Eloquent Pixel's Blog

Saving jpg when working in Photoshop 16bit mode

2009-11-03T00:22:00.000-08:00

Whenever I do any post processing in Photoshop I work in 16 bit mode and save my work as a PSD. To display any of this work on the web though I eventually need to save it as a jpg. Lo and behold, that option does not exist in the Save As dialog if you work in 16 bit. This particular "feature" bugs me to no end. I know jpg is 8 bit, but it can't be that hard to do the conversion automatically and save. Thus saving jpg always requires an extra step which is to convert to 8bit.

My way around this repetitive tasks was to create a jpg saving action. The extra benefit is that I get to skip the rest of the Save As dialog box too, and I get to save a jpg with one click.

I recorded an action where I did an 8bit conversion and then saved a file. For the file save the action saves the file type, quality, and destination directory, but not the file name itself. Thus when I run the action it uses the current document name for the file name. Since I've already saved my work as a PSD it already has the naming convention I use, so the only thing I have to do is remove the word "copy" from the end of the name (another photoshop annoyance).

Snow geese

2009-10-24T12:55:00.000-07:00

The lesser snow geese have arrived at the Reifel Sanctuary that's at the center of the Fraser River estuary.

http://www.reifelbirdsanctuary.com/snow.html

This was one of those days where shooting with the noon hour sun was actually advantageous. Instead of getting just white on the underbelly of the geese, the sun shone through the wings and made them glow.

The number of geese flying around is in the thousands. Although they're beautiful birds, the approaching noise made me feel like I was in a horror movie. I wish I never watched Hitchcock's The Birds.

Vancouver fog

2009-10-20T00:26:00.000-07:00

This is one of the photos that first prompted me to think about writing a blog.

Every couple of years a dense fog settles in/above Vancouver for a few days up to a couple of weeks. As the fog started burning off this past January I was hoping to get a shot of the downtown slowly emerging from it at sunrise. I woke up at an ungodly hour and made my way up to a lookout point on Cypress Mountain. Alas, I wasn't the only one with this thought in mind. A few photographers were already up there which quickly turned into a crowd.

The fog never did burn off from above downtown Vancouver by the time I had to pack up and go to work, but turning to the left I was presented with the scenery above. I don't often use my 100-400 lens for landscapes, but this scene called for it. I still want that shot of the downtown in the fog so I'm hoping the right conditions show up again this winter.

An introduction

2009-10-17T11:36:00.000-07:00

Why a blog?

A picture might be worth a thousand words, but sometimes that is not enough.
My photography site allows me to display my work and even comment on it to provide some context, but I've found myself wanting to provide more detail on some subjects. Sometimes this is related to a group of photos, or a trip, or a location, other times it's about photography in general. A blog is more conducive to this kind of brain dump.

What is it about?
Photography in general - gear, technique, post-processing, etc...
My own photography - I'll strive to post comments with photos I post on this blog, but if I find something compelling enough I might post it on its own.
My current obsession - This ranges wildly and it's not necessarily related to photography
Software development - As this is my career, some of it might find its way onto this blog