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Want Better Images? Read this now.

We are so pleased to have a guest blog post by Matthew Kees of MLK Studios. Matthew provides online photography education that is second to none. Matthew has also kindly consented to offer a SUPER sale for our readers. Using the code "super sale" at MLK Studios you can get the entire comprehensive eight week photography course for $199. (This is an incredible savings.) This is a great way to take your images to the next level.

Without further ado...here's Matthew.

Using a Gray Card

Whether you shoot film, digital or both a gray card is a very important tool to own and use. The older style gray cards, made by Kodak and others, are designed for setting exposure. A camera's exposure meter (aka "light meter") is based on a standard. If it weren't then we'd have to experiment with every camera and meter to figure out what the meter was really telling us. The standard that was agreed to many years ago, is called 18% "reflectance", or 18% gray or "middle" gray. **

** 18% is a middle tone in photography because our exposures are based on "stops" which double or halve the amount of light. So exposure is logarithmic and not linear.

When you hold an 18% reflectance card in front of the camera, it is reflecting exactly the right amount of light that your meter is "tuned" to. A lighter card would cause you to underexpose (the meter would try to make it darker) and a brighter card would make you overexpose (the meter would tell you how to make it lighter). The same is true for any "scene" you aim the camera at. If the scene is bright, your indication will be underexposed, and a dark scene gets overexposed. By pointing to a standardized middle tone, the meter always gives you the correct exposure.

The newer type of gray cards are designed for setting white balance. They tend to be a bit lighter than an exposure card, so you wouldn't use it to set the exposure. Instead, it is made to reflect the three primary colors of light equally, so that any light bouncing off of it will show the color of the light. You've probably taken a shot indoors and noticed it looks orange (or amber) or outdoors in shade and noticed the color was too blue. A gray card will let you capture the right color of the scene.

All digital SLR's have White Balance presets. Examples are Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Fluorescent and Incandescent (or Tungsten). These have preset Kelvin temperatures that professionals use to measure the "color" of light. Blue light outdoors has a higher Kelvin temp than a tungsten, or incandescent, light indoors. Setting the Kelvin temp in the camera to match the temperature of the light gives you the truest color.

Since the presets are often a few hundred degrees apart, the light may not fit exactly into a preset setting. For example, if you shoot with normal household lights, they burn at 2600K (or so depending on the make an wattage) and the Incandescent (or Tungsten) preset is set for 3200K lamps used professionally in studios and movie sets. So while the colors will be close to real, they aren't exactly right. Using a digital gray card to set the Kelvin temperature in camera (or later in post when shooting RAW) lets you match exactly to the true Kelvin temperature of the light, and therefore gives you the truest color of the subject.

Don't spend a lot on a collapsible reflector style tool to set WB or exposure. Instead, get a Kodak (or Delta) card for exposure and a Robin Myers Imaging, WhiBal, Digital Gray Kard (or similar) for white balance. The Photovison targets have a good middle tone for exposure, but the color is not truly neutral for white balance. Save your money.

Matthew L Kees

Director of MLKstudios.com

April 18, 2011

week 5 Winners!!!

Our huge 10K Celebration is coming to a close--just in time for our big 20K. ;)

So our winners for this week are Briana Lynne Reeves for the whole caboodle

and

then for the actions our winner is Tiffany Johnston.

Fabulous Week 5!!

Oh my goodness! This has been QUITE the giveaway! It has been so fun to introduce all of these fabulous vendors. Having great vendors is a HUGE asset to a photographer, and we hope that we've been able to help our fans out in finding creative, unique, wonderful artisans to use. That has been a big driving force for us in doing these giveaways and showcasing our talented fans who also own shops.

So, this is our last week of the big 10K giveaway. (Of course, we are pretty close to 20K, so be on the lookout for a new giveaway for that milestone!)

So how to enter this giveaway? The rules are simple. Go and fan our amazing vendors and then pop back over here and let us know that you did it by commenting on the blog. It is THAT simple to be entered.

