This is our first free action of 2011 so we thought we’d make it a bundle set. Head over to the Members Area to download both version 1 and 2 of our Dave Hill Effect Photoshop Action.

To see examples of our original action go to Dave Hill Photoshop action.

I would recommend that you use this action on a large file… in the example we use a full res file from a Canon 5DMkII.

Other adjustments you might want to make are changing the opacity of the layers and changing the effects Layer to Hard Light from Vivid Light.

Here’s the action in action…

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

Here’s some examples of version 2.

This is a free Photoshop action which can be found in the members area. The action mimics what has become known as ‘The Dave Hill Effect”.

For those of you who don’t know who Dave Hill is then shame on you! Head over over to www.davehillphoto.com at once!

I created this action espically for Mark Cornwell as I know how much he likes this effect (Photographic trends I’ll be happy to see the back of).

Have a look at the action in action.

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

Here’s the action performed on an already retouched image…

If the contrast is a little too much then lower the opacity of the Black and White 1 layer.

With our free Photoshop Bokeh Toolkit we’ve included a simple to use action and 4 large brushes.

We have a very simple video tutorial for you to follow….. taking this image…..

…. to this …..

This action along with many more can be downloaded for free in the members area… click the banner below to send you there!Here’s that tutorial video….. enjoy…

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

Once you have imported your brushes here’s how to set them up….

One of the most useful keys you can use in Photoshop is the Shift key. If you want to simply draw a straight line or keep a gradient level then holding down the shift is the way to go.

When used with Brushes, Pencil, Dodge and Burn, Eraser, Blur, Sharpen and Smudge holding down the shift key will enable you to draw in a perfectly straight line either vertical or horizontal.

In addition if you wanted to draw a straight line between two points then simply click on a start point, hold down shift and click on where you’d like your line to end.

The shift key does of course have many other functions but probably our most used one is keep the aspect ratio of a layer we’re transforming. Again it’s as simple as holding down shift whilst applying your transformation.

Here’s short video showing you exactly what I mean…… enjoy!

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

Sometimes I create actions in Photoshop which I really don’t mean too………This is just one of them!

There are in fact two versions which we’ve bundled together which you can download in the Members Area

Click the banner to head over to the Members area and download the action!

Here’s example of the difference between the two versions and the original.

Action Features

• Desaturates red areas of the image (skin tones)
• 5 levels of desaturation controls
• 5 levels of colour boost
• Non-destructive action
• Mask action button for painting the effect

Here’s a little video showing you the action in action….. enjoy…..

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

This is our third and most exciting LensBaby effect Photoshop action.

Lens baby Photoshop action 2 and Lens Baby effect in Photoshop 1 are still available to download for non-members but this really is our most impressive and versatile LensBaby action to date!

Click the banner to head over to the Members area and download the action!

Features

• Four levels of ‘zoom’ which can be turned on and off as desired.
• Contrast control buttons and contrast boost button.
• Lighten image control buttons.
• Colour boost controls.

This does work particularly well with the Simple Vignette action which can also be downloaded from the Members Area.

Here’s the action in action….. enjoy….!

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

In this tutorial we’re going to show you not only how to add a Facebook Like box to your WordPress site but also how to find our your Facebook Page ID.

There’s lots of like plugins for WordPress and you’re going to need to know how to find out your Facebook Page ID so hopefully this is a little bit helpful!

To create the Like box go to The Social Plugins page of the Facebook developers site. There are a few more options here but you could just go straight to the Like Box.

Here’s the video….. enjoy…

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

As Photoshop actions go this one couldn’t be simpler. That’s why we titled it Simple Vignette.

One problem I found with many vignette tools is that they add contrast to the overall scene or dull highlights. This action simply adds shading to the edges of your image.

This is a members only download which you can find in Members Only Photoshop Actions.

Here’s a video of the action in action… enjoy…

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

This is the first of our Members Only free Photoshop action.

This action has two major functions

1. Softening Glow – 3 Levels – DS Glow 10, 20 and 50

Each level of glow can be reduced in 20% increments

Glow can be painted on or effect the whole scene.

Extra Glow Button – will soften skin and add extra contrast

2. Natural Desaturation Layer – Colour saturation can be reduced in 20% increments

Watch the video to see the action in action.

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

Download the Action

Photoshop droplets are a wonderful tool especially if you are working with a large volume of images such as a wedding.

In terms of our own workflow we use droplets to process all of our RAW files after we have made basic adjustments in Bridge.

Have a look at Day 79 – Wedding photography digital workflow for how we do this.

Watch the video to show you how we like to do it…

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

Video Notes

Create a folder you wish your images to be saved in.

Open your image > Run Action > Turn off Button mode >

In your action select what is normally ‘Set current Layer’ or whatever the last step in the process.

Press the record button > Save your image as a PSD to your new folder > Close image > Press stop

Make sure you delete the new file

Create the Droplet

Now your Droplet is ready to use!

Make sure you remove the save and close addition to your action for future use. This will not affect the droplet.