Have You Tried LookStat?

Lee Torrens posted a great overview of LookStat over at Microstock Diaries and, based on his review, I decided to set up an account. LookStat allows you to analyze your microstock sales and stats, from multiple sites and over a range of timeframes, on a single page. They currently support only Shutterstock, iStockphoto, and Dreamstime; however, they plan to add Fotolia and others.

The process is simple – set up your LookStat username and password and then provide the login information for the microstock sites to which you submit. Within 36 hours my account was fully loaded with all of my sales data as well as thumbnails of my images. LookStat updates its tracking information every two hours and, importantly, boasts excellent security features.

At first glance, LookStat appears to provide seamless integration of image data from multiple microstock sites. If you find yourself logging in to check your stats at multiple microstock sites throughout the day, LookStat might be for you! Registration is free while the service remains in beta.

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Technorati Tags: LookStat, microstock, photography, business

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My Entry in Phill Price’s “Edit My Photo” Contest

Here is my (scifi themed) entry in Phill’s “Edit My Photo” contest. The contest ends on March 21, so there is still time to get your entry in!

Technorati Tags: photoshop, digital, moon, scifi

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Grunge made easy

The “grunge” look is quite popular and it is easy to achieve by using a few Photoshop tricks. Here is an example of the effect:

You can add a grunge effect to your photos by following these simple steps:

1. Open the primary image in Photoshop (or Photoshop Elements)
2. Make any adjustments that you would like to the primary image
3. Under the “File” menu, choose “Place” and select a high contrast background image** to use as your “grunge”
4. Position and resize the background image as necessary
5. Now to create the magic…change the blend mode of your background image from “Normal” to “Overlay” (you should also try soft light and hard light)
6. Adjust the opacity of this layer to your liking
7. Eliminate any unwanted “grunge” by adding a layer mask or simply erase it

**these types of images are all around you – try taking some shots of your stone fireplace, your tile floor, an old door, a sheet of rusty metal, etc.

Technorati Tags: grunge, photoshop, digital, processing

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Keep track of your equipment

If you don’t already keep a list of your equipment serial numbers, there is no time to start like the present! Use a simple spreadsheet to keep track of your camera bodies, lenses, flashes, etc. In case of fire or theft, you will have a record of your equipment. Better yet, include a picture of each item in your list. Don’t forget to keep a copy of your spreadsheet in a secondary location!

Technorati Tags: serial number, equipment, photography, insurance

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Recommended Reading

I’ve been reading a lot of photography related books lately – here are a few that I highly recommend:

• Layers (The Complete Guide to Photoshop’s Most Powerful Feature) by Matt Kloskowski
• Aperture 2 (Apple Pro Training Series) by Ben Long, Richard Harrington, and Orlando Luna
• The Photoshop Book for Digital Photographers by Scott Kelby
• The DAM Book (Digital Asset Management for Photographers) by Peter Krogh
• 301 Inkjet Tips and Techniques (An Essential Printing Resource for Photographers) by Andrew Darlow

Do you have any favorites to add to the list?

Technorati Tags: books, photography, tips, education

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