Venice at Twilight...

Many photographers pack up their gear right after sunset, however the most magical time to make pictures can be twilight! Patience is key as the sky slowly takes on a vivid shade of blue. Everything looks beautiful during twilight, subject matter can be anything from architecture, to trees, to mountains, nothing is off limits! 

Here, I photographed Venice during a very cold and wintery evening. The lights warm up the scene and the pink glow on the background buildings creates a more inviting picture. This image was also photographed in HDR for more dynamic range in the composition, and a finishing touch of Topaz Labs Simplify added a slight painterly touch. Twilight is a visual treat that you can capture with your camera! You'll come away with very expressive photographs.

Tips for shooting at twilight...

• Tripod, cable release or camera self timer, low ISO
• Small aperture for starburst effect 
• Long exposure to capture streaks of light from passing cars
• HDR for more dynamic range in the scene (image composites)
• Shoot cityscapes during the week for the most office lights and car traffic

I hope to see you at one of my night photography workshops at Florida's Birding & Photo Fest in St. Augustine next week! I'll also be covering infrared photography, creativity with your camera, and HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography. St. Augustine is a beautiful historic city with a lot to photograph. Plus, they have the best seafood ever! I hope to see you there! ~Deb

Create a colorful sketch effect with your photos...

Want to create a fast and easy colorful sketch effect without breaking out the Prismacolor pencils? You can use Topaz Labs Simplify for an artistic rendition of your original image. Mouse over, or hover the stylus over the image above to see the before and after images.  To vary the look of the sketch effect, duplicate the filter layer, change the blend mode, and adjust the opacity to suit your image. I used a blend mode of Overlay with the photo above, or you can leave the image as is for a more pastel look. I'll show you how to do this in my upcoming webinar on March 25, I hope you can join the fun, follow this link to register! ~ Deb

Creating Painterly Effects with Topaz Simplify - Upcoming Webinar...

Topaz Simplify offers the photographer an artist's palette of creativity. With so many artistic filter effects available at your fingertips you can create beautiful imagery with a hand painted look. For example, this beach scene was given a watercolor look through one of the easy to use presets in Topaz Simplify. You can also give your image an oil painted look, sketched with colored pencil look, or choose from any of the presets to use as a springboard for your own creativity.

In my Topaz Simplify webinar, I'll show you how to create artistic effects that blur the line between photograph and painting. I'll give you ideas on how to create a variety of artistic looks that you can easily recreate with your own images.  Please join me for this informative and fun webinar on Friday March 25 at  5:00 EST, click here to register, and I hope to see you there!  Make great pictures! ~ Deb

PS - Follow this link anything Topaz, you can use coupon code deborahsandidge, or download a trial version to see how Topaz can work for you.