"The Simple Sunrise" Canon - Corel

Simple Sunrise

I was up very early just the other day and the Sunrise was very pretty, I put on a light jacket and grabbed my Canon Rebel XTi. Out the door I went. We have new stairs down to our lower deck, I transversed them keeping an eye out for a good shot of this Sunrise.

I took a number of shots simply in Landscape mode and Auto Mode, as it was a bit chilly. I had included the lake, Bald Eagle Lake, in a couple, but it wasn't reflecting enough of the sun and clouds in the water.

I took this Simple Sunrise, composing the clouds and tree tops surrounding it.

Later I opened it in Corel PSP Pro X3 and upped the Saturation Vibrancy by 33. I saved that large iteration after I added my signature. I then Opened it in Corel PhotoPaint to use Filter Forge's Frames adding a Film frame to the image. I resampled to display size and saved in JPEG format.

I kept my approach simple to this image. I like it very much without more processing. I hope you do, too.

"Painted Concrete and Young Woman" Corel

Painted Concrete and Young Woman

This image of a Young Woman started as a photograph from Morguefile Free Photos. I also used a Yellow Concrete Texture from Stockvaults Friday Freebies.

I opened the Texture in Corel Painter Photo Essentials 4 with the Modern Painting set. Saving that large iteration I opened it in Corel PhotoPaint. Once there I also opened the Young Woman Portrait and applied the Threshold tool to it. I adjusted for white space, leaving enough detail for face recognition.

I copied that to the Clipboard and Pasted as a layer over the Yellow Concrete. I sized to fit and used the property Multiply for transparency before I merged the two layers. I added my signature and saved as a TIFF file again.

Still in PhotoPaint I adjusted the Tone Curve for some punch to the colors. I then resampled for display. After I did that I decided to add a Film Frame using Filter Forge Frames.

If you haven't listened to any of my songs on CDBaby, scroll down to the lower portion of the blog. I have two kiosks for playing my songs. The first plays three songs in Full Preview and a Bonus track. The second kiosk you select the song you wish to hear by selecting the graphic below the current song being displayed. All should be Full Preview so you can listen before deciding to purchase. Comments are welcome.

"Bearded Young Man Portrait" Corel

Bearded Young Man Portrait

Programs used to create this image:

• Corel Painter Photo Essential 4 (for Watercolor Sketch)
• Corel PSP Pro x3 (for grayscale image)
• Corel PhotoPaint (to put the two images together)
• Filter Forge Frames (for the film frame)

I had a bit of time to make this today. I have done many Homeless Men recently I liked this Young Mans Portrait found on Morguefile. I wanted to do a Young Man Bearded, so I accomplished that.

"Dear Prudence - Digital Impressionistic Watercolor" Corel

Dear Prudence - Digital Impressionistic Watercolor

This image began as a screenshot of Alanis singing "Dear Prudence." I opened the screenshot in Corel PhotoPaint with New From Clipboard. I cropped the image. Then I saved the large file.

Next I opened in Corel Painter Photo Essentials 4 and painted it with the Watercolor setting, I used the clone brush to make the eyes and mouth clearer. I used Impressionist Brushes setting on it as well.

Saving that I opened in Corel PSP Pro X3, used Saturation Vibrancy set to 11 on it. I also added the Stained Glass frame in Image, Picture Frames. I added the layer with my signature and then merged all to one layer or background.

I had also added some Image Information, Copyright, Title, etc. and saved again. I resized for display and saved with a new name.

I enjoyed Alanis' version of "Dear Prudence," very much and I have not been a true fan of hers, but I did enjoy some of her earlier hits. This version is very different, though it is quite true to the original by The Beatles.

"Taylor Guitars Seven - Lightly Textured" Corel

Taylor Guitars Seven - Lightly Textured

One more image based upon the Taylor Road Show. A demonstration of their T5z Guitar, the one the Guitarist is playing in this piece.

I opened the Canon Rebel XTi photograph in Corel PSP Pro X3 and used the Threshold tool on it. The guitars really stand out in the image. I added a layer of a light Texture, like Blonde Wood guitar finishes. I upped the Saturation Vibrancy. I added another layer of my signature, then using Picture Frame added the Gold Frame. I merged all the layers and saved the large iteration.