So, let's get to the good stuff.

Our first vendor is Splash of Color. They offer all kinds of fun, whimsical, practical, classical floors and backdrops for the photographer. You really need to check out all of the options they have. They are easy to transport and and store and give a variety of looks quickly to your photo sessions. They will be giving the lucky winner a backdrop of their choosing.

Our next amazing vendor is Gracie's Garden. You can check out her shop HERE. She has some of the most amazing and cute hats I have seen in a long time! So gorgeous! She is offering an amazing $50.00 credit to her store! Can you believe it?!!

Our next vendor is SlingBebe. Our winner will receive a sling of their choosing from SlingBebe. Emma of SlingBebe says, "I am extremely excited about this! Inspired by the greatest newborn photographers, slings are the latest trend. It is a must-have prop for the newborn photographer. The sling shot is every mom's favorite, because it brings to life childhood memories of the stork story." Check out SlingBebe!

Completely Colorado has a very unique shop that I am sure you will be interested in. Please visit her site. Elyse says,

"When my sister-in-law was planning her wedding at the base of Pike's Peak, she wanted to give gift bags filled with Colorado products to each of her guests. She was living in Oklahoma, which made this no easy task! That's when the idea for Completely Colorado was born.

With so many craftsmen, artists, chefs, innovators, and inventors in Colorado, I saw a need for a gathering place to bring these talented small business owners together with consumers looking for these products. Colorado is a favorite vacation destination for travelers word-wide. CompletelyColorado.com is a great way to bring home a taste of that amazing vacation!

For shoppers, CompletelyColorado.com is your source for a $6 jar of Molicious Mustard to a beautiful 18k gold hand-carved Rocky Mountain ring priced at $1,299…and everything in between. We actively seek artisans who use eco-friendly materials, use organic ingredients or upcycle. Check back often, as we are continuously to building our catalog!"

Jessys Props and Creations will be donating a $20 gift certificate to the winner for this week. Jessy has lots of headbands and cheesecloths in a variety of fun colors. Spring is coming, so let's celebrate it with COLOR!! Jessy is just the one to go to for that.

Rachael of Khlo-Bug Kreations is absolutely coming to bat for our winner with two sleepy owl crocheted hats in newborn size! One for a boy and one for a girl. Like Rachael says, this would be PERFECT for a very whimsical session. Simply adorable! Please check out all her other adorable offerings of hats and props!!

Busy Bees Boutique will be giving the winner a $30 gift certificate to their store, where there are fun headbands galore! They also sell super cute tutus and tutu dresses! Please check them out!! She is also offering 10% off to EVERYONE if they use the codes Grand10 in the Busy Bees Boutique!

Next up is Jessica Pearson's Props and Other Stuff. Jessica will be offering a $15 gift certificate to the winner to select any of her adorable props! She has a ton of different sweet flower headbands for newborn sessions and lots more. With Spring finally here, a little floral accent to sessions would be awesome!

Kristin of Twirls and Giggles Tutus will be offering a $40 credit to her shop! You have to check out all of the darling style and color options she has. Tutus are just such a fun prop that the parent and child get a kick out of. Check out Twirls and Giggles!

Kangaroos and Coconuts is offering a free item from her shop to our lucky winner. You simply MUST check out these ADORABLE hats! I am not kidding. I cannot even do them justice! Sock Monkeys, Hello Kitties...just a myriad of totally unique crocheted hats. When I clicked on the link, I about died of the cuteness!

And our last vendor is Baby Designs and Custom Crafts! She will be offering a free hat from her shop to the winner. And really, there are some great, great hats in this shop. I love the totally great boys' hats she offers. It can be hard to find a really boyish newborn hat sometimes, but she has some completely unique offerings.

Well folks, that's all! Please please go like these wonderful vendors and give yourself a chance to sample the awesomeness!

Winner Winner week 4!!!!

wow..... this weeks giveaway was amazing!! Thank you to the amazing vendors!!!!!

and now for the winners.... :) :)

The winner of everything.... is..................

