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Welcome Hostway Newsletter readers! As a proud partner of Hostway we are pleased to offer a collection of some very special offers for Photoshop lovers, digital photographers and graphic designers! These are our very own exclusive discounts — collected just for you. Enjoy!

Focal Point Photoshop Plugin - 10% Discount

onOne has announced its new software plug-in for Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements — FocalPoint 1.0. onOne Software's FocalPoint is a selective focus and vignetting plug-in designed to help photographers easily blur and/or vignette areas of an image.

Popular among professional wedding, portrait and commercial photographers, the soft defocused look typically produced in camera by using special selective focus or tilt-shift lenses, filters or vignetting hoods can now be created quickly within Photoshop using onOne Software's new FocalPoint. This new plug-in eliminates the need for photographers to purchase, carry and use the accessories mentioned above at the time of the photo shoot and simplifies their ability to produce these effects later in Photoshop.

(Enter our exclusive discount coupon code PSSPPT06 during the checkout process at onOne Software for an instant 10% discount on FocalPoint.)

"Our new FocalPoint plug-in gives photographers total control over how they apply creative focusing effects to their image after the image has been shot," said Craig Keudell, president of onOne Software. "It's just like having a lens inside of Photoshop. Users set the location of their 'sweet spot' of focus directly on their image and then control the amount, kind of blur used and even lighten or darken the edges quickly and easily."

FocalPoint provides photographers with a way to create realistic depth of field control, plane of focus control and selective focus to any image after it is photographed allowing for more control and precision. The plug-in's unique FocusBug control has a tangible, hardware feel much like adjusting a lens. This special on-screen control makes it fast for a photographer to choose the "sweet spot" of focus either in a round aperture shape or a planar aperture shape and then control how much and what kind of blur they would like to add.

Blur choices include a standard defocused look as well as a blur that simulates motion. This has a huge benefit over hardware tools like auxiliary lenses and filters because it allows the photographer to control the focus and blur after the image is taken, giving them more control and requiring fewer shots in camera.

FocalPoint uses the same FocusBug controls to allow the photographer to simultaneously selectively blur as well as lighten or darken the areas outside of the "sweet spot" of focus. FocalPoint can also be used just for vignetting without blurring the image at all. In addition, the FocusBug allows users to tilt the chosen "sweet spot" aperture in 3D, simulating the tilt effect of a view camera or tilt-shift lens. This allows users to increase or decrease the amount of feathering or blur across a plane.

And once a photographer has created an effect they like, they can save it as a preset so they can easily recall it. FocalPoint remembers all of the settings applied including the relative size and position of the FocusBug so users can apply it to similar images without having to make any additional adjustments. By using Photoshop actions to access a FocalPoint preset photographers can even batch process an entire folder of images.

FocalPoint is designed for use with Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements and supports Adobe Photoshop CS2 and CS3 and Elements versions 4.0.1, 5, 6 and higher. It is compatible with Microsoft Windows XP and Vista and Mac OS X 10.4.10 and 10.5 and higher. onOne Software's FocalPoint plug-in will be available in April 2008 for $159.95 from onOne Software authorized distributors and resellers, or direct from onOne Software.

Exclusive 10% Discount On FocalPoint
Enter discount coupon code PSSPPT06 during the checkout process for an instant 10% discount exclusively for PhotoshopSupport.com visitors. FocalPoint is available from onOne Software.

Photoshop Actions, Photoshop Action Tutorials And The Automatic Album Creator

We recently talked with Gavin Phillips, owner of ‘Photographers Photoshop’ about his latest Photoshop Actions package deal. You can view some demo movies, and you can also download some free actions from his site. They are located in the menu bar, top left. In the download you will also find a PSD that contains some nice actions tutorials that will walk you through installation and some tips on how to use the free actions. Here's the interview...

What does your company offer?
We’ve developed 5 sets of creative Photoshop ‘actions’ and short movie tutorials over the past 5-years. Photographers and graphic artists can create great images by clicking a button or watching a 3-minute movie.