I resized it in PSP for display. I saved that and opened with Corel PhotoPaint where I resampled it with Compression set to 50, and Optimization of the jpg. I saved that smaller compressed file.

I will be doing some Digital Collage work soon. Seven images from the Taylor Road Show is a nice uneven number.

Remember to hit the HOME button, Scroll through my Artwork and click to enlarge the images for full impact. (Use that F11 Key to give the fullest view in your browser!) Take a look see at my Labels Cloud for other subject matter you might be interested in. Feel free to browse around my blog, I have over 1,230 posts and multiple images here for your investigation and enjoyment.

"Pen and Ink Watercolor Textured Portrait" Corel

"Pen and Ink Watercolor Textured Portrait" Corel

I began this Portrait of a Blonde Young Woman in Corel Painter Photo Essentials 4. I Auto-painted it using the Detailed Watercolor settings, I left them at the defaults. On top of that I added an Auto-painted Pen and Ink layer. I saved this large iteration.

Opening in Corel PSP Pro X3 I applied the Saturation Vibrancy to it for color, as the watercolor was very soft and light. I then searched for a suitable Stone Texture to add to it. This I did. Both the original photographs were from StockVault's and MorgueFile's Free images.

I added my signature layer and resized it and placed it. Then I added a 50 pixel black border and a thin black picture frame in PSP Pro X3. I saved after adding the Image Information, Title, Copyright, etc. I then resized for display here on "gatzkART!"

Though I don't know any of the women depicted in my recent work I appreciate StockVault and MorgueFile's Sharing of the photographs and Textures for my (or anyone's) use.

"Stone Textured Blonde Woman Portrait Two" Corel

Stone Textured Blonde Woman Portrait Two

While listening to some John Coltrane I worked on another Textured Portrait. The beginning Woman's Portrait came from my MorgueFile samples. The Stone Texture came from Free Friday's Textures.

I opened the portrait file in Corel PhotoPaint. There I adjusted the Threshold to allow more white space for the Texture to show through. I opened the Stone Texture and then copied the altered Woman's Portrait and pasted it on the Texture. I used the Property Multiply to add it to the blended image.

I selected another Watercolor Texture and overlaid that on the Portrait for additional color. A blend of Stone, Portrait, and greens, yellows, blues, oranges. I added my signature in White and saved the large iteration.

I opened that file in Corel PSP Pro X3. Here I added Image Information, Title, Programs used, Sources, etc. I also selected a painted frame with a black border for it. I used Saturation Vibrancy to boost the colors by a third. I then resized for display and saved that iteration.

I finished up listening to Thelonius Monk and John Coltrane from a Jazzland album. Love that Jazz.

"Stone Textured Blonde Woman Portrait" Corel

Stone Textured Blonde Woman Portrait

I was able to garner some very good Free Portrait images from the MorgueFile Site. One of these, along with one of the Stone Textures from the Free Friday Textures I created this image.

I took a Landscape large Texture and opened it in Corel PSP Pro X3. There I modified it with color adjustments and Curves and Saturation Vibrancy tool. It was my first Layer. I opened a Portrait file in PSP Pro X3.

On this layer I altered the Threshold to allow white space to give places for the Texture to show through. I used the Layer copy and Paste as New Layer above the Texture. Using the Layer property Multiply I blended the two Layers. I merged down to one Layer.

I then used Picture Frame for white edging on the image. I added a black border to the image. Using Image Information I added a Title and Programs, etc. Added my signature file in white and I then saved that large iteration to disk.

The EXIF information gives credit for the Texture file and shows my Copyright as well. Corel PSP Pro X3 is a great program for doing such images with textures and portraits photographs.

"Art Deco Panel with Women and Vase" Corel

Art Deco Panel with Women and Vase

I scanned in an Art Deco Panel from Art Deco Interiors And Panel Designs collection by Stephen Calloway. I used 300dpi and 8.5" x 11" size for the original Panel scan with my Canon MP495. I had also used some recent Samplers Clip Art from Dover Publications for this Digital Collage, thus the Women and Vase. I did get the upper most women and vase from the Free Vintage Digital Stamps site.

