A Sweet Treat - 3D Framing Instructions

I guess Photoshop is my sandbox! And I'm having a ball playing.

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I've been asked several times how to do the 3D framing that I've used on many of my photos, so I thought I'd post it here. I can't take credit for this as I learned it from EleanorT67 who learned it from Bonnie5378.

ALWAYS MAKE A COPY OF YOUR IMAGE

1. MAKE BACKGROUND LAYER - be sure this is selected in your layers panel
2. GO TO SELECT & > select ALL
3. GO TO SELECT > modify border > choose pixels (eg 5)
4, GO TO SELECT > inverse
5. GO TO SELECT > modify > contrast > choose pixels (eg 65)
6. GO TO EDIT & on that drop down select stroke - - (eg 15)
7. GO TO SELECT to > de select (or command d on the mac)
8. TO CREATE A SECOND FRAME LINE > do steps 1 - 7 again
9. TO REMOVE FRAME LINES FOR 3D EFFECT > Select the eraser tool and erase the frame line around the primary object in your image.

Play around with line (stroke) thickness and spacing between double lines.

Resize your image for Flickr or your blog.

While I'm at all this I save images for the rollover effect. Rather than rewrite those instructions, I'll refer you to Kim Klassen's mouseover tutorial. She is an excellent teacher. This is where I learned how to do it.

Have fun playing!

Textures thanks to Pixel Dust: Lovers Lament

More from Pearl Street Mall

 Last night, Juli and I met for the first time. We'd connected on Flickr and we quickly made arrangements to meet for a photoshoot. Little did we know the night we chose would be the coldest night ever. We started out at Boulder Bookstore, but quickly went looking for a coffee shop. It didn't take long to find Starbucks. Good thing they are like gas stations and can almost be found on every corner. Once inside and settled with our coffee, Juli began eying photo opportunities. I almost felt like an understudy, clicking away a the things she passed up. It was rather funny actually, but only a difference in our capture styles. In the process I got lots of interesting pictures. This one is from inside Starbucks, looking out.

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After getting to know one another and warming up, we wandered outside to find captivating night lights, but those bright lights you see through the window at Starbucks were everywhere. They made it almost impossible to get the pretty colored lighted balls hanging from the trees in the mall. A bit frustrating, but we walked a bit to see if we could find the proper angles. Both of us were finding the cold unbearable. Juli suggested we ducking into Bayleaf on Pearl feeling Boulder Bookstore was just too far back to wait. It turned out Bayleaf was a photographer's haven with treats for the eye at every turn. The spools below were the first thing that called to me. The first picture was a fuzz because my lens fogged up because it was so much warmer inside than outside. My second picture wasn't much better, but I'm thrilled at how sharpening and texturing improved the image.

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We must have spent an hour in that shop clicking away. Taylor, the sales associate, paid us no mind. She called to us once asking if we were doing okay. Of course we were. We warmed up and had a visual feast. I love the violin and the wooden characters below.

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After a bit nature called and the shop didn't have a ladies room, so we moved on to the bookstore to get our parking cards validated. Since they required a purchase to do so, we modeled some warm hats for each other before making final purchases. I got a nice little alpaca knit beanie and Juli picked a fleece lined bell-shaped hat that covered her ears. We were happy campers who had a grand time. Bidding farewell in the parking garage, we agreed to do it again. What a fun time in spite of the freezing temperature.

If you missed Part I, check it out here .

Textures thanks to Shadowhouse Creations.
Textures thanks to Kim Klassen

Starbucks door: Shadowhouse -  D2011SS-3 , 6, 7
Spools: Kim Klassen - thursday
Violin: Shadowhouse - Square 75, October Square Set-3

Night photo shoot on Pearl Street Mall

I am certifiably crazy! I met a new Flickr friend, Cat Girl 007 for an evening photo shoot. We scheduled this about a week an a half ago ... BEFORE the weather turned giving us a HIGH of 11º, which meant by 5pm when we met it was colder. We met the challenge anyway! And by the time I drove home at 8:30pm my car registered -3º. Like I said, I'm now certifiably nuts!!

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I didn't catch the shop name where these Christmas balls hung. By the time I caught a few shots, my fingers were frozen. Nevertheless, this image reminds me to celebrate the beauty of the season.

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We ducked into a neat little shop called Bayleaf on Pearl to get warm. We must have spent an hour in there, just the two of us, snapping away. The young sales associate, Taylor, didn't seem to mind. As I chatted with her a bit, she said it's no problem as long as we don't post anything with labels—something called product sourcing. That was new to me. I learned something.

I got other interesting shots ... will try to get them posted tomorrow! Don't miss Part II here .

Textures thanks to Kim Klassen: phoebe
Linked to Kim Klassen's Texture Tuesday: Theme: Celebrate
Linked to Lisa Gordon's Creative Exchange.

Bird Brooch

Oh, I'm falling behind on keeping up my blog. I know I could let my post of this stand alone on Flickr, but I love it so. So here it is. This sparkling bird takes up permanent residence on my black winter pea coat. Sadly, I rarely wear that coat much as I don't get dressed up very often. Makes me think I should pull out Tweet, Tweet and take him for a ride some day soon.

Posted on Macro Monday.

No textures here.

The Stroll December 4, 2011 - My Camino!

Here is the December 4, 2011 issue of The Stroll: Observations While Out Walking (and sometimes driving).

Finally, I have been able to synthesize over 500 photos and write the accompanying commentary for My Camino. As some of you know already (those who follow my blog and Flickr), I didn't quite make the intended goal of 50 miles in five days, BUT I did accomplish 35 miles in four days!

It was quite an adventure. I hope you enjoy this issue.

http://www.theelementalpress.com/The_Stroll_120411-1.pdf

Thanks so much for taking time to smell the roses and take each step of this adventure with me. ;->

He's faking ;->

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Kobi found a new corner in the living room last night, so I put down a towel and pulled out a pillow I got for him when he was a puppy. He scratched and tugged and turned until it was all rumpled, but comfortable, before he settled down.

I got down on the floor to take some pictures. He opened his eyes, but was clearly tired, so I waited until he closed his eyes again. He's definitely faking.

Textures thanks to Shadowhouse Creations: Square 10, 59

The gift of a snowy day

Another snow storm came in last night, so today started out with shoveling the driveway and an hour and a half drive to work. Now, to put that in perspective, my drive is normally about 25 minutes. Nevertheless, all I could see on my way to work was the beauty of white, how the snow cloaked the trees, and the cloud cast a haze over the landscape.

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So, you tell me ... what else should one do when driving at 1 mph for 11 miles! Below is what I would have seen for all that time if I hadn't been picking up my camera periodically to capture the beauty.

Textures thanks to Pixel Dust: Feelings and Unconditional. Also, adjusted levels and added poster edges filter.

Linked to Pixel Dust's Photo Art Friday .

Linked to Lisa Gordon's Creative Exchange.