................
...........
..............

hehehe

Heather Johnson Millett


The winner of one action set of their choice is

...............

Melanie Weiss Catalano


email us at purephotoshopactions@gmail.com to claim your prizes :)

Now.... onto week 5 of the giveaway!!!!

Week 4 GIVEAWAY!!

Well, it all started as a celebration of 10K fans! We were so thrilled to reach that milestone on March 17th. We realized that getting 10K fans needed to be a HUGE celebration of our fans. And we have so many talented fans. We are so impressed with the AMAZING vendors we have among our fans and we want to introduce everyone to them. That's been the point of this giveaway and we are so glad all of our Pure fans are connecting and liking each other. We have so much talent out there.

So, now, 4 weeks later with 15K fans, we are even more excited about introducing our vendors. We hope that you will be as excited as we are to like them. Also, due to the number of vendors we have participating, we will be extending it to a Week 5! Which means good things for our fans who are entering!

Ok, how do you win? Good question. It is simple! You need to fan each of the vendors on their Facebook page and then come back here and let us know! It is THAT simple. We will then select a random winner for all of the amazingness posted here, and a second winner gets to select one of our single action sets! How cool is that?

Let's get to the good stuff!

Our first vendor really needs no introduction. Sassy Designs, Ltd. is an amazing purveyor of awesome digital papers, templates, and cuteness. They are perfect for the photographer making cards to sell clients for holidays, but they work equally as well for the non-pro who just loves digital scrapbooking. Sassy is offering a $150 gift certificate to her shop to the winner. What a HUGE, awesome prize!!

Our next vendor is Naturally Playful, LLC. Marina of Naturally Playful creates amazing wooden newborn props. Her beds are simply to-die-for. They are absolute perfection. With these props, you can take your newborn photography to the next level, visually. Check out their fanpage for their super fun comment sales too! Naturally Playful will be giving a Madison bed to the winner. LUCKY!

Woolywishes is such a FUN vendor and we are super excited to have Heather on board. Heather creates adorable newborn hats, slings, diaper covers, etc. Her designs are super unique and creative. She makes the sweetest designs with super soft yarn. You've got to check out her hats. They are just wonderful. Heather is giving the winner a $50 credit to her store. WOO!

Sass & Savvy Jewelry has some of the most amazing vintage jewelry I have ever seen. Lockets, rings, bracelets, earrings. You name it, she's got it. Everything has such a feeling of elegance and refinement to it, as well. Each is something you will enjoy wearing now, and could easily hand down to posterity. Simply beautiful. Emily of Sass & Savvy is giving the winner an item of their choosing from her store!

Rebecca of Princess for a Day is joining our giveaway with a $30 gift certificate to choose anything from her shop. She has everything frilly, fluffy, and girly that you can even imagine! Your clients (or even just your daughter!) will LOVE you when you pull out your tutus and props from Princess for a Day.

This next item is just as cute as can be!! Keri of Keri Hamilton Photography is donating some ADORABLE photo blocks! The winner will receive 4 adorable distressed blocks that spell LOVE with the winner's own photos attached. Can you even IMAGINE your client's reaction to this product? So cute.

And last, but NOT least, is Ashley's Posh Tots. Ashley says of her store, "My shop has a wide variety of photo props, as well as everyday accessories for little ones. I hand make all my items including unique crocheted and knitted hats, cocoons, hammocks, diaper covers, etc. , specializing in newborns. I also offer many different styles of headbands, hair bows, hair clips, tutus, and more. I love to do custom orders by request." Her store is full to the BRIM with props that you will really love. Please check out all of her items. Ashley is giving away a $35 credit to her store!

Please make sure you fan all of these AMAZING vendors and come back and post your entry!

Week 3 Winner Winner Chicken Dinner :)

Week 3 giveaway winners are

Ashley Hiss Grogg (winner of the prizes from the amazing vendors)

and

Stacie Shular (an action set of your choice)

email us at purephotoshopactions@gmail.com to claim your prize :)