Vendor

Eugene Berman's plug-in lets Lightroom users export photos directly to iStockphoto. Other Lightroom plug-ins also exist that permit uploads to Flickr, Picasa, Zenfolio, and SmugMug.

Exporting to iStockphoto is a different matter, though. Photographers might be more inclined to take their shots on a trip through Photoshop for more careful noise reduction, edge sharpening, or selective editing not possible in Lightroom.

The plug-in provides the ability to enter keywords, upload multiple photos, and include model releases, Berman said.

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Apple today introduced Aperture 2, the next major release of its professional photo editing and management software with over 100 new features that make it faster, easier to use and more powerful. With a streamlined user interface and entirely new image processing engine, Aperture 2 also introduces new imaging tools for highlight recovery, color vibrancy, local contrast definition, soft-edged retouching, vignetting and RAW fine-tuning, and lets users directly post their portfolios on the .Mac Web Gallery for viewing on the web, iPhone, iPod touch and Apple TV. At a new low price of US$199, anyone can easily organize, edit and publish photos like a pro. Owners of previous versions of Aperture can upgrade to Aperture 2 for US$99.

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Pangea Software announced the release of their latest utility, Bracketeer (US$19.95), a utility for photographers who take multiple “bracketed” exposures of a scene in order to capture a more complete range of shading in the image. Bracketeer was originally designed for use with bracketed panoramas, so it has built-in support for previewing 360º VR Panoramas, however, it works perfectly with standard photographs as well.

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From Macworld
I’m in Las Vegas this week for the annual PMA conference and trade show. I’ve been here for a few days already, and there’s one topic that has come up in almost every discussion I’ve had with photographers: Aperture.

More specifically, the topic is: “Where’s Version 2.0 of Apple’s image management and editing app?” With the the show starting this morning, it seems pretty clear that we won’t see anything announced this week, and the disappointment I’m hearing is pervasive.

What’s most interesting to me is the shift in attitudes and usage. People aren’t actually excited about an Aperture update; it’s more of a “will it be significantly better” type of vibe. And photographers aren’t saying that the Adobe competitor, Photoshop Lightroom, is a better product. No, what I’m hearing is that neither Aperture nor Lightroom has taken hold with this crowd.

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From Macworld

Adobe unveiled the next generation Photoshop Elements for Mac. With a price of $89, Photoshop Elements 6 will ship in the second quarter, but Adobe will be showing it at Macworld next week in San Francisco.

“Photoshop Elements is not just about editing photos, it’s about helping users make more with their photos,” said Mark Dahm Senior Product Manager Photoshop Elements. “It’s about helping people tell their stories.”

For instance, using the new Photomerge technology users can now combine the best facial expressions and body language from up to 10 photos. This will help users that shoot a photo of a group of people that keep moving around or are not looking in the right direction. Other new features, like the Guided Edit mode, are aimed specifically at the new user. This mode gives you an explanation of what the problem is you are about to fix and walks you through the process by simply clicking a button.

Photoshop Elements will run on Mac OS X 10.4.8 or higher, including Leopard. The full price version will cost $89; upgrades are $69. Adobe is taking pre-orders beginning today.

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