. Representing the very best in compact camera technology, it boasts a 24mm wide-angle and a 3.6x optical zoom lens so you have a wider shooting range. Plus, now you can experience full HD quality with your camera. Capture images and record videos in high definition - then watch them on your HDTV in high-quality 720p resolution. Images are richly colored, crisp and clear, simply the best quality available in a digital camera.

4.42pm, everyday by Giles Toller