I assembled the Collage in Corel PhotoPaint. I used the Tone Curve on each piece and also the large iteration before saving. I used Filter Forge's Photo Effect to increase the color Saturation Vibrancy then added a Filter Forge Frame Film Frame to darken the edges of the piece.

I had to use Filter Forge's effects on the display size as I only have the Free versions of Photo Effects and Frames from them, the original iteration was just too large.

I truly enjoy Digital Visual Collage work and like working with Dover Publications and the Free Vintage Digital Stamps pieces when creating these pieces. I like to use the Vibrancy tool for the punch it gives to the colors, especially scanned in colors. These Art Deco Panels and designs, along with the Art Nouveau designs I use are among my favorite periods of Design.

"Woman Pencil Sketch Digitally Painted - Compare" Corel Painter 11

Woman Pencil Sketch Painted and Framed

Woman Pencil Sketch Before Painter 11 

Journals are fun to browse and find interesting doodles and sketches you've done before. I scanned in this Woman Pencil Sketch with my Canon MP495 and decided to paint it in Corel Painter 11 ( still have not been able to upgrade to the latest version.)

Since I lost my custom brushes on upgrading to Windows 7 32-bit (my own fault for not backing up my brushes folder,) I used the standard Watercolor and Digital Watercolor Brushes along with some Tinting Brushes for a color version. I do love the Ornate frame I chose to frame the painted version. But I have to say that there is something to be said for the Woman Pencil Sketch all on it's own. It seems special all by itself, to me.

I added Image Information to the images in Corel PSP Pro X3 and saved the large iterations, unframed and framed. I resized for display with my signature, though the original sketch was done circa 1996.

If you have a favorite let me know! Comments are always welcome. 

Artists in the Plus "In The Spotlight with Nicole Monroe" Picasa - Corel

In The Spotlight - Nicole Monroe

I missed the live show but caught it on YouTube. This Singer Songwriter can sing and play! I took a Picasa 3.9 full-screen capture and did some editing there.

I cropped the image to fit, and applied Warmify for color. I used the HDR tool with a slight radius and no fade. I then applied the Museum Matte framing to the image and saved it.

From Picasa I opened with Corel PSP Pro X3 applying the Smart Photo Fix and boosted color. I used the Skin Smoothing tool and the Digital Camera Noise Removal tool as well. I added my signature and saved again. I then resized for display and saved that iteration.

If you, too, missed the live show, here is the link to YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIQdQQ3txiw#at=256

I want to apologize for not posting as often, Things have been busy this month! As I am certain it has been for others as well. Thank you for your patience.

"Myself and 12-String Self-Portrait - Ink" Corel - Paint.NET

Myself and 12-String Self-Portrait - Ink

I was working with my Logitech C260 Webcam today and snapped this Selfie. I opened it in Corel PSP Pro X3 and adjusted with the Smart Photo Fix, some color and sharpening. I used the Skin Smoother on the image. The I added the frame and signature. I saved that iteration.

I opened with Paint.NET and applied the Effects Artistic Ink Sketch. Boosting the color a bit and increasing the Ink size to 70. This gave me the line work in the piece. I would say that the only thing I may have done different is the signature, as it has ink "artifacts" all around it. But not so many I am that concerned.

I still have my Seagull C12 tuned to Open G and will be trying other open tunings soon, perhaps today for a time of practice and fun.

I have found an Alt Tuning website at: http://www.howtotuneaguitar.org/tuning/drop-c/ for alternate tunings, in this case Drop C. I love to experiment with making up chords from other tunings by sampling the sounds within the alternate ones. Or I even make up chords, and play scales by ear for the learning experience. It's a challenge I really enjoy on the guitar.

"Unique Stone Covered Mail Box" Corel PSP Pro X3

Unique Stone Covered Mail Box

Took a walk around our neighborhood with our Grandson today. We have been very busy lately and a slow steady pace with a three year old was wonderful. The sky was partly cloudy and the temperature just right for a stroll.

