Mouse over images to view the “before effect” version.

A little something for you Apple Aperture users today. Aperture 3 released and they FINALLY added support for presets. I was stoked. It’s not perfect and while I still prefer Lightroom myself (no need for you Lighroom users to worry. I won’t be forgetting you) it does have real presets functionality that works well..

Anyways I jumped right in and started playing with presets and seeing what I could do if I got under the hood in the Adjustments panel. It’s not the same as Lightroom, but there’s some powerful tools. I made this pack of 6 presets that cover a variety of looks including B&W, basic enhancement and color tones. There even a preset that boosts dynamic range for a mild HDR like effect.

I plan to keep looking in Aperture and if I see enough interest I may consider a complete workflow collection of presets like I offer for Lightroom, so if you’re interested let me know. Download an enjoy. I’ll paste some basic usage instructions below as well… Gav

- Download FREE Aperture Light Study1 Presets -

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Installation and usage.
Start by unzipping the file you downloaded. You’ll save it to your desktop or other location that’s easy for you to find. Installing presets in Aperture is quite simple. You can select the presets file (the one file contains the whole set) and drag it onto Aperture in the Dock. The presets will appear in the “Presets” dropdown of the “Adjustments” tab. Alternately you can also import the presets from the edit presets menu (accessible from the “Presets” dropdown) and browse to the presets file to import.

Usage: With a photo selected you can select the “Presets” menu and browse to the desired effects. Aperture will show a preview of what the effect will look like. Clicking the preset will apply it to the photo. You can select another preset and apply it over the top of the previous. Settings from the previous effect will be left alone unless the new preset defines a change in a given parameter. Alternately you can hold the “Option” key while you apply a preset and it will clear previous settings and only apply that preset.

Color Fantasies is my latest collection of Lightroom Presets that focuses entirely on color. It doesn’t mess around about it either. CF gets under the hood in Lightroom and transforms images into beautiful color tones that can be applied instantly with a click. Wow I sound like my own PR guy (oh wait, I am).

In tradition with my other collections, here’s a FREE sampler pack that includes 5 presets from Color Fantasies. There’s more image samples and a video on the product page so feel free to take a peek. The complete set come with more than 45 presets, plus an action. So when you like what you see, go check out the complete collection

- Watch the video and check out the whole set -

- Download the FREE CF sampler pack -

Included sampler effects are…

• Dynamica.
• 1975.
• Lemon Drops.
• Criss Cross.
• Morning Coffee.

by Gavin Seim: I’ve spent much of this Christmas Eve doing the final prep, but it’s ready. The Seim Effects/Pro Photo Show annual Christmas gift pack. Just my way of saying thanks for all your support and feedback over the past year. Theres good things in store for 2010 so stay tuned.

This years pack has four new presets based on tones inspired by film. This is something I’ve been working on lately and there’s more to come in the future. Next are four textures to add character to your photos. There’s also an action included to make overlaying and placing any texture really easy.

You can get more specific details with the info that’s included in the download and see a couple samples below. Mouse over the images to see the presets before and after. Also don’t forget the contest we’re hosting for the free  Lensbaby Composer. Go here for entry info. Also stop by Pro Photo Show for the latest podcasts and join the community. There’s good things ins tore for 2010.

Download and enjoy. Here’s to a great 2010 and wishing you a Merry Christmas and New Year. I’m off to spend mine with the family. Hope you are too… Gavin Seim

- Download the FREE 2010 Gift Pack Zip -

cforms contact form by delicious:days

by Gavin Seim: Now I’m a Lightroom fanatic, but I still love Photoshop and use actions all the time for that final polished beauty. Nearly all of my signature images (best of the best) are taken into PS for some action magic once I finish in LR.

Hollywood Effects2 is my latest set and I’m not afraid to say I’m really proud of it. It’s full of great effects that are really well refined. For those of you who don’t already own Hollywood 2, I’ve decided it’s time to post a free sample pack.

Below you can download the zip file with four free actions. Am I doing this so you’ll see how good they really are and buy the whole set? Of course I am. And some of the effects in the full version are better yet. But, if you just like freebies and don’t want to spend a dime, that’s OK too. Download and enjoy… Gav

See complete set & watch the video.

Download the Hollywood Effects 2 sampler.

Around New Years I make a pack of goodies to send out to fans and customers of Seim Effects throughout the year. I sent these in the SE newsletter, but have not posted it officially.

Inside you’ll find a few cool Photoshop actions and a couple great presets for Lightroom. Bold and clear is the order of this year and included in the actions you’ll find Visual Razor X, the 4th generation of my vivid sharp action.

If you need help installing presets see here, and to learn how to manage actions see here. To stay more up to date on the latest freebies you can join the Seim Effects club on Facebook. Enjoy… Gavin

– Download 2009 Free Effects Pack -

This video takes it from the beginning with installing actions, all the way to tips how to leverage them. I use my own actions (you can find them in the menu above) but these principles work with most actions you’ll find. If the video is not showing here’s the direct You Tube link. You can also Download High Res Version Here (right click & Save As.

by Gavin Seim: Most of us who use Lightroom have heard about print templates. What most don’t know is the super cool trick to use them for cool page layouts for albums and press printed books. Matt recently posted a great video on LR Killer Tips about tweaking template settings to allow multiple images on one layout.

I’ve made a sampler of print presets that allows you to make some quick square layouts like the one’s below. Great for press printed books and albums. Load em up, select the layout, then select the photo’s you want used. There’s seven in this set, and all have a 1/4″ edge free space to allow trim room for books. Best of all their FREE. If people enjoy them I may make a BIG set.

I know of no way to have LR add a black background itself, so I used this workaround. I’ve included a black file in the download, and there’s details in the help file. UPDATE: 6/2009, V1.1 Minor tweaks were made and a new square preset was added.

Download Lightroom Print Presets 1.1

Using The Presets:
Unzip the and install. If you don’t know how to install presets check this article out. It centers around Develop presets but the install method is basically the same. If you get errors trying to export try the power user method outlines in the same article.

In the print module select the preset you want (once installed) Then select multiple images from the filmstrip. This will populate the layout. If an image goes into a cell you don’t want it to, you can manually drag an image onto the layout. This tends to place an extra frame on the layout which can just be deleted.

If the crop of the cell is not the way you want, just hold the CMD key (CNTRL on PC) and drag the image inside the cell to the crop you like.

Exporting & Printing:
Once you have the desired look you can print it out directly. More often however you’ll probably want to export them to send to a lab. While export does not actually work from the print module, you can quickly achieve the same result.

To export the layout just use “Print To JPEG” from the “Print Job” menu in the right side (see image). Click the “Print To File” button and the file will save out as high res JPEG file ready to be used. Repeat for each layout and Presto you have your ready to upload or save for later.

UPDATE: Regarding the “Failed to convert native image to blob” error. This seems to be a problem with Lightroom as it sometimes with other print presets than my own. I suggest you install them manually by copying them directly into the print presets folder. If you don’t know how to do that, this article will explain how.