But there are thousands of free ‘actions’ available online. Why pay for them?
Yes, there are thousands of free ‘actions’ online, and that’s the problem. Good luck sifting through the junk to find one that creates a great photo ‘look.’ There are hundreds of free Photoshop tutorials online as well, but the bookstores graphic design section is loaded with Photoshop books. Professionals will always pay for products that give them high quality results rapidly.

We work with professional photographers and listen to what they tell us the market demands are. We add some of our own ideas into the creative mix before producing a set of ‘actions’ and movie tutorials. In each set we invest at least 1,000 hours development time.

How do the movie tutorials fit into your program?
Our creative ‘actions’ are powerful tools, but there are limitations to what you can do with an ‘action.’ Our movies serve three purposes.

1. Sometimes they work with an ‘action’. Our hand-tinted infrared technique is a good example of this. The Infrared ‘action’ runs through 15 or more steps automatically. Then the movie shows you the next few manual steps required to finish the effect.



2. A movie may give advice about different creative ideas about how to use an ‘action.’ An example of this is our ‘All-in-one ‘action’. This ‘action’ creates many different photo ‘looks’ on the same photo. You then go to the history palette to see which effect suits that photo.

3. Traditional movie tutorials that show manual techniques that cannot be created with an ‘action.’ For instance, one of our instructional movies shows you how to apply our art/sloppy borders to your photographs.

Speaking of ‘art/sloppy’ borders, what is the point of them?
They set your photographs apart from their background, and they add another artistic dimension to your imagery.



Once again we have created and discarded dozens of borders in order to give you borders that enhance your images. The image is the focus of attention, not the border.



How many sets of creative ‘actions’ and movies do you offer?
We offer five sets of creative ‘actions’ and movies. They were developed to offer photographers and graphic artists different types of imagery.

Infrared and Elegant Tones
Many soft types of photo ‘looks’. Some of the most popular ‘actions’ and techniques are Infrared, hand-tinting, skin-soften, cross-processed, 1950s, antique-color.

Stylish FX
Edgy effects for high-schoolers and young adults. The most popular are pop-art, tinted-litho, bleached, color wash, out-of-photo technique and Classic frame. Includes several custom gradients.

Black and White, Artistic Borders and Unique Tones
Many BW tones using custom 'curves'. Lith print, Vintage, Camelot, Autumn, Mystique, All-in-one, teal. Also includes Art/photo borders and Collage 'action'.

Portrait and Glamour Retouching
Includes two sets of movie tutorials that show you different retouching techniques. Our Glamour Gal retouch get’s great results in less than 5-minutes. Several ‘actions’ included.

Paint like Monet
How to create authentic hand-painted portraits in Photoshop using out custom art history brushes and techniques. You do not need any other software, like Painter, to achieve great painted photographs. Popular ‘actions’ are Color-art, Stylize, Paint-bold, Watercolor, Pencil-sketch.

Do you package the sets of ‘actions’/movies together?
We used to offer 1-set for a certain price, and then offer discounts if you purchased two or more sets. We now offer two packages. Infrared/Elegant Tones and Portrait /Glamour Retouching.

The second package is all 5-sets at a great price.

You mentioned a unique special offer this month. What is it?
Actually we have two unique special offers this month. The first offer is that anyone who purchases one of our sets of creative ‘actions’/movies this month will receive the Automatic Album Creator.

We are working with ‘Pixel Creator Pro’ whose software completely automates photo album design. You simply click on the custom JavaScript for a particular collage template; it then creates that template and prompts you for each image.

But what about positioning and resizing the images?
The software automatically allows you to resize each image after placement in the album page design. You can move any image around.

How many images can you put on a page?
There are many different page designs ranging from 2-6 images per page. The page design below took less than a minute to make using the Automatic Album Creator.