I took my Canon Rebel XTi with me and captured a few  florals and this image of a Unique Stone Covered Mail Box. I avoided the side with the postal number and flag on it as this was the most interesting view. I took a couple of different exposures and selected one to open in Corel PSP Pro X3.

I made only a few adjustments. I used the Digital Camera Noise Removal tool, then the Smart Photo Fix increasing the color a bit for the stones on the mail box.

I tried using the Saturation tool at Vibrancy but it was too false in the colors so I rejected that use of that tool. I did apply the High Pass Sharpen effect for the lines in the wood post. I added my signature and a gold Picture Frame in PSP Pro X3.

A simple photograph that is curious as an object you don't find that often, an all stone covered mail box.

I departure from my guitars motif, but there is always time for that!

"Blocks Tower and Grandson" Corel PSP Pro X3

Blocks Tower and Grandson

Blocks Tower Alone

We have been very busy watching our Grandson lately, as my Daughter works part time. He is 3 and 1/2 years old and loves to play hard, all boy! What I am sharing today comes from that play. A photograph of him with his Blocks Tower, big blocks of course. And a shot of the tower itself.

I used our Canon Rebel XTi for the Photographs and took a number of different poses as well as the Tower itself. I opened the photographs in Corel PSP Pro X3 and did some adjusting.

First I applied the Digital Camera Noise Removal and then the Smart Photo Fix on both images. I adjusted the sharpness a bit and kept the color much the same as the originals.

I added a colorful, playful frame to both using the Image Picture Frame feature in PSP Pro. Then I added my signature using the Visible Watermark tool, using a PNG of my signature. I saved the large iterations and then resized for display.

Being a Grandparent is an enjoyable thing! I get so much more exercise when he comes to visit that he wears me out, but it is so much fun. We also had some Bubble blowers from a Grad party we attended and we blew Bubbles for hours! He really enjoyed that. My wife got some video on her phone video camera of him popping the Bubbles that were floating near his head, so he would smack his forehead to pop them, hilarious.

Years ago had no idea that being a Grandparent would be so much fun and at his age right now is the cream of the relationship. We read to him, share DVD's with him, draw with him and generally have a wonderful time!

Love is a Great thing isn't it?

"Let's Talk About Music with 'Paul Platt' as Guest" Picasa - Corel - Plus

Paul Platt

I watched the broadcast on YouTube as I missed the live show while playing with my Grandson yesterday. I opened Picasa 3.9 and did a few screen capture's.

I manually cropped one capture. I then applied the Warmify tool and then the HDR tool in Picasa. I used the Boost feature for some punch to the colors, slightly lightened the standard setting as I have a lot of contrast in this image.

I added the Museum Matte frame with a warm color for the matte. All the while I worked on this I was enjoying the concert, listening as I created.

Paul Platt is one of my favorite Singer Songwriters that I have been introduced to on Google+. I really like his 'Storybridge,' song, it's smooth and mellow with a rhythm that takes you along with him on his musical travels.

You can catch the show here at this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=sEalpTvlOBY

Wait a little while till they get him full screen as they had some technical difficulties at first. Worth the wait!

"Bright Petunias and The Bridge" Corel Painter - Paint.NET - Corel PSP Pro X3

Bright Petunias

The Bridge

I began this image with a Dover Publications Sampler of Petunias in black and white. I opened in Painter 11 and selected the Camel Watercolors Brush and painted the Floral. I selected unusual colors for a punchy effect to the image. 

I then used a Gouache Cover Brush resized for the solid colors in the background. I saved that iteration and from Picasa 3.9 opened with Corel PSP Pro X3. I upped the colors with Saturation Vibrancy. I added my signature with the Visible Watermark tool. 

I then proceeded to experiment with differing frames for enhancement of the painting. I selected the black and white scroll work and then I added the ornate frame, still in PSP Pro X3. 

The second image is from a Challenge photograph on Painter Talk Forum. I manipulated the image in Paint.NET, using the Oil Paint effect. I saved that iteration and opened from Picasa with Corel PSP Pro X3 and added Brush Strokes and some Vibrancy to the colors. 

