The Picture your Camera Captures vs. the Picture Picasa can Give You

 Edit/Improve Photos  1 Response »
Oct 022014
 

Here is the picture my camera captured:

image

After Crop, Boost, Increase Shadows, and Graduated Tint, here is the picture that Picasa can show me:

image

 

It’s a subtle difference, but it makes all the difference. The second picture is what I remember seeing. The beginning of a crimson sunset, with the dramatic Morro Rock in the distance and the natural beauty of green grasses and and other dune vegetation in the foreground.

Watch this 3 minute video to see just how easy this transformation is with Picasa.

You can undo any editing feature that you use, so don’t be afraid to experiment. That’s the beauty of Picasa, you can try as many of the editing buttons as you want and see which ones you like. Don’t like it? Just Undo.

As part of our Geeks on Tour Learning Library, we have nearly 100 tutorial videos on all aspects of Picasa. Here are links to just a few. Notice the ones that say “free” anyone can watch. To watch them all, you need to be a member of Geeks on Tour.

  1. Overview of Picasa #156 Free
  2. Folder Manager #233 Free
  3. Basic Edits #261 Free
  4. Ways to Save #140 Free
  5. Google+ Auto Backup and Auto Awesome Free
  6. Short Course on Organizing your Pictures w/Picasa – 8 Videos
  7. Adding Text to Pictures #104
  8. Picasa’s 12 Effects #121
  9. More Effects 13-18 #253
  10. Resizing Pictures

Blue Skies with Graduated Tint

 Edit/Improve Photos, Picasa  3 Responses »
Aug 252010
 

I’ve covered this feature before … but I don’t think I used a very good example in that article, so I’m going to revisit it.  We’ve recently traveled through Montana … you know the tagline right?  Big Sky Country.  We had beautiful weather with clear blue skies, but my pictures did not do the sky justice at all.  Here is a sample:

Before Graduated Tintimage After Graduated Tint
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So, what is ‘Graduated Tint’?’  It’s on the Effects tab, and it has a few options.

image image

When you first click on Graduated Tint, it automatically applies a light blue color to the top half of your picture.  In the example above, I increased the Shade a bit to make the sky even bluer … withOUT making the clouds blue!  Just drag the ‘Shade’ slider to the right and watch the color deepen while it leaves the white areas alone.  Notice, you can also increase, or decrease the amount of the picture that is covered by dragging the crosshair (right on the picture) up or down.

Here’s another example.

Original photoimage I’m Feeling Lucky and Graduated Tintimage

I almost deleted that picture, it was so bland and washed out.  But after just a couple clicks, it is now one of my favorite road shots.

This tip brought to you by Geeks on Tour

Geeks on Tour is a membership website with hundreds of Tutorial Videos on topics of interest to travelers, such as managing digital photos with Picasa, Route-Planning with Streets and Trips, and sharing your travels with a website using Blogger or with friends on Facebook. You can subscribe to our free e-newsletters, or become a paid member and be able to view all of the videos in the Learning Library.

Members may want to view the following tutorial videos.  Not a member?  Join now.

Picasa’s 12 Effects

Basic Edits

Tuning

AND JUST FOR FUN TRY

Using Special Effects for an artsy-fartsy Miami Skyline

 

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Picasa Tip: Blue Skies

 Edit/Improve Photos, Picasa  4 Responses »
May 062009
 

Did you ever take a picture and you were disappointed that the sky was washed out?  You wish it was just a little bit bluer.  Well that’s the main use of the graduated tint effect.

200905

In the example above, I selected the original photo on the left, clicked on the Effects tab and selected Graduated Tint.  It automatically uses blue and covers the top 1/2 of the picture, using a feathered edge at the bottom.(Member Tutorial Video:Picasa’s 12 Effects)

Usually, the automatic settings are just perfect for a touch of blue sky.  You can, if you want something more dramatic, change the color, change the amount of the photo that’s covered, and change how the bottom edge appears. In the example above, I increased the darkness of the blue a little to be sure you can see it.

As with all Picasa fixes and effects, if you don’t like it, just undo

This tip brought to you by Geeks on Tour

Geeks on Tour is a membership website with hundreds of Tutorial Videos on topics of interest to travelers, such as managing digital photos with Picasa, Route-Planning with Streets and Trips, and sharing your travels with a website using Blogger or with friends on Facebook. You can subscribe to our free e-newsletters, or become a paid member and be able to view all of the videos in the Learning Library.

Members may want to view the following tutorial videos.  Not a member?  Join now.