For those people that have an online store there is a million posts out there about how to improve your item pictures.
Honestly I think I read them all, if not I at least tried to.
But I have the feeling that there are still quite a few sellers out there that don’t do anything with their pictures after taking them.
When I read peoples posts asking for picture help I can see that all they need is a little “boost”.
What I mean is Photoshop of course.
Many people still think that photoshopping your items is changing the original item.
But that is not the case.
Since many of us aren’t professional photographers and don’t have the right cameras, our items don’t come out as good as they look in reality.
But with a little tweaking here and there that is fixable.
Please take in consideration that I'm not a retouching Pro, I just try to make my item shots look as good as possible in the simplest way possible.
I will show you a quick and simple step by step guide on what I do with my photos before I post them.
This is the original untouched Picture token with my normal slightly crappy digital camera.
First I take away all dirt using the Clone stamp tool.
I marked the spots i would take away for you to see it better.
To erase dirt and spots easy, choose an appropriate clone stamp size, alt click as close to the spot without touching it and then click on top of the spot and voila!
it should be gone now...
Then i want the background to be nice and white. For that i use the white curves tool. Go to Image then Adjustments and then curves. In the Curves menu you will see three pipy things click the right one which is white. After clicking the white pipe thing click on a spot on your pic that should be white, or the lightest part of your background. You will probably have to experiment a little. The trick is not to make the background color too white, if you do that it will not only look photoshop, but also unreal.
Now that the background is nice and white I want the picture to get the final POP effect. For that i use the Brightness and Contrast tool. Go to Image then Adjustments and then Brightness/Contrast. Play around with it a little, just remember not to go too extreme to the sides. I usually only move the Contrast leveler to the right, in this case it was on +45.
And this is already the finished picture!
There is another trick i want to show you. Some pictures still look dull after using the contrast step. If that happens you can higher the saturation a little bit. Go to Image then Adjustments and then Hue/Saturation. Only use the Saturation very moderately, in this picture i used approximately +14. Just have fun with it everything is reversible!
Just remember that the trick is to always photoshop a little less then too much, unless you want your items too look obviously retouched.
I hope this tutorial helped you guys a little bit, and if it did, make sure to leave a comment so I post some more. And don't hesitate in asking any questions!
It’s interesting to look at the development of videogame music. It started with no music to MIDI music to “real” music to actually playing the music yourself.
Video gaming in my life started somewhen in the late 80’s, beginning of the 90’s (”Somewhen” meaning; at some point of time. A non-existing word that should find its way into the English dictionary somewhen!).
All of my friends had the classic Nintendo 8bit or the Sega Mega Drive and I remember trying to find excuses to stay out as long as possible just so I could hang out with my BEST friends Mario, Luigi, Sonic & Tales in my alternative digital reality. And the music from those games! It was only a matter of time before they were transformed into MIDI sounds with heavy base pumps and neck cracking rhythms!
The original videogame music has actually turned into proper feel good music for me. It reminds me of good times, way before paying rents and making careers.
And then came the videogame boom. Ever since Sony decided to join the videogame train in –94, the development of both the consoles and its music has really bloomed.
I remember the first time I played Grand Theft Auto on the Playstation 2 console. My mind was blown away because you could actually pick the music you wanted to listen to. Either by browsing through the radio stations that played everything from country to newly released hip hop or by saving the music on your Xbox and playing it in the game like you’re playing your cd player in your car! Crazy...
Well not so crazy anymore. The kids growing up today have everything from live karaoke and dance games to playing an instrument in a rock band or like the most recent, Djing!
I can’t wait to see what’s going to happen in the next 20 years when it comes to videogames and its music. Maybe we’ll be performing live from our living rooms to a streaming audience worldwide. Maybe new sounds and instruments are going to develop out of this thing. All we can do is wait in astonishment and see...
Until next Monday, look up somebody who kept their old console and go nuts!
Without a doubt is comedy my absolute favorite genre within films. I just can’t resist the uncontrollable laughs and giggles some comedy films give me. And what better type of movies is there to share with a friend? (Besides chick flicks on girl’s night of course)
The list is in no specific order; each of these films is uniquely and equally funny in their own ways. They became instant classics, and repeatedly watchable.
So here are my top 3 picks and must see comedy films of 2009:
Tropic Thunder
Directed by Ben Stiller
Starring : Ben Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., Jack Black
I wasn’t sure what to expect of a comedy war film, but the results turned out absolutely hilarious.
And what else to expect from this cast anyways….
Year one
Directed by Harold Ramis
Starring: Jack Black, Michael Cera
Great actor duo paired with the most random plot.
I already watched it 3 times and each time was incredibly entertaining, what more can I say.
The invention of lying
Directed by Ricky Gervais and Matthew Robinson
Starring: Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Jonah Hill, Rob Lowe, Tina Fey
This film deserves its own “review”!
It was an absolutely surprising, unique, absurd, amusing, hilarious, humdinger, hysterical, clever, ludicrous, merry, ridiculous, riotous, witty and a knee-slapper of a movie.
Hello there! I was once known as Moi Sanom, someone who loved writing about movies and skincare.
After a long hiatus due to health issues, I find myself wanting to write about these things once again.
If you’re still here, welcome back!
I know that, just like me, there are others out there in the intangible world of the internet who still want to read long-form thoughts from fellow human beings.
So if you like reading as much as I like to write, I hope you enjoy your time here.
