Photo Effects
By Cate Eales
Appeared June 11, 2009 on castanet.net
We start with getting the pictures from the camera to
the computer, and end with finding them. Along the way, we touch on silly
special effects. Get out those digital cameras and start shooting!
How do I get the pictures into the computer?
If you are using Windows XP or Windows Vista, you do not need
special software to get your photos from your camera to your computer.
I know that every digital camera includes software and every instruction
manual tells you to load it. But you just don't need it.
Simply use the cable that came with your camera to connect it to the
computer. Windows will recognize your digital camera, load the drivers for
it automagically the first time you plug it in, and will then proceed to
ask you what you want to do with the photos. If you have a card reader on
your computer, you don't even need the cable. Instead, just remove the
card from your camera, insert it into the card reader, and again, Windows
will know there are pictures, and ask you what you want to do.
Download them to your computer! If you have Vista, they will go into a
folder called "Pictures". If XP, they will go to a folder called "My
Pictures". That's all there is to getting them from the camera to the
computer.
Now what?
Now you'll need some software to view and edit the pictures. Vista users
have good software built right in, and can also download the
Windows
Live Photo Gallery to enhance the built in photo editing capabilities.
(Of course, XP users can download it, too.)
An alternative is
Picasa3 from Google. Picasa3 is free and works with XP and Vista. I
happen to prefer Picasa, but it's strictly a matter of preference. Both
programs let you organize, edit, and share your photos, and make it easy
to upload photos to the web.
You can always try one and if you don't like it try the other. Your
pictures aren't "in" either program; they are on your hard drive in your
"Pictures" or "My Pictures" folder. These programs simply make it easier
to find and edit them. Whichever program you use, please at least take a
look at the documentation so you know how to save your edited photos.
Now let's have some fun!
How to fix "pet eye" in photos
Many photo editing programs let you fix "red eye" in your photos, and some
even do it automatically as you import the pictures to your computer. That
comes in handy, but what about fixing "pet eye" in your photos of dogs and
cats?
I haven't found a decent, free, one-click solution. I have used
this tutorial to fix pictures of my dog Sandy.
An alternative is
"Pet Eye
Pilot", here I haven't tried it, and it seems a little pricey at US$
29.95.
Do you have a "pet eye" fix? Please email me at
help@computercarekelowna.com and I'll share it in a future column.
Silly photo special effects
For sheer foolishness, try applying some of the special effects at
Photofunia.com.
Point your browser to that link, and click on an effect. Next, upload a
photo and wait a moment for the effect to be applied.
(click to enlarge photo)
Find photos fast
Oh great, now you want to try Photofunia.com, and you can't find the exact
one you want, and you wish you had organized those photos right? As luck
would have it, procrastination paid off, just this once.
Photology uses filters to find your photo. You don't need albums, tags, or
folders. As the Photology website puts it, "it just knows."
Grab it here.
If you don't have .NET Framework, the Photology installation program will
recognize that and offer to install it for you. This didn't create any
problems for me, but it did take some time. Although Photology is really
easy to use, there are several excellent, short tutorials, and the program
is absolutely free. It doesn't run all the time, and it doesn't install a
bunch of junk along with the program.
Do you need help with your computer? With your
scanner/printer/camera/music player? Do you have a virus or a
spyware problem? Do you need more RAM? Do you need a backup
plan? Do you have a new computer and now you're wondering how to get the
files from the old one over to the new one? I'm here to help you and your
home or business computer get along! To ask a question, make a comment or
suggestion, or schedule a visit, email
help@computercarekelowna.com.
You can read previous columns
here. If you'd like to subscribe to this column by email,
please visit this link. It's easy, and free. If you'd prefer the
RSS Feed, click here.
Links
Windows Live Photo Gallery
http://download.live.com/photogallery
Picasa 3
http://picasa.google.com/
How To Fix Pet Eye In Your Photos
http://graphicssoft.about.com/od/redeyeremoval/ss/peteye.htm
Pet Eye Pilot
http://www.colorpilot.com/peteye.html
Photofunia.com
http://www.photofunia.com/
Photology
http://www.getphotology.com/
Computer Care Kelowna
http://computercarekelowna.com/
Getting Along With Your Computer Column Archives
http://rlis.com/column.htm
Get Cate's column by email
http://www.feedblitz.com/f/f.fbz?Sub=20618
RSS Feed:
http://rlis.com/rlis.xml
---
Cate Eales has been helping people make online computing safe, accessible
and fun for over 20 years. She lives in Kelowna with her husband, Eric,
and her dog, Sandy. Cate is a partner in
Computer Care
Kelowna, helping individuals and small businesses with virus, spyware
and malware eradication; personal computer training and management;
digital image management; music transfer; and website design, hosting and
management. Email Cate at
help@computercarekelowna.com with your comments, suggestions, or
questions. To browse the column archives, visit the Real Life Internet
Solutions website at www.rlis.com.
©
Cate Eales 2009 – All Rights Reserved
-30-
