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5 Awesome Online Photo Editors

Kelly Anne Williams — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:14:46 +0000

Not everyone has the luxury of owning and using Photoshop, but that doesn’t mean your photos have to suffer as well. I’ll admit that I don’t always use Photoshop to edit all of my images, as I have an obsession with just about anything that edits (and takes!) photos. So with that said, today I am compiling a list of what I think are the best online photo editors for you to try. And even better, they’re all FREE!

Picnik – This very easy-to-use program allows you to make subtle changes, like enhancing contrast and changing exposure, but you can also run an impressive selection of special effects on your photos. You can upgrade to Picknik Premium for more effects, fonts, and collage features for $24.95 a year, but the free tool will suit you just fine for the vast majority of uses.

FotoFlexer – Much like Picnik, you can add effects and stickers, but you can also add animations to your photos, along with some different effects. You get a little more bang with FotoFlexer since the program is completely free, and rivals what the paid version of Picnik can do.

Pixlr – Pixlr will be the most familiar to those who already use Photoshop; the layout is basically the same as you have a layers and history palette. This program is awesome and has some great filter effects too. The interface has movable panels, and the menu closely resembles that of common desktop applications. This is as about as close to Photoshop as you can get!

Splashup – Splashup is very similar to Pixlr, but lacks a few of the features that Pixlr has. It is also fairly similar to Photoshop with its desktop-like interface. If you don’t feel the need to have all the advanced features of Pixlr, you may like the visual style of the Splashup interface a bit more. It’s all up to personal preference.

Poladroid – OK I cheated a bit here; Poladroid is a free app, but you have to download it to use it rather than being in an online interface. It serves one purpose only, and that is to replicate the nostalgic user experience that it is to snap a few shots with a Polaroid camera, and then wait for it to develop! With Polaroid no longer producing instant film, Poladroid offers an awesome substitute to create that Polaroid look with blurry, scratchy, and finger print effects to make your digital photographs look legit! This application is a personal favorite of mine.

5 Great Vampire Tutorials

Kelly Anne Williams — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:50:41 +0000

Vampires are all the rage these days, with Twilight and True Blood invading pop culture all over the place. I admit that I am obsessed with both of these stories, and if you are too you’ll love these great vampire themed tutorials. You’ll learn to create fangs, blood, and of course – the Twilight vampire effect!

Creating Fangs

Get Golden Twilight Inspired Vampire Eyes

Bloody Vampire Effect

Amazing Realistic Blood Tutorial

The Twilight Vampire Effect

Enhancing Eyes with Dodge and Burn

Kelly Anne Williams — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 02:42:21 +0000

To make a portrait of someone pop more you need to focus on the eyes. As they say, the eyes are the windows to the soul! In this tutorial I will show you how to add a little extra bang to the peepers using the Dodge and Burn tools. You could combine this tutorial with my Finishing Touches tutorial for a stunning portrait.

Tip: For people with brown eyes, like me, we need just one extra step because the technique has a tendency to make our eyes very red. So just after your done using the Dodge and Burn tools go to the Hue/Saturation slider and change the hue back to a natural brown.