I simplified the colors using Posterize for an even more painterly feel. I then added a Paper Texture to the image and saved, then resized for display, added my signature and saved..

Two Painterly Images today! Click on them for more detailed views.

I had time to practice my guitar playing yesterday and worked on the finger calluses on my left hand. I did play some Blues lead with a Backing Track as well as played chord progressions and some songs. I ended up with a gravelly throat for I was really punching out the choruses! Sore fingers today but a satisfied inner self. 

"High Contrast Guitars" Corel - Plus

High Contrast Guitars

From my recent photo shoot of our two guitars, I used my Canon Rebel XTI DSLR to take these. I opened Picasa 3.9 and browsed the photographs, I selected this one of the full bodies close up, with just a small gap between them.

I opened with Corel PhotoPaint and applied the Local Equalization, for the High Contrast. I used the Tone Curve to give depth to the image. I like the wood and lines that are emphasized.

Using the Filter Forge plugin I added a slight film frame deepening the color of the edges. Keeping the color dark and contrasting I saved the image with my signature and then resized for display.

"Warehouse with Broken Glass Window" Corel - Plus

Warehouse with Broken Glass Window

It is sunny but cold yet here in South East Michigan, but spring is upon us. My son Keir M. Gatzka and I took a trip to a local park on Monday and took photographs of an old nostalgic building there. It has a wonderful tower and arches and differing color brick.

I took this photograph of the back of the building  It shows the bricks, boarded up windows and the top window with the broken glass.

I opened this with Corel PhotoPaint from Picasa 3.9 and applied the Local Equalization tool for high contrast. I also used the Tone Curve tool for some depth to the colors. I saved that iteration.

I opened it with Corel PSP Pro X3 applying the Digital Camera Noise Removal to it and it took out some of the graininess. To punch up the colors I used the Saturation Vibrancy feature on it set at 33 percent. I also used the Barrel Distortion tool set on High for the slight distortion of the Canon Rebel XTI lens. I added a Black Gradient frame to the image and saved again.

I re-sized for display and Increased the Color Depth and saved that iteration. Back in PhotoPaint I added my inverted signature and saved again.

"Art Nouveau Digital Collage" Corel - Plus

Art Nouveau Digital Collage

Yesterday I enjoyed using my Dover Publications Sampler images for an Art Deco image. I decided as I browsed the folder in Picasa 3.9 to create an Art Nouveau Digital Collage.

I opened in Corel PhotoPaint. I selected a Floral background and a border piece and cut and pasted the border onto the Floral. I duplicated it four times after applying the Multiply property, for the left hand side. Continuing my browsing and came upon two woman's faces in circular form, still Art Nouveau style.

I cut and pasted these onto the Floral background. I used the masking tool to cut them out and using the Multiply property again on them for transparency. I resized them to balance the composition. I merged these to the background.

I opened in Corel PSP Pro X3 to resize, add a matte and a Golden Picture Frame. This image was saved and reopened in PhotoPaint. I added my signature and resampled it to display size.

I really am a fan of Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles and enjoy creating Digital Collages using Picasa and my Corel programs. I have books of plates of both that I can scan in and use as well. I keep my playful attitude toward creating Digital Artworks.

"Digital Painting Watercolors Old Sketch" Corel Painter 11 - Plus

Painted Digital Watercolor of an Old Sketch

I was browsing through my Picasa 3.9 folders and ran across this old scanned in sketch I did a long time ago. Kind of small I decided to give it a makeover. I used Irfanview to resize the TIFF file to a larger more workable size.

I saved that file and opened with Corel PSP Pro X3 and used the Smart Photo Fix on it and saving that I used Picasa's Softener on it. I saved again and opened with Corel Painter 11.

In Painter I cloned the image. Then I selected differing Digital Watercolor brushes and painted the image. I used Liquid Ink Fine Point brush to add the white reflections in the pupils. I saved that iteration with a "pntd" name.

I opened with PSP Pro X3 and added the ornate Picture Frame. Saved the large file again. Opening in Corel PhotoPaint I added the inverted Signature file with the property Add for transparency. Saving the large file I resampled to display size and saved the finished piece.