What is the second unique offer?
This is for anyone purchasing all 5-sets of ‘actions’/movies this month. They will receive the Automatic Album Creator , and a 1-hour ‘live’ online Photoshop training session with me.

I will show them how I use my creative ‘actions’ and movies to get them up and running fast. And give them different ideas about how to maximize sales.

What exactly is this ‘live’ online training? Do you need special equipment to take part? Is it interactive?
Yes, it’s completely interactive. ‘Live’ online training is a way for me to share my computer screen with participants on the Internet. They see exactly what I'm doing in Photoshop as I do it. They follow along with the tutorials just as you would in a traditional class.

We are also phone-conferenced in as well, so clients may ask questions at any time. You only need a high-speed Internet connection. I supply you with a free small software download. No other equipment is required.

Are there any charges for this?
Participants only pay for their phone call.

You don’t overload the classes with 30+ students do you?
There are never more than 10 people in a class at any time. Many times less than 8.

And after we’ve finished going through the program we spend time going over other techniques in Photoshop. Whatever’s on clients ‘need-to-know Photoshop wish-list’.

Do you have an easy to understand outline of what people receive with each package?
Yes, please see the chart below.



Sum-up in a sentence the benefits of your program.
Makes you more money, gives you more creative ideas and harnesses the power of Photoshop by clicking a button or watching a 3-minute movie.

Thank you for your time.
Thank you.

Find all the details on these special offers at the Photoshop Actions Page at Gavin's site, as well as a link to some free actions you can download and use instantly.

Photoshop CS3 And Photoshop Lightroom Bundles - Save Up To $150

Adobe has posted some special bundle offers on their store site. If you purchase Lightroom along with a full or upgrade version of Photoshop CS3 or Photoshop CS3 Extended from the Adobe Store you'll receive an instant discount.

The bundle product discount is available only when Lightroom and Photoshop CS3 or Photoshop CS3 Extended are purchased simultaneously.

The bundle discount is reflected prior to checkout. Education, OEM, and licensing customers are not eligible for bundle pricing, and this offer is valid in North America only.

Here's a list of the 4 different bundle offers in order of the most you can save to the least you can save:

Save $150
Photoshop CS3 Extended Full Together With Lightroom
Get Photoshop CS3 Extended full together with Lightroom and save $150

Save $125
Photoshop CS3 Full Together With Lightroom
Get Photoshop CS3 full together with Lightroom and save $125

Save $100
Photoshop CS3 Extended Upgrade Together With Lightroom
Get Photoshop CS3 Extended upgrade together with Lightroom and save $100

Save $75
Photoshop CS3 Upgrade With Lightroom
Get Photoshop CS3 upgrade together with Lightroom and save $75

Adobe Photoshop CS3 Classroom In A Book - Free Sample Chapter

Adobe Photoshop CS3 Classroom in a Book is available from Amazon.com ($34.64 - 34% off). This thorough, self-paced guide to Adobe Photoshop CS3 — written by the experts at Adobe Systems — is ideal for beginning users who want to learn key Photoshop concepts and techniques, while readers who already have some experience with Photoshop can use this book to learn Photoshop CS3's more advanced features and newest tools.

Using clear, step-by-step, project-based lessons, each chapter walks readers through the creation of a specific project, with each chapter building on the reader's growing knowledge of the program, while review questions at the end of each chapter reinforce the skills learned in each lesson.

Free Sample Chapter
Adobe has posted a free sample chapter — "Lesson 8 - Typographic Design With Photoshop" (PDF - 65 MB). From the Adobe site: "Pictures may speak a thousand words, but sometimes your image compositions need at least a few words. Luckily, Adobe Photoshop CS3 has powerful text tools that let you add type to your images with great flexibility and control. In this excerpt from Adobe Photoshop CS3 Classroom in a Book, learn how to use the great text tools in Photoshop CS3. You’ll learn how to make a clipping mask from type, work with type layers and styles, and even wrap text around a 3D object."

From the PDF intro:

"In this lesson, you’ll learn how to do the following: