Happy Birthday Cameron!!

Grace's little brother was born this morning. Meet Cameron.
8 pounds even. What a sweetheart!



A quick peek for family and friends. Portraits to follow.
BIRTHdays are really nice. :)

~kimi~

I Just Love Textures!!

Taking this class has reminded me how much I truly love the look of textures added to an image. Being in the local camera club and trying to stay in line with the strict competition guidelines, I have forget my own style and have lost my way. NO, this won't make a 1st, 2nd, or even an honorable mention, but this is me!! How does that song go... I gotta be me!!

I just love how this image of Grace turned out. First because the look is soooo Grace. :)
You don't normally process an image of a child making a mad face. The parents want happy and big smiles. I do have to admit... she has come a long way as a Model. From the first time we had to send her Mom home to get some shots and then she cried because her Momma left he,r to the shots I did the other day, where I would say give me something fierce and I would get all these crazy poses. She is more comfortable with me now and unfortunately she is growing up. I am not sure when this was taken. I have so many images of her in my files. But I do promise in the next shot she was smiling once again.

Here is my image from today's lesson.



I also have a couple of really nice texture links for you.
Bokeh textures bykatrinzzz
Memories textures by freaky665
I used this one on my image. It is one of my all time favs. Antique1 by Sheispretty
Here is more of her textures. Sheispretty textures

Leave them a little love in the comment area. Everyone likes a little love. =)
~kimi~

Great Texture Video!!

Thanks to Elaine over at the JS site for finding this really great video on smoothing texture over skin.
Take a watch.... If you find it taking too long to start. Click here!
And here is a link to a set of mighty cool textures! Remember to leave her a thank you.
Princess-of-Shadows



Happy Monday!!
~kimi~

Textures & Mask freebies!

Today we learned about applying texture to an image. Well anyone that knows me, knows that is one of my favorite things to do!! LOL!! So to go along with the class, I give you two textures I made and clipping mask #3.

There is a secret when applying texture to a portrait. You need to keep the color of the texture going through out the image but you don't want your face all grunged up. Apply your textures as you like. Then using your lasso tool, make a loose selection around the face area. Make sure you right click and apply a nice feather to your selection. Something high, between 60 and 100. Now go to filter, blur, gas blur. Give it a nice blur. 5 to 8. Now you still have uniform tint through out your image but the face is nice and clean. Cool huh? You can keep your selection active and highlight each texture layer and run the filter on each layer. Super easy!

You can also adjust your texture effect. Open your brightness/contrast and drop down the brightness and give a little bump to the contrast. You can also lower the saturation on your texture if you find it too bright. Clipping these to just your texture layer just like you would a mask. This way you can selectively control your image. ;~)

Here is a picture of my daughter Holly with today's texture and mask applied.



The download link will stay up for only 24 hours. Have you subscribed today?
kimi's textures & mask download

Happy Weekend Everyone!
~kimi~
P.S. Scroll down to the post labeled Ghostbones reborn!! Texture heaven!!!!

Free photo clipping mask

So we are on day 4 of Jessica Spraque's free photo editing class. Today she is explaining how to use a photo clipping mask. I gave a clipping mask away a while back, but while making the first one I had made 4 different versions. Here is an example of #2.



I just love clipping mask. I always tend to add a small bevel to mine, changing my bevel to size 1.
If I have a paper or light background, I will also add a slight drop shadow. Together they tend to add a nice effect. So for your download pleasure... I give you my second mask. Have Fun!!
If you scroll down a bit to the first one. I have directions posted on how to use it.

Have you subscribed today??
kimi's photo mask #2 download

Happy Thursday!
~kimi~

Do you want to win a FREE lens for your camera?

WIN AN SLR LENS: Brand New Tamron Lens – 18-270mm or 28-300mm

Go to MCP Actions and follow her directions. :)
And here is a link to the tutorials she has posted. Spend some time there and your images will never be the same again!!

Thanks for everything Jodi!!

~kimi~

A happy 4th freebie

I hope everyone has a happy and safe 4th of July!
A couple of freebie papers for you today.
(I just had to, we are up to 250 subscribers) I am so honored! :~)

I made the lighter version first, then I used yesterdays lesson. I duplicated the layer and changed the blend mode to multiply. Reduced my opacity on the second layer until I liked the color. Same paper but 2 different looks. Try and keep this in mind with the materials you already have. It is a quick and easy way to change the look!
For future designs.... do you have a favorite? Light or Dark?



Download kimi's 4th of July freebie here.
The link will be up for 24 hours.

Happy Day Everyone!!
~kimi~

Adding dimension to your Portraits

Let's talk about Portraits a bit. When you look at an image, your eye is automatically drawn to the lightest area. Many times our lightest area is the background. When this happens you tend to get a flat image and the person you shot get lost in the image. There is an easy quick fix for this that will change the look of your Portraits.

Process your image in your normal fashion. When you are finished you will want to merge your visible layers together or use the shortcut Ctrl, Alt, Shift, E to merge all of your layers into a new combined layer. (this is my favorite shortcut)
In Elements open a Levels adjustment layer and click OK without making any changes. In Photoshop you would create a new layer mask. Now you want to change the blend mode to multiply. Changing your blend mode to multiply will darken the entire image. Click on your layer mask to activate it. Pick a soft round brush and make sure your foreground color is black. Here is the fun part... pain over your person. This will leave your background dark and your person will revert back to the normal processing that you did earlier. That is it! You have now used a layer mask. I am so Proud of you! :~)

For my examples I give you this image of Grace. This image is straight out of the camera. I have a horrible red/orange color cast. You may be drawn to her eyes for a moment because they are just gorgeous but then you eye tend to be pulled straight to the background.



Here is my image after processing and using the multiply blend mode on the background. I actually duplicated my multiply layer again and reduced the opacity of the second layer to about 50%. When you look at this image, it looks like she is coming towards you. You get a more 3D effect. Yes you go straight to her eyes but now you spend time looking around her face and hair. The background becomes just a background and the flatness is gone!! Yippee!
Do you see it? Did I explain so you understand?



This tut was kimi's Kreative homework #65 Take a look at some of the images that were done.
I hope this gives you a better understanding of how to work a layer mask. Now go and give it a try!

Happy 4th of July Eve.
Check back for a holiday freebie tomorrow.
{{hugs}} ~kimi~

FREE Photo Editing class

JessicaSpraque.com is offering a free photo editing class.
Registration ends today.

Here is what she will be teaching...
"Curious how to use the digital goodies you’ve collected? Or how about creating scuffy, worn edges or rounded corners on your photos? Dying to know to add swirly borders to your pictures like you see in magazines and advertisements? I'll show you how easy it is to add beautiful accents to enhance your digital photos, as well as how to add special photography effects using Photoshop and Photoshop Elements.
In this brand-new class, Jessica will show you dozens of awesome techniques you can use to add effects to your photos, including:

* Brushes
* Frames
* Masks
* Textures
* Blending modes
* Filters
* and more!

You will love learning how to add beautiful frames, brushes, and edges to your photos, and giving them specific looks: dreamy, vintage, cross-processed, soft light, and LOTS MORE. You're in for the educational experience that only JessicaSprague.com has to offer: screencast video, a private gallery to post your work, a forum to answer your questions, daily emails from Jessica, and a GORGEOUS free kit courtesy of our friends at House of 3."

Here is the direct link to register for the class. Free Photo Editing class
Scuffy worn edges and swirly borders?? Heck I'm there! Hope you will be too.

~kimi~

Ghostbones textures..... reborn!!

My daughter Kristen and her boyfriend Dustin with 3 Ghostbones textures added. :-)



OMG.... I swear I almost peed in my pants!!
Ghostbones has resurfaced as Skeletal Mess on Flicker. Along with his amazing images he is still offering all of his fantastic textures for free. You will find the links to his textures on his site. His first set has 102 textures. So RUN don't walk and download them NOW!
And this part is very important.... Leave him some love and thank you's!

When you add one of the textures over your image, try overlay and softlight. Those are the blend modes I tend to get the best effects with. Remember to lower your opacity to taste. To keep your texture color over a face but not have the texture effect; here is a trick for you. Take your lasso tool and draw a selection around the face area. Give it a good feather, then go to blur, gas blur and magically your color stays in tact but you loose the grunginess on the face area. I have loads and loads of textures. Plenty that I have paid for but I always find myself going back to Ghostbones folder.

Ghostbones... we love ya!! Thanks for all the awsome textures and I am so glad to see you are happy and well.
We missed ya!!

Happy Friday Everyone.
~kimi~

Edit: let me add how to download for those that don't know. Click on an image that you like. Look on top of the image and click on "All Sizes". Pick your size and select the download image link on top of the image.
I usually download to my desktop then open my texture folder and drag them in. Yes, you have to do them one at a time.

kimi's Kreative homework # 64

Like all the TV shows, I run re-runs of some of our favorite homework assignments during the summer.
This week we followed a vintage look tutorial by Jessica Bell. I used a picture of Miss Maddie for my homework image.
kimi's Kreative homework #64



Hope you go over and give it a try...
~kimi~

Free Stuff!!!

Thank you for being a friend!

Here are your promised thank you freebies. We have passed 200 subscribers. :)
I started this blog not having a clue what I was doing. ARK!
I have to thank the girls at JessicaSpraque.com for the push. If you like scrapbooking, this is the place to go.
I have to also give a shout out to my internet family at Photoshop Creative Elements. If you ever have a Photoshop or Elements question, stop by. They have the answer! You can also find kimi's Kreative homework posted there every Tuesday. Everyone is welcome.
If you are new to Elements and feeling a little lost, check out Photoshop Elements Technique. The place where I got my start. So many times I went looking for Wendy because I knew she had all of the answers. Thank You Wendy!
Last but certainly not least. I encourage you to become a Phaunt. I have learned soooo much there. I am also one of the moderators in the Photoshop section. The Phaunt forum.com The Phaunt Action Blog I can't say enough about how great Phaunt U is. One of the best Photoshop schools out there!

Well... those are my internet homes. Places I have visited on my journey. Thank you for being part of that. It is truly amazing the friendships that have developed from lovely people I would never have had the chance to meet. For all of you that stop by here when I manage to find the time to post... I thank you!! I am proud and happy to call you my friends!

I want to say a special that you to Jonni. I'm not sure how she found me but she left a comment on almost every post I posted. It made me feel like someone was really out there and that what I was posting was helping people learn. (A Big Hug to you Jonni) She can be found here: The Cronicales of Mommia
And a HUGE thank you to everyone else who took the time to leave me a comment. It means a lot to me!

Now lets get down to business. For your thank you for being my friend freebies I have made...
5 scrap papers, a 5x7 photo mat that will fit a 4x6 image, a white grungy frame with and without the shadow and a clear piece of tape. (be careful not to throw it away, the png file looks empty)



sorry, time is up. i hope you subscribed so you don't miss out next time.
It will only be up for 24 hours.

Love to everyone!!
~kimi~

Sketch Technique

This week on kimi's Kreative homework #63 we work a sketch technique provided by our friend Anita.
Here is one of my plays.




Here are the directions:
Ctrl J to copy.
Ctrl+Shift+U to remove color.
Ctrl J to copy the black and white layer. On this layer Ctrl I to invert.
Change the blend mode on inverted layer to Color Dodge.
Go to Filter, Other, Minimum. I used 4 pixels or so.

Now go back to original layer( the one with color).
Ctrl J to copy.
Drag that layer to the top and reduce the opacity.
Merge the top three layers so you're left with two layers.
Ctrl J to copy.
Go to Filter, Artistic, Poster Edges.
Play with the opacity until you get something you like.

Do check out the homework thread for images and extra tidbits that people have added.
Give it a try, post an image on your blog and add a link in the comment thread. :-)

Happy Tuesday!
~kimi~

Rotate an image!

A very simple method of making your image work in a scrap page or flipping it to coordinate in a photo book, is to rotate the image. I have to admit... I rotate all of the time.
Not just images but paper, overlay, frames, etc. I use this to my advantage, to make it work. If you have never rotated? Well my friend, it is time to give it a try.
In Photoshop CS3 you can Crtl T to get your free-transform box, right click and all of you options are there. You can also go to, Image, rotate canvas. In Elements you will need to go to Image, rotate. There you can choose to rotate your entire canvas or just an individual layer.

So I had the pleasure of watching Grace for a few hours yesterday while her parents went out to supper.
This is one of the images I took of her in their pool. She is such a cutie!! :)




I need an image that has the theme "summertime" for our next camera club meeting. I may use this one. So I flipped it to see what it looked like if she was not upside down. Normally when I rotate an image it really makes no big difference. But to me... the upside down version does not look like her at all. I would go as far as saying that if someone showed it to me, I would not think it was Grace. Take a look and tell me what you think? I did nothing to the image, promise. No face manipulation, no color changes. The exact same image flipped vertical.




On a separate note: I am almost finish with my blog upgrade. I am happy with the background paper I made. I love the new stretch template and the bigger images. I have posted the new header I made. A friend made the comment that it looks kind of Christmasy. Now that is all I see when I look at it. LOL! So watch for a few more changes to come. I do hope you like the new layout?
Do you find the font to small?

Sorry if you got the feed twice. Some subscribers are not receiving the feeds. Looks like a FeedBlitz issue. :(
Happy Weekend everyone!!
~kimi~

Freebie time!!

The Terms Of Use state: YOU MAY NOT offer any of my designs on any web page for download or send them through an internet list or include them in any design/graphic collection on the internet or otherwise.

Let's talk about using a photo mask. The coolest thing about this is, you can resize it any size you want.
Start at the bottom. You will have your background paper. I have included the one shown.
Then you will have your mask layer. (also included) Top will be your image.
You will need to group your image to your mask. This can be done a number of ways. Let's talk about a couple.
You can highlight your top image layer. Go to layer, create clipping mask. In Elements, it is Layer, group with previous. Or you can hold down your Alt key and click on the line separating the two layer and it will clip it together for you.

Make your image the size you want it to be. Now go down and highlight the mask layer. Use Ctrl T to free- transfom. You can rotate it, you can make it wider, you can flip it horizontal, etc. Put is so it is the same size as your image. Now you need to group them together. Try the Alt key trick. Highlight your image layer. Hold down the Alt key and click on the line that separates the image layer from the mask layer. It will group together. Look closely, the image layer now has a small arrow pointing down to the mask layer. :)

Now I tend to give my mask layer a slight bevel. This one has a bevel set at a 2 with a slight drop shadow.
Here is a screen shot, that should help. Do give me some feedback, if you like this?



I am not sure how long I will leave the download link up so grab it quickly.
Freebies are for subscribers only!!! You are more than welcome to subscribe. =)
sorry... time is up.

~kimi~

Bogger background shows in Firefox but not in IE

Hi guys... I think I have fixed the problem. While searching for the answer there were quite a few people out there having the same issue. So I am going to post my final code with the hope that this will show in the future to help someone else.

My image was uploaded to photobucket. The "direct link" was the code copied and pasted.
I had removed the word $bgcolor and I had the word repeat at the end. Once I removed repeat and put $bgcolor back. Yipee!! it now works on both. If you are reading this because you have the same problem.
Here is what my current code looks like:

body {
background:$bgcolor url(http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss196/KimiBoustany/blogheader3rdtry72dpi.jpg);
margin:0;
color:$textcolor;
font:x-small Georgia Serif;
font-size/* */:/**/small;
font-size: /**/small;
text-align: center;
}

Do you see a black background?

These freebies are made and given out to my subsribers only!!
The Terms Of Use state: YOU MAT NOT offer any of my designs on any web page for download or send them through an internet list or include them in any design/graphic collection on the internet or otherwise.
If you are a freebie share site. Please read the above Terms Of Use.

If you do not see a black background... follow the directions bellow!
Tomorrow I will start giving some of the freebies away. I will start with the photo mask below and I will post directions on how to use it. So make sure you check back early. This is why I need you to follow the directions below for clearing out your browser cache. I need you to be able to read the directions. =)
This is my husband's niece and her newly acquired husband. I did not take this image, just adjusted some of the processing at her request.

Here is Sharon and Vaughan....



oh shucks, I spelled his name wrong. (sorry Vaughan)

With my new blog set-up. Some people are not seeing the black background.
You should see a black background!!
If you do not... you probably need to clean out the cache on your browser.
Here are some directions:

Internet Explorer 8

1. From the Safety menu, click Delete Browsing History... .
   
   
2. Check Temporary Internet files and History, and then click Delete.

Internet Explorer 7

1. From the Tools menu, select Internet Options... .
   
   
2. Choose the General tab.
   
   
3. Under Browsing history, click Delete... .
   
   
4. Next to "Temporary Internet Files", click Delete files... .
   
   
5. Click Close, and then click OK to exit.

Firefox 3 for Windows

From the Tools menu, select Clear Private Data, and then check Cache. Click Clear Private Data Now.

Safari

1. From the Safari menu, select Empty Cache... .
   
   
2. When prompted, click Empty to confirm that you want to empty the cache.

Firefox 3 for Mac OS X

1. In Firefox, from the Tools menu, select Clear Private Data.
   
   
2. Make sure Cache is checked, and then click Clear Private Data Now.

Please leave me a comment if you follow the directions and the black background still does not show. You may need to close your browser and reopen after clearing.
Hopefully this solves all of our problems and we can go forward with the freebies!!

See you tomorrow.
~kimi~

making an image look old...

Nicole Van has come out with a new set of textures that are just lovely.
Go ahead and take a look, you know you want to. :)
Nicole Van Photography blog
I turned Holly's image into a black and white and used her texture called Chic Washed.
Changed the blend mode on the texture to multiply. I just love it!!



Directions for my black & white process:
Press the letter D to set your colors to the default colors.
I usually make a duplicate layer. I go into the adjustment layer area and apply a gradient map. Use Ctrl E to merge it into your duplicate image. Now open a Levels adjustment layer and lighten you skin tones. This means.. move your white slider in and move your black slider in until you get an effect you like. Ctrl E to merge your levels into your image. If you want it a little lighter, you can make another duplicate layer of your black and white layer and change the blend mode to screen. Reduce the opacity of this layer way down until you like the effect.

Happy Weekend!
~kimi~

well... the background is done....

Let's see if I have the images down? They should be larger now??
Yipee!! Now I have to figure out how to get my header to fit? Almost there....

Holly got a new latptop for graduation. This is the background image I made to fit her screen. She loves it!

Changes are a coming...

I am making some changes to my blog.
Please understand the construction.

Thanks!! =)
~kimi~

Your desktop image??

Click on the image for a bigger view.

So today I offer you a challenge.
I was so tired of turning on my computer and looking at the same image over and over on my desktop that I created the one above.
Of course... I think it turned out super cool. :)
What do you have on yours? Don't you think it should be something you kreated yourself? Of course you do!!
I can hear you saying... I can't do that..... but I know you can!!
Here is what I did.

On my desktop screen. I right clicked and chose properties. Then I went to settings. This gives you your screen resolution. Create a new document the same size. Next I found an interesting scrap paper. I made mine, you can download it here
Next I added an image, changing the blend mode to soft light and used my move tool to bump it over to the left. I knew I wanted a scroll around Grace's eye so I dug around in my brushes for something that would work. Stamped a new layer and used Ctrl T to freetransform it to fit. Played with my blend modes until I found an interesting effect. I found the flower swirls in my swirls stash. (sorry I don't know where I got them) I did a little burning here and there. I wanted my edges a little darker so the icons on my desktop would show. I then saved my image as a jpeg to my desktop. Double clicked to open and chose, save as desktop background. Now I see Grace's gorgeous blue eyes every time I turn on the computer. What could be better than that!

I do hope you give it a try. A new kreation just for you will always make you smile.
Happy Weekend!!
~kimi~

Happy Graduation

Click on image for a bigger view.

Well... my baby graduates from high school tonight.
Boy am I melancholy. What does a Momma do when that is all she knows for the last 32 years.
She is beautiful isn't she? This was Holly Saturday night for her prom. Gosh how I love that kid!!

Things will get back to normal here soon. All we have left after this is her Dance review and graduation from dancing. She went for 15 years.

EDIT: here is one of her in her cap and gown before we left to go to graduation. Even in that funky hat she it a cutie. Congrats Miss Holly!! :)

Click on an image for a bigger view.

Talk soon
~kimi~

A sneak peak.... :-)

Hi Everyone!!!
yep... we have crossed over the 200 subscriber mark. yippee!!
I am still working on the "thank you freebies" but I wanted to give you a sneak peak of where I am so far.
Here are 4 example of scrap papers. There should be a few more that fit into this same theme. There is a white grungy frame in the mix also.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I have also made a 5x7 photo mat that will hold a 4x6 image.
You can also expect the clear tape from the image bellow.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I am still working on a few other things so stay tuned. I am trying to get past Holly's graduation, prom and dance review, with some actual work thrown in there somewhere. LOL!!
I am going to send out a notification before I post the download.
It will be up for a short amount of time.
It is for subscribers only!!! It is not to late to subscribe.

Hope life it treating you well!
~kimi~

Little Sophia

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Things are so crazy around here with Holly's prom, dance review, graduation from school, graduation from dance. I am way behind on my Photoshop time. Here is last week's homework assignment done today. And yesterday's homework wasn't posted until today. ARK!!!!
I used an image of my niece Sophia. It made me realize that I haven't seen her in a while and I miss her.
If you looked at last weeks tut, you will see it was a blue fantasy image. I spent the better part of the morning working on my kreation. Holly came in and took one look at it and said. I don't like it. blah.....
So... I deleted most of the layers. If you look close you can see I kept the cloud layer and the moon effect. Turned it into a black and white and made her image larger. I had to re-mask everything but I really like it.
As part of the homework I posted a few links to some pretty cool freebie brushes. Take a look at all of the wonderful kreations we had.
kimi's Kreative homework #57
This week's lesson is sharpening using the highpass filter.
kimi's Kreative homework #58
I use it all the time. :)

Hope you are having a wacky Wednesday! It is Wednesday right?
~kimi~

BTW... we are getting really close to passing the 200 mark on subscribers, so keep you eyes out for the "over the mark freebies" They will be posted for a 24 hour period only. Hopefully this ensures only subscriber get them. So if you are reading this and you haven't subscribed, it is not too late. LOL!!

Dolce's picture play #43

Click on the image for a bigger view.

One of the blogs I follow on my Goggle reader is Dolcepics. Every week she post an image for you to process as you like and then post a link back to her blog. It has become one of those things that you think about but never follow through. Well this week my friend Sunny posted her play and it was such a striking image that it finally was the push I needed. So the above image is my play. If you go to Dolce's site you can follow the links to the other plays or find the original image to play along.

Also check out kimi's Kreative homework this week. What a fun lesson!
happy Wednesday
~kimi~

My current obsession

Click on the image for a bigger view.

My current obsession is Dandelions. I have been searching high and low for this pesky little weed. It seems they grow everywhere but near me. Riding in my car I came across my first one of the season in a ditch on the way to a shoot. So of course I turn around, park in a strangers driveway and run across the busy street to pick it out of a ditch. On of the girls were nice enough to get out of the car with me. (in case I got myself run over or run off) So Nicole was holding the flower while I shot a couple of pics. it was getting dark so I had her standing so we had some light between the trees. Thanks Nicole!
For a spur of the moment image, I just love how this came out!
It was processed in LightRoom with Matt's 300 strong preset. If you have never checked out Matt's LightRoom Killer tips it is a wonderful resource.
Do you know everything you need or want to know about the "type tool"? This week on kimi's Kreative homework I posted a link to a wonderful type tutorial. Check out psd tuts+, comprehensive type tutorial.
Or stop by our homework thread and check out some of the images posted. You can always add your own!

HAPPY Thursday!!
~kimi~

Not your normal face!!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I was going to open the front door this morning to walk the dog. On the walk way I saw these two snails. So of course I yelled... Holly come and get the dog there are two snail fighting and I want to get my camera. She takes one look out the door and goes um Mom, I don't think that is fighting! Now it took the 18 year old to explain to me what the heck was going on on my own front walk. :)

So I am laying on the walkway getting yucky slugs on my sweatshirt and my husband opens the door laughing. He says; you better get up, the neighbors are going to think I threw you out. Such support. (wink)

So the top picture are the snails doing it. (after it was explained to me)
The bottom picture is after they parted ways. I am assuming the one that went into his shell is the man snail. As it looked like he promptly fell asleep. LOL!! ahhhh... young snails in love.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Now because I made you look at snail how about a freebie.
Things are finally getting back up and running with the new laptop. So today I have this really nice 5x7 card paper and the original 12x12 paper version. sorry... time is up
I will leave it up until the freebie sites flag my site. I enjoy giving my freebies to my subscribers but not the entire internet. If you show up here and you missed out... Subscribe!
BTW... I am almost up to 200 subscribers. When we pass the 200 mark there will need to be a FREEBIE celebration!!

Here is a peek at the 5x7 image.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Hugs all around and I hope everyone has a very Happy Easter!
~kimi~

Virus or Worn Threat!

It is all over the forums and made 60 minutes the other night. Rumors of a virus or worm that is already on your computer set to active on April fools day. Now we never know if a rumor is just that a rumor but I am leaving a post today to remind you to always be prepared.

Go to Microsoft and do your updates. Before you go to bed tonight. Update your virus software and run a scan on your computer. Think about installing and using Firefox instead of Internet Explorer.

Do a back up tonight also. Shoot set a restore point on your system. I'm not sure if that will help but it won't hurt anything. :)

If you have no virus software running. Do a search for AVG free. Make sure that is exactly what you are downloading and not some other pop-up that showed up. Before downloading anything. Do a Goggle search and make sure it is legit!!! Holly had a worm attach her system called Anti Virus 2009. We had to do a complete system reinstall. So do your research before you just start clicking away.

Let's hope the April Fool's joke is on us. Getting everyone freaked out and nothing happens.

On another note... my old laptop died. Was it a virus, who knows but it was old and had served me well. This is where I would do my creative stuff. Sitting on the couch with the tube on designing away. My new one won't be in for a couple of weeks so I promise to find a freebie in the mean time. It just bugs me to sit at my desktop back in my office away from all the house activity. And because I can't have a post without an image. My latest picture of Grace taken right as the sun was going down. The flower was pulled out of a vase from my birthday flowers from Kristen. Don't ya just love little girls. ;)

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Oh and don't forget about doing your homework.
kimi's Kreative homework #54.
Hope to see you all tomorrow. Be computer safe!
I'm off to do my updates.
~kimi~

My latest Holly image.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I am in love with this image of Holly. :)
My baby graduating from High School this year. Where did the time go? I know... she looks serious and almost sad but this is the true Holly. She is deep and serious and walks around with wrinkles on her forehead most of the time. This image truly captures her essence.

Here is a tip I did on this image. I wanted to have the background darker so when you looked at the image you would be drawn to her face. To try and work with a layer mask would have been to difficult with all of her fly away hair. So I used the lasso tool. I drew a selection about her hair and body. Gave it a nice size feather, Inversed my selection to affect just the outer edges. Ctrl, Shift, I is the invert shortcut. Hit Ctrl J to put my selection on it's own layer and changed the blend mode to multiply. I didn't think the effect was dark enough so I used Ctrl J and made second copy and lower the opacity of the second layer a bit. I have been using this quite often instead of a vignette. It gives almost a burned in effect.
So go ahead and give it a try on one of your images and see what you think!!

Remember, multiply will darken, screen will lighten, and softlight will add contrast.

Happy Weekend Everyone!!
~kimi~

Happy Birthday to me, a present for you!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I'm doing my "Happy Birthday Dance"!
So I have a present for all of my subscribers. :)
A 5x7 frame in a png format. You get the background and the frame together with a piece of tape across the top. I have been working on my clear tape. Still not as good as I would like but it is getting there. You just add your image behind it and resize. If you are a newbie... Ctrl T to resize. Send to print as a 5x7 and you have a pretty cool image.
This is Simone. Isn't she a pretty girl!!
Everyone say.... hi Simone. :)

your present will stay up just for today, so grab it while you can.
sorry, time is up.
if you show up here and you missed out... Subscribe!!

Hope your day is good enough to have your own happy dance!
hugs & kisses
~kimi~

A thank you for voting freebie!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Here is your "Thank You for Voting freebie". Now did you vote? Don't you dare take your freebie until you go and give our little Grace a vote. I will know.... I will hunt you down. ;)

So, I made a nice grungy damask overlay last night to give out as a thank you. When I got up this morning, I thought I would throw together a paper so you could see what it looked like. I ended up with four different versions. So in the folder you will find the overlay and 3 of the different paper versions. I will let you decide which one you like the best. :)

I took some water and froze it a while back for a texture. The white dots you see are from the ice crystals. Also an image from one of the leaves off of the Magnolia tree that lives at Grace's house. It seemed to fit.
Thanks again for voting. Hope you enjoy the freebies.

Now go back and vote one more time!!
sorry, time is up.

love to all
~kimi~

I will leave the link up for 24 hours.

Cover Cutie Contest

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

VOTE, VOTE, VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!!!!!!! please...
By now everyone knows my little buddy Grace.
She is in a Cover Cutie Contest. So go on over and give her a vote or two. Her Mom sent in these two images. Just pick which one you like best.
Click here to vote for the Cover Cutie Contest.

A big thanks to Jonni in New York for pointing out to me that she noticed Grace's image in the contest. The link came from a friend she has in Louisiana. Now that is a small world!

I'm working on a nice freebie as a thank you so stay tuned.
OK, Freebie is made. A nice grungy damask overlay. I will post first thing in the morning and will leave it up until the freebie sites find it and post a link. I love giving freebies but they are for the people that are nice enough to subscribe. So check in the morning and make sure you have subscribed!

Happy Weekend Everyone!
~kimi~

BTW... is it cold where you are? We will hit the 80's tomorrow. :)

Want to learn to process your images?

Click on the image for a bigger view.

My camera is still in the shop so my buddy Joe has loaned me his D200 to play with for a while. I am having a blast!! :) Truthfully, it puts my D80 to shame. All I can think about is now must be time to move up to a big girl camera. I am finding the images are sharper and more on point.

I signed up for a photo editing class at JessicaSpraque.com. This picture of Holly is from Lesson#2. It is a self paced class and I am really enjoying the video lessons. The cost is only $45. Even if you do not have a DSLR and you are working with a point and shoot. If you would like to learn how to make your images pop in either Elements or Photoshop. Go and check out the class.

So what do you think of this image of Holly, it was taken with the D200. She is a Senior this year and we have been taking all kind of images trying to find just the right ones.
Don't forget to work kimi's Kreative homework. This week came with a super cool brush link.

Have a happy weekend!
~kimi~

Scraplift Challenge

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I participated in a Scrap Challenge yesterday and used my homework image. So I thought I would give it a show. If you have nothing to do today... keep an eye out on the Pioneer Woman's blog. She is running contest all day long. :)
(just gotta love that gurl)

And a link to some romantic grunge. I mean really, what could be better than romantic grunge. You can download brush or png format. Bittbox.com

Luv you all..
~kimi~

Add a old fashion tint to your images

Click image for a bigger view.

I know you have seen images of my little buddy Grace. This is her family. I used this image for kimi's Kreative homework # 49
I am working on adding a old fashion tint to some of my images. Take a look at the homework instructions. It is really quite easy, I hope to see your image posted in the homework thread.

On a happy note: Our Darla is home and getting stronger every day. Thanks so much for all of the good wishes!! :)

Happy Tuesday...
~kimi~

a Warning and a Freebie

ok, lets start with the Warning....
Keep all chocolate away from your dogs!! It can kill them.
This is our doggie, Darla. She got into some chocolate last Monday. She is only 3 pounds and was rushed to the vet within the 2 hour safe range that is stated on the internet. The vet gave her something to throw up. My daughter picked her up that afternoon. By 10:30 that night we were at the emergency clinic with a dog that was near death. Severely dehydrated, with a temp of only 94, when a dogs temp should be around 100.
She spent 3 days at the vet and 2 nights at the emergency clinic on an IV drip. No one thought she was going to make it. She couldn't stand or move her head. She was limp and barely breathing.
She came home yesterday. Weak and full of awful red spots where she was too dehydrated for them to get and IV in. I can't even count how many times she was poked before they finally got a vein. This morning she is skin and bones but wagging her tail and looking for food. She even managed her outside pose when I said the word outside. For some reason when you ask her if she wants to go outside, she always picks up her right foot and freezes in place. I need to disclose, I am not a dog person. When my daughter came home with this dog I thought she was the funniest looking thing I had ever seen. Her personality won me over. I have never met a smarter dog.
So please, please this Valentine's Day... keep all chocolate away from your doggies.
Not her best shot... she was not to keen on the flash or the bow. :)

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Now for the freebie. Do you like the Polaroid frame?
I made one with a drop shadow and one without.
Here is the link. sorry time is up

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!
{{hugs}}
~kimi~

These freebies are made and given out to my subsribers only!!
The Terms Of Use state: YOU MAT NOT offer any of my designs on any web page for download or send them through an internet list or include them in any design/graphic collection on the internet or otherwise.

Another picture of Darla. Kristen's baby. LOL!!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

kimi's Kreative homework #47

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Click on the image for a bigger view.

We are so blessed with such talent on our little forum. This week we are working a tutorial that Christell shared with the forum. The top image in this post is one of hers. First, I had never used the clone tool this way and second, it is so cool because you don't add the effect until the cloning is complete. This gives an awesome image. So do take a moment to give it a try and share your work with us. :)
kimi's Kreative homework #47
While you are there... click on "new post" and check out some of the other threads. Hope to see your work there soon.

~kimi~

Did you do your homework?

Just a reminder for all of those who promised they would learn more in the upcoming year. kimi's Kreative homework #45 was posted Tuesday. It is all about using your hue/saturation slider to alter your images. Are your skin tones too red? Want to learn to give a quick selective color boost to an image? Then go and take a look!!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I was scraplifting a page out of the "Digital Scrapbooking" magazine that I get. It is on page 15 by Renee Pearson. If you get at chance do run out to the book store and pick it up. Full of wonderful things to look at and read. I was thinking I could incorporate this look into an offer for my Seniors. What do you think? If you were a Senior would you think this was cool enough to pass out to family? I'm going to give one with Holly a try.
Kristie.. if you are reading this, I already have a copy printed for you. ;) awwww, she loved it!!

Now everyone off to work your homework...
Happy Friday!!
~kimi~

Tried a new trick...

I had my flash on with a diffuser. I placed the camera on manual and put my shutter speed on 1/15 with an f stop of 5.
The flash still went off at 1/60 but the drag left the shutter open long enough to expose the background. Most were ok, some were blurry. (I'm sure it was the photographer)
You really need to look at the bigger version to see the differences.

I grabbed Holly to give it a try. She had no make-up on and I promised no one would see them. Poor Holly, she falls for it every time.

SOOC

Click on the image for a bigger view.

After Processing

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I posted this before but the eyelash brush can be found here.
Obsidian Dawn

And as a side note... if you scroll way down, I have a post about creating a brush folder outside of your software. You can add folders and keep everything organized. :)

{{hugs}}
~kimi~

Free 8x10 photo frame

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Happy Weekend Everyone! :-)

I have an 8x10 photo mat for you to use in a frame. The cut out is made for a 5x7 image. Do let me know what you think?
The download will be available for a 24 hour time frame only.
(sure hope you have subscribed)

sorry, time is up.

~kimi~

kimi's Kreative homework

Click on the image for a bigger view.

It's the New Year, are you ready to move forward with your Photoshop knowledge? Welcome to the first lesson of
kimi's Kreative homework of the new year. On this lesson you get a free grungy overlay. You are to follow the directions on changing the color and erasing some away with a grungy eraser. I made it in a funky green color so the changes would be easy to spot. On the image above you can see I picked a nice dark brown color for the change and I used a grungy eraser to get rid of the areas over the butterfly and some of the flower.

If you want to learn how to do important things and cool things with your software this is a free and fun class to join. All lesson are posted on the Photoshop Creative Elements forum. Please take a moment to join and post your image when you are done.
Don't be one of those grab and run people. :-(
It is a very small on-line community, you will fit right in...
And the cool thing is you will learn from the other post as well!
Hope to see you there!!

Happy learning everyone!
~kimi~

Are you on Facebook?

I have a new Facebook account. Since I don't know most of your names. If you are there also, please look me up. Look to the right of this post there is a shortcut that says...Facebook me
Just give it a click and it will take you right to my page. I would love to be your friend.

And because I believe every post should have an image. Here is the latest image that I have added to the slideshow on my web site.
(what can I say, this child warms my heart) She came out her door this morning calling my name and carrying the new puppy Santa brought her for Christmas. I'm not sure if the puppy's feet have touched the ground yet. LOL!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

A reminder: kimi's Kreative homework will start again this Tuesday.
It starts with a freebie. Hope to see you there!

Happy Weekend!
~kimi~

For Mary Ann... This is a small but friendly community and someone should be able to answer your questions. This is also the forum where my homework assignments are posted. It is a great place and anyone is welcome. Photoshop Creative Elements Community

Time is up.

I numbered all the comments out and had Holly pick random numbers.

Lisa
BeeKay
GT Cindy
roarcountry
Elaine

CONGRATULATIONS!!!
Please e-mail me with the words "Blog Extras" in the subject line.
kimiboo@bellsouth.net

I hope you check in from time to time...
kim's Kreative homework will start up again after the first of the year. What a fun way to learn your software.

Happy Monday!
~kimi~

And the winner is....

Click on the image for a bigger view.

ok, so when I went to bed last night I removed the download link that had been up for 2 days. I had 17 people that had taken the time to comment about what they were thankful for this time of year. And I am thankful for each and everyone of them. I have decided that all 17 are the winners!! YAH!! :) I threw together a new 6 paper set.

Here are the names:
terri
Sandi
blemaire
Heather
Elzbieta
Anonymous.. will have to step up with a name!
Angela Elle
Sarah
Stacy, (the Hall family)
Joanie
Jonni
Mindy
Laura Turner
Kate
Swr4him
fl_connie
suthnheart

So if your name is listed above... Send me an e-mail with the words "Blog Extras" in the subject line and I will send you the download link for the extra paper set. Let me know who you are. Congratulations!!
kimiboo@bellsouth.net

Now just so everyone doesn't feel left out, you may have downloaded the first time the papers were posted. Leave me a little love comment and I will choose 5 random people to receive this download also. This applies until 12:00 midnight on Dec 28th.

remember to subscribe so you don't miss any tips or freebies. :)
{{BIG HUG}}
~kimi~

I Am Thankful!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Merry Christmas to Everyone!! I hope you were good and Santa has left you lots of goodies. I have so much to be thankful for this year. These are my children. Everyone is healthy and happy and most of the time... sane. LOL! On the left is Holly, she will be 18 on Dec. 29th. Next we have Kristen who is turning 23 years old today. (my Christmas baby) Then there is Jeremy who is 30. And last but not least we have Darla the dog. She is 2 this Christmas. When Kristen came home with a dog that looked more like a rat but had bat ears, I sure had my doubts... but I have to tell you that I love that little dog to death. :) Now I am very, very, very thankful for my hubby also but he has learned to duck from the camera lady. I love you Micheal.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I am also thankful for our home. Here is an image from the freak snow storm that came to visit Lafayette Louisiana a week or so ago.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

And if you are here because you missed the download link to my paper set and care about nothing else... here you go. (sorry, time is up) Because I am also thankful for all of my internet friends. Today Only!
Leave a comment telling us what you are thankful for. I will pick a random name and that person will receive a few extra papers. :)

Have a Blessed and Special day!
MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!
~kimi~

Re-post of the download link

Hi Everyone!! :)

Due to overwhelming request...
I will re-post the download link for the papers on Christmas day. If you missed it... please check back. It will be for one day only.

~kimi~

and remember, you are less likely to miss out if you subscribe. :)

A Christmas Gift for You.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Hi everyone and Happy Holidays to you!! :)
I have a free set of 9 damask papers for you today.
The link will be up for 24 hours only.
If you like them... leave me a little holiday love.
Hugs to everyone and wishing you the very best over the holidays.

sorry, times up.

Here is the free shape set that I started with.
Foliage Shapes (set 2)
And don't forget to subscribe. :)

Adding Texture to your images

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Here is an image I shot and processed today using lots of texture! :) My buddy Grace once again. This is what happens when I am bored on a Saturday afternoon. LOL!

Do you like the texture look but you just aren't sure what to do? Well, Jodi at MCP Actions has a link on her blog to some fantastic free high resolution textures. And to top that off... she had a video showing you how to apply them to your images. (that Jodi is so cool!) So check it out!

And don't forget to tell me hello from time to time. I am starting to wonder if anyone is reading my ramblings? hmmmmm.... so few comments this time of year. Hope everyone is doing well!

{{Hugs all around!}}
~kimi~

EDIT: Meg wanted to know where my textures came from.
The main ones I used on this came from Nicole Van. I use a lot of Ghostbones textures also. I went to add the link but it looks like he has deleted his entire Deviant Art page? :( They were fantastic!! So if you downloaded some from my previous postings. Lucky you!!

Our Growing Family

Click on the image for a bigger view.

This is Jude & Addison

Click on the image for a bigger view.

This is Addison

My niece had twins, (did I tell everyone that already?) I had the pleasure of babysitting today. Here are a couple of shots. They really are just the cutest things. :)

Life is busy with the Christmas season. I promise to post a couple of freebies soon. Stay safe!
~kimi~

Fun FREE plug-in!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Here is the link to a FREE plug-in that works in CS or Elements. It has lots of painting effects. Unzip the file and if you have CS or Elements you want to click on the one that says.... simpifly-set-up. It will install itself into your filter menu. Quick and easy!! It is called the Topaz Simplify. It is a beta version so at some point Topaz will have it for sale. It works with Windows only. I had their second version and have uninstalled it to add the third version. I have had no problems with it at all. :)

The above picture of my daughter Kristen was done using the filter to make it look like a painting.

Here is the Topaz link. You want the last one. (the 3rd version).
Enjoy!!
Do post a link in the comment section if you give it a try.

Have a nice Thanksgiving everyone.
~kimi~

Free Inked Edge #2

Click on the image for a bigger view.

This week on kimi's Kreative homework I have posted instructions for making an inked edge. I have also asked everyone to give it a try and share their edge with the class. So go over and read the instructions, join the forum and share in the Thanksgiving fun. the link for my edge is posted in the homework thread. Enjoy!!


I also wanted to share an image that I took over the weekend. Two of my favorite people.
Miss Kristie and Grace.
I just love it!!
It shows all of the love Kristie has for her child in her eyes and it shows Grace in her normal I am not happy face. LOL!!
Boy, how many times do we see that face.
Now, I know I have posted plenty of pictures of Grace where she is just beautiful but even the beauties have a small dark side. ;)

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Yah, class is over!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

WOW... did we cover everything! Layers, levels, color pop, curves, channel mixer, etc. Our last week of lessons were about making a good black and white image. This was my final class image. What do you think?

I NEED to highly recommend Kylie's class to anyone that wants to learn Photoshop.
You can find out all about it here. Phaunt U.
She does extra chats and even calls you on the phone. What a woman!!

Now things can go back to normal. I have some Christmas stuff I am working on so stay tuned.
Missed everyone!
~kimi~

Adding a vignette

Click on the image for a bigger view.

This week on kim's Kreative Homework we learned a quick and easy way to add a vignette effect to your images for impact.
I hope you give it a try!

Hugs....
~kimi~

New twins in my family

Click on the image for a bigger view.

My niece had twins. Aren't they the cutest. Looks like she is whispering in his ear. I'm sure they are already planning how to drive their parents crazy. :)
The top image is the birth announcement I made to send out to family. The bottom image is the matching 8x10 to give to family to frame. Nice huh?

Click on the image for a bigger view.

They were made using the two Senior Albums that I bought from lch designs. I have used bits and pieces to make all kind of things. I highly recommend the buy. Not only is Leah's stuff amazing but it works well for any occasion. Do take a peak at her store.

Now a plug for kimi's Kreative homework this week. We are working on color correcting. Come and join us.

Hope everyone is well!!
~kimi~

Make a black & white with a punch!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Today on kimi's Kreative homework I posted instructions on making a nice black and white image. When you get a chance, take a peek at some of the images that get posted during the week. Here are the instructions.

open your image and do any normal corrections.
press D to set your colors to the default settings
you are going to click on the ying/yang looking tool on your layer palette to find the gradient map.
apply and press ok. you should now have a nice black and white.
Ctrl E to merge down your gradient map into your image.
Ctrl J to duplicate your black and white image.
highlight your new layer and go to Filter, Distort, Diffuse glow.
I have my graininess set to 0, Glow amount 4, Clear amount 8.
Drop the opacity until you like the effect.
last but not least.... open your levels adjustment and move in your dark slider to give it a nice contrast.

The image above is one of my latest clients. She was such a doll to work with!!
Happy Tuesday everyone!!
~kimi~

Try some window light.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Holly sitting inside by the window. A couple of spots the light might have blown out her skin but I sure love the picture. So give this a try, early morning light or a nice overcast sky works great!

oh and a HUGE thank to you everyone that voted my image the worst. I won and class has started. I am so stoked. Can't wait to learn!! :)

I hope everyone had a nice weekend.
~kimi~

Free inked edge

Click on the image for a bigger view.

THANK YOU to everyone that has voted my picture the worst. :)
Here is the link, Phaunt Actions. vote for image #6.
It is not too late, so please, please go and vote.

As a thank you, here is an inked edge I made to share with my friends. (sorry, time is up)
This will be up for only 24 hours, so grab it quick!

The cutie above is one of my latest clients. Her name is Reese and she was such fun to photograph. I have added the inked edge to her image so you can have a preview. Hope you enjoy!

Happy Wednesday everyone!
kimi~

I'm going to come back and add an Edit:
Do you know how to change the color to whatever color works for you?

Highlight your edge layer, pick the color you want in your color picker.
Go to Edit, Fill and choose foreground color from the drop down box.
Make sure the "preserve transparency" box is checked.
That's it. Now you have your frame in the color that you need.

This child!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I need to be the first to say... I don't understand this child.
She is not like my other children. This image soooooo captures Holly.
She is dark, moody and secretive. Actually Sunday I was asking her Dad, if he was sure he was really that fond of her because I didn't think she would live to see the end of the day. At 17 years old, she is driving me bonkers. Now don't get me wrong. This kid has honor roll. She is a really great kid but boy can she drive her parents crazy. Well it's a good thing I didn't off her Sunday are she wouldn't have been sitting outside with me this afternoon and I would have missed this shot. She is beautiful isn't she!! I look at this picture and know without a shadow of a doubt that I love this child with all of my heart and soul. So it gives me hope that surely we will all survive (Holly included) her journey into adulthood.

This was taken with my new 85mm lens. Have I mentioned how much the backgrounds are to die for. It is super sharp and I am lovin it!!

A few things I did. I used Portraiture on her face. I made the final image into a black and white the added the color layer back on top and reduced that layers opacity. I did not blur the background. That is straight from the lens. I did run a burn action on it to make sure she stood out and not the background. If you don't have this it is easy to do on your own. I have to admit I do my own most of the time.

Create a new blank layer. Edit fill and choose 50% gray from the drop down box. Change the blend mode to overlay. Choose your burn tool. Set to midtones at around 18%. (top of tool bar) Pick a soft edge brush and run it around your edges until you like the look.

BTW... all of my images are frames and located at the correct exhibit. I ended up participating in two different ones. One representing "red hot" and one representing "people". I will try and post the images tomorrow.

That is it folks. Just a reminder... be kind to your children. One day they will be gone and you will long for the good old crazy days. :=)
Hugs to everyone!
~kimi~

I have an edit request: here you go Sunny the link to the eyelash brush.
Obsidian Dawn

Lost my mojo?

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I have been so lost in trying to find 3 "Red Hot" images for the ArtWalk that I was beginning to wonder if I had any talent at all. Everything I thought would work has fallen flat. :(

Yesterday, I thought that is it.... it is gone! All of my creativity has left.
Disgusted I got up from my computer and picked up my camera to walk outside and check on Hubby. (who was doing his weekly cut the grass obligation) There stood a yellow spider Lilly. Now I have wanted yellow Spider Lilies for years. My good friend Kim was kind enough to give over a couple of bulbs last year. So this year I have 2. Makes me smile every time I look at them.

Here is one of the yellow lilies.

Click on image for a bigger view.

Anyway, back to my mojo...
While walking around the front yard, there comes Grace. I swear she is my most favorite little person. She is yelling... kimi, kimi, Maddie is here. So of course I say, go get Maddie and we will take some pictures.

After finding Maddie a clean shirt and me spit cleaning chocolate off Grace's face we are ready to start. (didn't ya just hate it when your Mom did that? Yuk) So the top image is one of the best. I have to say, I feel better now. It looks like my "Mojo" wasn't really gone. I was just trying to push too hard instead of letting things come naturally. I need to thank Grace for being there when I need to find it!!
Thank you Grace!

I still have to come up with one more red image. All 3 need to be printed and framed by Oct. 1st. Yep, cutting it a little close. ARK!!!

Hope everyone has a great weekend and hopefully things will get back to normal here at the blog soon.

Hugs to everyone!
~kimi~

homework class..

Click on the image for a bigger view.

My buddy Grace again. I have to admit... this has become one of my favorite images. Yes she is a beautiful child. But for me, it is a peek into Grace's soul. She is such a free spirit. Always a huge smile on her face, always bouncing from place to place. This quiet moment seems like a gift.

This image was worked following some of the basic principles from this weeks homework.

Our second lesson for the fall session has been posted. I do hope you stop by and give it a look. Every Tuesday I will post a lesson or find a tutorial on the net for us to work. Some will be just plain funky for the fun of it. (hint for next week). This is a small extra friendly forum. You will be welcomed with open arms. The perfect place to learn and ask questions.

Here is this weeks thread. kim's Kreative homework #32

After processing the image a couple of Ghostbone textures were added. Those are covered in previous post and I am sure we will work with some textures in future lessons. :=)

On a side note: My buddy Jen is having a HUGE sale over at her scrap site. Click on over and take a look. Artistic Scrap Designs

Talk to you soon.
~kimi~

Come one, Come all!!

It is time to start the fall semester of kimi's Kreative homework.
We call it a class because we feel like we are all learning from each other.

Do you have a nice camera but your images aren't up to par. Maybe you are longing for the nice camera but still working off your point and shoot. It does not matter. You digital images will be changed forever if you come and join our class. And the best thing about it is FREE!!!

I will post a new assignment every Tuesday. Some will be to improve your image quality, some will change your images into digital Art. Please come and register on the forum and participate in the class. The more the merrier! The first lesson of the fall semester has been posted. Hope to see you there!!

kimi's Kreative homework #31

I will post some of our class images tomorrow. :)
~kimi~

kimi Grunge Frame

Click on image for a bigger view.

Here you go, as promised. For a limited time...
I have included two different colors, one cream and one brown.

If you want to change the color. Select the desired color as your foreground color. Go to edit, fill, pick the foreground color option in the drop down box and check the preserve transparency box. You can see I changed mine to white.
ENJOY!!

Oops, times up!!
The image is my buddy Grace. She has officially become my unofficial model. A girl after my own heart. Now when she want to come over and visit, she tells me she wants to take a picture. LOL! I'm gonna start buying treats to keep here for her. I'm a firm believer in bribery!

Have a good weekend everyone! :)
~kimi~

Boy have I missed you guys!!

Well, we survived the hurricane!! The eye came right over my city. We never lost power and the house is fine. We are still sending prayers to the ones that weren't so lucky.
My web site is starting to really look like a web site, so I can relax a little there. I still have some wording to add about session and fees. www.kimboustany.com But it will come together eventually.
So it is time to try and get back to normal. :)

First let me say... you may not see me again because my daughter will kill me when she sees I posted this picture of her on my blog. ARK!! I have been having issues with my images having way too much digital noise. I was reading on a blog about the differences of raw and jpeg images. One of the statements that were made said, raw image have way more digital noise than jpegs. I started thinking and the two coincided. I started shooting in raw and that is when I started dealing with the noise. So the day after the hurricane when we were all rung out and looking at our worse I bribed Holly outside to let me take 2 images. One is raw and the same in jpeg. Looking at both images. They both had noise, with the raw image having way more!! Which brings me to believe I do need to send my camera in for a Nikon check-up. Now I promised her that both images would be deleted right away. And I did! But... the jpeg image found its way into the Elements Organizer. (opps) So last night I started playing with it. =)

Lets look at the wonderful things our software can change in an image. Here is Holly's SOOC shot. (straight out of the camera) Which I plan to fully deny that I ever posted.

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Now if you look closely, you can see the noise really shows on the shadowed right side. You can use a free noise removal software. Here is the link to Imagenomic Noiseware. I have a free stand alone version from them. To be honest, I am not sure if it is still offered. But do check them out. What a difference it can make in your images!! Now I have another tip that I used on Holly's image. Jodi posted a fantastic video on the [b] school. It is about smoothing skin tones. It is a MUST see!! She even shows you how to add a little blush to your blah images. Here is a link to her blog site. MCP Actions blog
The other link I want to share with you regarding Holly's image is, I used Stephanie's eyelash brushes. Obsidiandawn.com
(she has wonderful free brushes that she kindly shares!)

Now I am still working on this image of Holly. I have plans to do strange things with it. LOL! But here is where I am so far. Really easy to see the difference in the two images!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

Yes, I see the green tint from her shirt on her face. (I haven't gotten that far yet) So my yucky hurricane image has turned out beautiful with loads of possibilities! I hope you take a few of these things and try to apply them to your images.

I missed everyone and hope you are all well!!
Check back tomorrow. I have a grunge frame to share.

(((HUGS))))
~kimi~

A quick joke...

MY LIVING WILL

"Last night my husband and I were sitting in the family room. I said to him, ‘I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine, and fluids from a bottle to keep me alive. That would be no quality of life at all. If that ever happens, just pull the plug."

So he got up, unplugged the computer, and threw out my wine.


I have been spending so much time on the computer lately, this sure hit home! LOL!!
If anyone wants to take a peak. The new website is coming along slowly. www.kimboustany.com
Make sure you click on "enter site".
I added so much to the page, it kinda gets lost. (gonna have to work on that today) I have had a few clients so the images are starting to trickle onto the site. :)

I have a great friend named Jen that has started a new Scrap site. Artistic Scrap Designs
Do stop by and say hello. I have some FREEBIES coming to her site, so stay tuned. The info will be posted here soon....

Happy Thursday Everyone!!
~kimi~

EDIT: Sarah asked about the site. I should have posted the info.
I bought a template and they provide the hosting.
Portfoliositez.com

Adding a vignette

Click on the image for a bigger view.

First let me say, I am fine and busy working on my photography site. (I am getting worried e-mails)
Thanks everyone for the concern. Things will get back to normal soon, I promise! Since I have no idea what I am doing... it is taking me a little longer than I anticipated. LOL!
I am showing you two images today. Both are of my niece Sophia. Both have a vignette added.

I took these yesterday in my back yard. I love the top one best. The wind had started to pick up and it was blowing the skirt out behind her... To me this looks like Art!
Now don't get me wrong, I think the bottom image is a fantastic image but I think it looks like a very good photograph. Actually I am proud of myself. To have something in your mind and bring it to life is really kinda cool.

On the top image, I wanted the entire skirt to show, so I went back and erased part of the vignette. (kreative control) I also ran it through some noise software so it would have a slight painted look. What do you think?

Click on the image for a bigger view.

On this image, I left the vignette dark and heavy. I liked the look of it! ok, so how can we achieve this effect with our software?

In Elements 5 or 6. You will go to Filter, Correct camera distortion. Turn off the grid box at the bottom, now move your Vignette amount and the midpoint slider to the left.
In CS3 it is Filter, Distort, Lens correction. The same directions apply. Just remember!! Use Ctrl J to make a copy first and work on the copy. Then if you find the effect too strong you can lower the opacity of the layer. Or erase part of it, like I did in the top image. =)

Last but not least. On both of my images I used an action called Loma. Adjusting the opacity as needed. But it can add a wonderful punch to an image. You can find the free Loma action here. It works in Photoshop only.

Happy Thursday Everyone!!
~kimi~

Change a frown to a smile... =)

After Liquify adjustment.

Click on the image for a larger view.

EDIT: here is a screen shot for you to see. The bottom image is my SOOC shot. Little Grace has the type of mouth where the corners naturally point down. If she is not giving me a real smile, I always make a small adjustment in her lips. Once you raise the corners of the mouth, the eyes seem to smile with you! Even a small nudge can make a big difference. I also added some extra comments in this post about brush placement. Hope the screen shot helps?

Here are some suggestions. Process your image.
Ctrl J to make a new copy to work with. You will use the Liquify tool to make your changes.

Elements: Filter, distort, liquify.
CS3: Filter, Liquify.

In both, you want your brush pressure to be around 30.
In CS, I put my density at around 30 also.
Make sure the top tool on the left side tool bar is selected. (warp tool) Ctrl+ to zoom in a bit.
For a smile you want your brush size to be large enough to cover half of the mouth. Or the entire side you are trying to move. With half of the brush on the lips and the other half on skin. Remember when you smile your cheek moves up also. Centering your brush so the very center is at the edge of the mouth were you want to tip it up. That is why a large brush is fine. I do this in small steps. I do a little and keep going until I like what I have. Adjusting the position of the brush as I go along.
You can use Ctrl Z to undo your last step or you can hold down your Alt key and reset the whole thing and start over. It may take a few times to get the hang of things. =)
Also look at the two images of Holly in my last post. Before & After!!

Now after you have that mastered your smile.
Look around at all of the tools in that left side tool bar.
The pucker tool can be very helpful to shrink a large nose.
The bloat tool can open up an eye are add some poof to a fluffy dress. When you have some time, take an image and just get in there and play with the different tools!

All of my time is still going to my new photo site.
I have a neat little vignette trick I will try and post next week.

Remember to "Subscribe" Today!!
Happy Weekend!
~kimi~

I won again!

Click on image for a bigger view.

This was my winning image for a contest I entered at
SimplySplash.com.
It was the 1 year anniversary of the site. If you are interested in a blog header, a logo design, or help setting up a blog. This is a great place to go!! :)
A Huge Thank You to everyone that voted for me.

Now a little background about my image. =)
Holly was having her regular 17 year old attitude.
See image below. So finally I said, put the notebook in front of your face. Ended up I liked that one the best.

Click on image for a bigger view.

Here is my straight out of the camera shot. Please take note of the look on her face.
Now this is not an "oh my gosh, I can't believe you are making me do this face".
This is her normal 17 year old face. (it looks like this all of the time unless she is with her friends, then it changes like magic)
As her Mother I have creative license to imagine my child any way I like. So I took her image and worked it into a much nicer face. LOL!!
....note the smile change.

Click on this image for a bigger view.

One day she will grow past this stage. And I will look back and miss the times she still comes to me for advice. So far now, I will be happy with both.

On a separate note: I am now actively working on my own Photography site. Hoping to promote my work and get new clients. One day soon I will tell you to check out the new digs. Until then my post may be far and few between. Don't loose faith.

Hope everyone is well!
~kimi~

I won, I won!!

I entered a contest at Simple Wish Studio.
It is a graphic design studio. I am so excited!
So if you are interested in a logo or some new business cards, take a moment to look over some of her examples. :)
I will show you what Candice comes up with.

Happy Day everyone!
~kimi~

Happy Fourth of July!

Click on the image for a bigger view.

My 4th was spent with Holly allowing me, a little of her time to take a few pictures. (love ya Holly)
This was her favorite so this was the one I worked on. We went out looking for white are light colored backgrounds because I knew I wanted to add some texture to the images.

After I was done, I came across the great video for adding blush and lip color to your images.
Here is the [b] school video. Do check it out!!
So of course, I had to go back and rework my final image.
I just love how I learn something new everyday and how willing everyone is to share their knowledge!!! :)

Another fantastic site I have come across is called lch design.
She has some really nice design items for sale!
This link will bring you to her blog, click to enter. I have been drooling over her images for a few days now. Take a look!
Perfect color and the sharpness is out of this world. How I would love to see a step by step from her! My friend Denise sent me there. (hugs to Denise!)

Hope everyone had a Happy day!
~kimi~

Love this tutorial!

Click on an image for a bigger view.

I am just grovin on this tut by Pioneer Woman.
You must give this a try!!
It is written for CS3 but if you have Elements you can use levels or an add-on curve plug-in.
I added a few extra kimi touches but she gives very valuable information. :)

I think my friend Maddie looks fantastic!
Happy Weekend Everyone!
~kimi~

My Angelic Kristen

Click on the image for a bigger view.

I needed an Angel image for one of the challenges over at the Photoshop Creative Elements site.
I came across this image of Kristen the other day. We were on a shoot and wandered into this wonderful little church. She plopped herself down and I was fast enough to get the shot. :)

The wings are a brush from Obsidian Dawn. I added a slight bevel, drop shadow and outer glow.
Then free transformed them into the position I needed. The dark edge is another one of the ghostbone textures, erasing the center areas leaving just the grungy edge.

Hopefully some of the links will inspire you to take the next Kreative step in your photographic art. (yippee)

Happy Thursday!
~kimi~

EDIT: I am getting questions about applying textures to your images. If you scroll way down to the post with the textured tree. I go through some of my process. I hope you find this helpful?

My work...

Click on an image for a bigger view.

I have reached the point where I think (you did notice I said think?) I am ready to start advertising myself as a Photographer. This is the kind of work I want to do. I have a tutu shoot coming up soon and I swear I can see the images in my head and I haven't even taken them yet.
If you have CS3, I used a free action called Lomo on this image.
I also used a couple of free textures from Deviant Art.

p.s. I forgot to mention that this is my niece Sophia. Her Mom is pregnant with twins. I am giddy from the thoughts of the photo opportunities that will present themselves. :)

Hope everyone is well!
~kimi~

Have you discovered The Pioneer Woman?

Click on image for a bigger view.

Have you discovered The Pioneer Woman?
The PioneerWoman.com

What a great site!!
She has wonderful photographs with great tips and treasures.
I have been dropping in almost every day. :)

If you have CS, she has a group of free actions.
I used her "Lovely and Ethereal" action on this image of Grace.
Also a couple of ghostbones textures and an edge vignette from Nichole Van.

Happy Weekend Everyone!!
~kimi~

3 Free Orange Scrap Papers

Click for a bigger view.

So here is the deal....
I needed an orange paper. Easy enough?
But in the process, I came up with three different versions.
This is the one I used but I included the other two also. :)
Enjoy!
(oh.... downloads are limited.)
oops, times up! Subscribe so you don't miss out.

~kimi~

Love these brushes!

Click on image for a bigger view.

This week on kimi's Kreative homework #27 we download a brush set that has some wonderful rays of light. The are from Stephanie over at Obsidian Dawn. Do dig around once you get there. She has some really fantastic brush sets. :)
Look under fantasy and you will find pixies and fairy dust.

A little info about my image.
I took one of my swamp images, added some of the free ghostbones textures. (adjusted the blend modes) Selected my eraser and some grunge brushes. Then stamped away the area in the center leaving some of the textured area around the edges. Added my rays of light in a nice cream color.

Take a trip over to Photoshop Creative Elements and see what other things we have been up too. We have a nice thread going, about using layer mask.

Happy Weekend everyone!
~kimi~

oh, and if you are not sure how to install your brush set? Scroll down, I have a post explaining the details. It is titles Brushes, Brushes. ;)

Bored on a Sunday afternoon...

Click on any image for a bigger view.

.....Holly lost in the Bayou.

I hope everyone is have a nice weekend!
~kimi~

Mr. DragonFly

Click any image for a bigger view.

When life gives you lemons...

I made a special trip out today to take some pics of a bunch of red flowers I came across.
Well, while uploading the images I was messing around instead of paying attention and none of the red flowers got uploaded. (sigh)
So off in the car I go again this afternoon to retake the images. Only this time I come across this wonderful gentleman the DragonFly. He was waiting for me and he was very patient. Just a few days ago one flew by and I told my husband... you know,
I have never taken a picture of a dragonfly.
Some times things work out as they should.

When you least expect it.... you get gifts! :)

~kimi~

Check out this free template!

Click any image for a bigger view.

This week for kimi's Kreative homework we downloaded a free template from KeepDesigning.com.

It is really cool!! It comes in a PSD format. Once opened, you can hide all of the layers, then go back one at a time saving the individual pieces as PNG files. You will end up with a grunge border, a nice vignette, a scratch texture layer and a grungy banner to use as you like. Plus the download includes two really cool fonts. :)

So check out the template and give a look as to how we are using it in this week's Kreative homework.

Happy Tuesday!
~kimi~

Free Deckled Frame!

Click on any image for a bigger view.

I have a freebie today!! :)
3 deckled frames. One white, one tan. While working on the tan one to have an image to post, I added a drop shadow and some distressing... so I threw that one in also. (shown above)
kimi Deckled Frames
I think it works well with Kristen's chocolate photo.

Hope you have a wonderful Thursday!
~kimi~

May Flowers turn to... Art

Click any image for a bigger view.

I have been having a blast taking shots of all the flowers blooming in my yard.
Here are three of my favorites so far this month. :)
I hope someone is bring flowers into your life...

Happy Sunday!
~kimi~

Make your photos Pop with a little Drama

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Look at the difference between the top image and the bottom image.
The top image was worked using the directions from
kimi's Kreative homework #24.
It is quick and easy and gives a wonderful kick to any image!!
Click on the homework link and give it a try!

Happy Tuesday!
~kimi~

Holly's Prom Night

Click on any image for a bigger view.

I used a black & white action by Nicole Van. If you have CS3. Check her out!!
And, my trusty chocolate filter. :)

I am so in love with this picture of Holly. It was taken last night before they left for the Prom.
To see her laughing and smiling with her friends... to see her growing up in front of her Mother's eyes.
The pride I feel is overwhelming.

This is my daughter Holly.... and I will love her always.

kimi's Kreative homework # 23

Turning your image into a sketch.

Click any image for a bigger view.

Click on any image for a bigger view.

This week on kimi's Kreative homework we worked a tutorial that showed how to turn your image into a sketch. On the first image, I pretty much followed the directions. On Holly's I have to admit, I went a little off the path. :)

I hope you come and play with us...
HUGS!!
~kimi~

Sharpen using the "High Pass" filter

Click on any image for a bigger view.

This was one of those AAAhhhhhh moments for me, when I did it the first time. I hope you will feel the same. It works on Portraits. (but may be too harsh) It is Fantastic to use on flowers!

Make a duplicate copy of your image. Ctrl J
Highlight your new layer.
Go to Filter, Other, High Pass.
Yes, it will turn gray. If it is a high resolution image I would go around 8 or 9.
Now here comes the fun part.
Change your blend mode to soft light or hard light. WOW!!
Try both and see which one works the best with your image.
If you find the sharpening to be to severe, lower the opacity of the high pass layer.

I would love to hear some feedback if you give this a try...
Happy Weekend Everyone!
~kimi~

kimi's Kreative homework # 22

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Click on any image for a bigger view.

The top image is my niece Sophia and the bottom image is my daughter Holly. Here is the link to kim's Kreative homework #22. We are working with some fantastic free textures from ghostbones. All of the directions and links are there. My "Kreative" assignments are open to everyone. Please feel free to join us by posting your image. We would love to see it!! :)

The first thing I did to my images was work the directions from kimi's Kreative homework #6.
The homeworks never end... if you find one that you like, please post your image.
I have another in mind so watch for that one soon. Remember... you can have the image that comes out of your camera, or you can have ART!! I do hope you give this a try...

Step outside of the box and lets see your kreativity shine!
Happy kreating!
~kimi~

Last of the Scrap Layouts

Click any image for a bigger view.

"My Creative Soul" was Lesson #3. As you can see....
A very complex lesson indeed!
That is me in the picture and my very own fingerprint.

Click any image for a bigger view.

Faces of 5 was my 4th and final lesson in the class.
This is my 5 year old niece Sophia.
If you are interested in taking any scrap classes, I would highly recommend the classes taught at JessicaSprague.com.
Every lesson is in video format and the videos remain accessible to you forever.
I found a wonderful new designer this week thanks to Jane over at digiscrapreview. Jane, scowers the net checking scrap sites and posting freebie sitings.
One of her post sent me over to Gina Huff's designs at Weeds and Wildflowers Design.
I fell in Love!!

I have to say I have enjoyed my enlightenment of the whole "scrap" concept. I never really got it before? I also have to say...
I will be happy to get back to my unique and kreative Photographic Art.
For, I have learned, that is what makes my heart sing. I did not realize how much a part of my life that had become until my free time was taken up with other things. So look forward to some new kimi kreative homework assignments and some interesting new images in the future.
If you want to hunt me down. All you have to do is look here.
Photoshop Creative Elements Community
I'm always happy to answer a question are lend a hand. :)
Happy Weekend Everyone!!
~kimi~

Kristen in Chocolate

Click on any image for a bigger view.

I should say... Kristen in a Chocolate filter. lol!
I think we may have touched on this before but lets touch on it again. Chocolate filters are all the rage! You can make your own.

new layer above your image.
here is the hex code for the brown I like to use. 3f2co2
fill blank layer with brown. change your blend mode to soft light.
reduce the opacity until you like the effect.
Done! :)

This can also be used on color images. Interesting results.
I do hope you give it a try.

Happy Weekend
~kimi~

Learn, Non Destructive Editing

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Hi Everyone...

A week or so I gave away a nice cream colored scrap paper.
Today we will go over how to give the same paper a grungy feel without ever touching the paper. Above is the grungy copy I made. To compare with the freebie, scroll down below.
You get a better feel, if you click on the larger image.

Create a new blank layer above you paper.
Go to Edit, Fill and choose 50% gray from the drop down menu.
Change the blend mode on your gray layer to Overlay.
Working on just your Gray layer.
Select your burn tool. 24% opacity, set to midtones.
Load a set of grunge brushes.
Pick a few different ones. Make sure you run along the edges and corners and then try different ones in the middle.
You can change the look, without every touching your paper.
Now save your new grungy paper!! :)

I do this all of the time. I do hope you give it a try on some of your scrap papers and let me know what you think?
Here is a link to Brusheezy.com
Free grunge brushes for everyone! Take your pick!

Note: Using the same directions and a soft edge brush, you can burn along the edges and corners of your photo giving it the same effect the pros use without ever touching your image. This will give your image a focal point. If you find you have over done the effect, just lower the opacity of your layer.
The fun things we can do!! :)

~kimi~

Grace Giggling in the Grass!

Click any image for a bigger view.

This is my neighbor Grace. She came over this afternoon and played in my clover.
Now this is one CUTE little girl!!

I went texture crazy! :) As you can see, I am still heavy into my love affair with textures.
What do you think???
Check out Jesh de Rox's site for what some of the cutting edge Photographers are up to.

I used Nicole Van's Urban Action and some of her textures.

....now back to my taxes. (ark!)

kimi~

Finally some time to play...

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Last weekend three of us girls from the Lafayette Photographic Society went down to Acadian Village and took pictures. I finally had some free time to sit down and experiment.
Loved this old wagon wheel.

Thanks for looking!
~kimi

Free Paper and Sticker

Click any image for a bigger view.

This is Lesson #2 from the Advanced Scrap class at JessicaSprague.com.
Our theme for the lesson was... Then & Now.
It was wonderful looking at how my girls have grown into lovely young ladies.
What a fantastic lesson!! :)


Seeing how I am stuck in the Scrapbooking mode.
Here is a free paper and a sticker.
Get them both here.
Download

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Have a great day everyone!!
{HUGS}
~kimi~

Daisy Art

Click any image for a bigger view.

We have a flower show here this weekend. They are doing something different this year and also judging flower images.
I had 3 images to enter and was a day late contacting the correct person. (sigh)
So... I thought I would show my favorite one here.
I was interested in what they would think of my Art. :)
What do you think?

I am going to have this one printed on canvas and hang it in my home.
I Love It!!!

~kimi~

Edit: This was done following the directions from an earlier post called Overlay Art.

Do you like to Digital Scrap?

Click on any image for a bigger view.

I started the advanced Scrap class at JessicaSprague.com yesterday.
She offers Beginner, Intermediate and now Advanced classes. :)
If you are looking for a fun way to learn either PSE or CS this is truly a fun way to go!!
This is Lesson #1. Expect to see quite a few Layouts for the next 4 weeks.
Thanks for looking.
~kimi~

My favorite picture of the day!

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Out shooting today... A big thank you to Holly.
This is by far my favorite shot of the day!
She looks like a beatnik. :)
~kimi~

Another Inked Frame

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Happy Friday Everyone!!
Here is another copy of my inked frame. This one with a brown or golden background.
It is in a 5x7 format. Apply it over your 5x7 image and print. :)

My girls playing around last weekend. We had a blast!
Here is the download. kimi Kreations brown inked frame

and here are a couple of other images from our day out.
~kimi~

Happy Easter

For Easter is not a time for sadness,
but a time for rejoicing.
Just as spring awakens sleeping flowers
and animals after a long cold winter,
so Easter awakens us to the wonders
and the love all around...

If you were 17, would you think this was cool?

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Holly had a friend over named Hannah. (top photo)
And at this house if you sit still too long you have to submit to pictures. :)
Now they both have new matching myspace pictures.
If you were 17, would you think this was cool?

I have to tell you... I think they are pretty cool!
oh, the girls are cool too. ;)
~kimi~

Let's learn something NEW!

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Let's learn the how to get that raised look from the safety pin.

Erase the area that will look like it is going through the paper. (hard edge brush)
Create a new blank layer above the layer that you want the effect applied to. (in this case, it was the frame layer.
Go to Edit, Fill and choose 50% gray.
Change your blend mode to overlay.
Select your burn tool, set to midpoints at around 18-20%.
Select a very small soft brush.
Zoom in very close. Run your burn tool in a straight line a few times to make the shadow area on both sides..
Select your dodge tool, set to highlights at around 12-14%.
Still using a very small soft brush. Run it over the top area to give a lightened effect.

Zoom back out and lower the opacity on the fill layer because I always tend to overdue the effect. ;)


Do let me know if you give it a try?

Happy Scrapping!
~kimi~

Happy Birthday to me...

Click on image for a bigger view.

A Present for you!!

Here is the textured paper that I promised. I also made an overlay for the Up and Running class over at JessicaSprague.com. The overlay is applied to the paper in my example image. Give it a try on any of your scrap papers.
Here is the download with the paper and the overlay included.

kimi's birthday present

I am hoping for some time today to play with my camera but it looks like work is calling.
Have a great weekend everyone!

~kimi~

Still adding TEXTURE to our images.

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Take an ordinary image and make it extraordinary!!

A plain ole tree, all alone. I added about 4 if not 5 different textures to this image. They were all added on separate layers above the tree picture. Changing blend modes and lowering opacities as I went. This look is very in right now. Remember you can erase the areas that you don't want to have texture.
I hope you give your kreative juices a try!!

Here is a site with some really great free grunge textures.
Matt's lightroom killer tips has a wonderful free grunge texture. It is on the post dated January 28th, at the bottom of the page. It says click here to download the aged texture image.
That one is on my image.

I have a free scrap paper with a texture overlay added that will be available Friday morning.
...see you then!!

Use your own image as a Texture!!

Click on image for a bigger view.

Loading texture to your image.

First, you will need to save your jpeg image as a PSD file for this to work.
Now, open your jpeg image
Go to Filters, Texture, Texterizer, Load Texture.
You will get a menu of PSD files. Find the one you just saved.
You will want to set your scaling to 100% so it will match your image.
Play with the relief slider until you like the effect.
Play with the light.

Here is a screen shot for the ones that will ask how to load a texture. You click on the circle with the triangle on it.
http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?pictu ... rywsITDSwc

It is that easy... this will add a new dimension to any type of image. Take a look at the images that have been posted in
kimi's Kreative homework this week.

Have Fun!!
Check back tomorrow for a free scrap paper using this technique. Subscribe today so you don't miss out. ;)

Edit: I have changed the top picture so the effect shows more. This is a free image that may be found at FREE PHOTOS BY DENNIS HILL AND FRIENDS
and I know I am late on the scrap paper but work called.
It is coming soon. :)

Overlay Art!

Click on image for a bigger view.

Overlay Art!


1. Choose two colors to make a gradient. Fill the whole page with the gradient.

2. Use a Distort> Waves Filter so the colors in the gradient don't blend perfectly straight. They sort of bleed into each other more naturally this way.

3. Create a new layer, hit “D” so you revert back to your default colors. Then in the filter menu go to Render, Clouds.

4. Take your rectangular marquee tool and make a middle selection from your cloud layer. Ctrl J to move to it’s own layer. Ctrl T to stretch to fit your image. Change blend mode to “Overlay”.
Hide or delete the original cloud layer.

5. Create a new Pattern Fill layer and select "Washed Watercolor Paper" (available in the "Artist Surfaces" group from the small arrow's drop-down menu). Then change the Blending Mode to "Overlay" and reduce opacity to about 50%.

After you click on the pattern thumbnail, select the small circle with the triangle and this will bring you to load. Select Artist Surfaces, you will find Washed Watercolor in that group.

6. Bring in the overlay of your choice. I have provided one called. (you can download kimi's golden burlap here ) Change blend mode to “Overlay”

7. Highlight your background image again. Drag your photo into your document, it should fall above your background layer. You may want to try more than one image. Remember you can go back and play with the opacity of your Overlay layers.

8. Now you can leave your image in normal mode are play with your blend modes to see what kind of kreation you can make. (highlight your image layer, highlight normal in your blend modes, use your down arrow key to scroll thru the different blend modes) Cool huh?

I would love some feedback on this one!! Do let me know if you give it a try? Check out some of the images posted using this technique at kimi's Kreative homework #16
Or dig around some of the really cool info located at the Photoshop Creative Elements Community.

The flower image was pulled into the same file as the picture of Holly. It's blend mode was changed to multiply and the image of Holly was left on normal. You can not add an image, just play with the opacity on your layers until you like the effect and use the tut for a scrap paper.
It is all about... making it your own!

hugs..
~kimi~

Come and join our Scrap Challenges!!

Click for a larger view.

Lisa has started posting weekly scrap challenges for us at JessicaSparague.com
Everyone is invited to join!!
This is my page for the current challenge.
Jessica has a beginner class running from March 3 to March 30. Registration is on February 25.
She is also running an advanced class from March 31 to April 27. Registration begins on March 24.

I highly recommend any of her classes. Everything is taught in video format and very easy to follow. So if you are looking for a way to learn your software while you have a great time.
Come and check out the site!
~kimi~

A Before & After...

I am finally able to unload the images that have been sitting in my camera. Here I am starting all over. (sigh...)
Remember to back up your back ups!!!!

One of the first images I had a chance to play with.
My 22 year old daughter Kristen.

I post this so you remember....
Get in there and play around. What comes out of your camera is your starting place not the finish line.

Here is the image as it came out of the camera.Not that bad?
But after playing in Elements and CS3 for a short while this became my final image.

Click on an image for a bigger view.

Here is a quick tip I used on her image.

If you have Elements 5, 6 or CS.
Make a copy of you image and under filters choose Correct Camera Distortion.
When the menu opens. Turn off the grid check box. Under Vignette, take your amount and mid point sliders and pull them to the left until you like the results. Instant Vignette. :)

Have a Nice Weekend everyone!
~kimi~

Free Texture Heart for Valentines

Click for a bigger view.

Ahhhhhhhh.... my beautiful 17 year old daughter Holly.

Here is the texture heart as an embellishment. This is a LO I created for Lisa's challenge on the Jessica Sprague forum.
You can download it here: white texture heart png.
The design under Holly's name is the grunge tag from earlier.
I just erased the top section.
The red paper is from here also. I did lower the saturation a bit.
Hope you enjoy my kreations?

much love
~kimi~

The Burn & Dodge Tools

Make a paper, Change an image...
This week for kimi's Kreative homework we watched a great video showing how to maximize your images using the dodge and burn tool. The video can be found here: Photoshop Cafe
Do make sure you check the homework link to see all of the great images that were posted.

Well this got me thinking...... scary thing huh? :)
You can use your dodge and burn tools with any brush to make a really cool Scrap Paper.
This is my example.

Click for bigger view.

Both tools were set to about 14% opacity and in most cased I clicked over and over.
I started with just a solid red background and played from there. Everything was done with the dodge and burn tool with the exception of the white stain, which I used a brush.
I do hope you give this a try.
Remember.... it is up to you to be Kreative!!

If you would like this paper you may download it here.
PhotoshopBrushes.com is a great site for finding all kinds of free grungy brushes to use on your papers.
Have Fun!!

Free Grungy Brush Tag

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Hi Everyone!!

Since I have no images to play with I find myself with time to Kreate!
Here is a sweet little brush grunge tag. Add the date, a name, or a feeling and you are set to go.
You may download it here:

kimi Kreations grunge tag

Please remember... all item from my blog are for personal use only! If you would like to use something commercially, you must contact me for permission.

I hope you enjoy!
~kimi~

Some of my freebies are being featured today on Digi Free.
If you are one of my regulars, check it out. There are lots of really cool Free stuff.
If you are new to my site.... Hi & Welcome!
Take some time to look around.

Free Inked Frame

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Get your Free Inked Frame here today.

Hi everyone!!
I created this cute grungy inked frame. It is in a PNG format, so all you have to do is slide your photo under the frame.
It will be a "limited" time freebie. So grab it while you can.
Today, I had a gift... I found a file of photos that had never been moved. Here are my two girls.
Kristen Swiney. 22 years old
and Holly Boustany. 17 years old.

Here is the frame: kimi Kreations inked frame
Do post a link to your work in the comment area if you use it. :)

Subscribe today!!

Free Scrap Paper Today!

Click on any image for a larger view.

Hi everyone! I am still without images so today I have a free scrap paper to give away.
Here you go. kimi Kreation scrap paper
Talk to you soon.

An update on my external drive crash. It was sent in the mail today to ACS Data Recovery. I will let you know how they do....

The Orton Effect!

Click on any image for a bigger view.

We are using our Kreative juices today. Let's make some ART!

The Orton Effect is easy and simple to use. I have broken the directions down using shortcuts.

Duplicate your image twice. Ctrl J
Change the top layers blend mode to screen.
Merge your screen layer down. Ctrl E
Duplicate your new image Ctrl J
On your new top layer Go to Filters, Blur, Gas Blur. Don't be afraid to blur! Blur until the shapes are still visible but the details are all gone.
Now change the blend mode on that layer to multiply.
Ctrl, Shift, Alt, E to combine your layers into one new image. Now, do a levels adjustment. Ctrl L
Done!

TIP: if you are using this effect on a portrait. After you finish, use Ctrl, Shift, Alt, E to combine your kreation on it's own layer. Now delete your screen and multiply layers and use either a layer mask or your easer to bring the eyes back in sharp. If you find your effect to to overwhelming... lower the opacity of your combination layer until you like it. :)

If you would like to see what others have done with this effect or share your image with us, please feel free to visit...
kimi's Kreative homework #11.

This can be used alone or I use it lots of times on Portraits and mask back in the areas that I want to stay sharp. I do hope you give it a try. It gives almost a painted look.

Here is my Vintage Image

Click on an image for a larger view.

This is my neighbor Grace. Cutie isn't she!
I did a few things... I followed yesterday's tutorial on my original image. I then duplicated that layer and applied the Orton effect to the original image. Combined my layers into one image using the shortcut Ctrl, Alt, Shift E. I then deleted everything but my original and the Orton layer. Next I used a layer mask to make her eyes and lips clear from the original. I then lowered the opacity of the Orton layer, used the earlier shortcut to combine the layers into a new image yet again. Applied a chocolate filter to the new image and an Antique frame. I am not sure where I downloaded the frame? If someone knows, please leave a comment and I will add the link.
Thanks so much for looking.
Hope you have a great day!

As a side note: If you do not know how to apply the Orton Effect? The directions are coming soon. See you then.

Today we Blog hop.

How to Kreate a Vintage Image?
The topic of kreating a Vintage image came up at the Photoshop Creative Elements forum. With a nice push from Denise, this became kimi's Kreative homework #10. Here is the blog. Jessica Bell Tutorials.
Here are two of my favorite images from this weeks homework. If you would like to see the other images that have been posted following Jessica Bell's tut, and hopefully post your own for us to enjoy. Please join us here: kim's Kreative homework.

This is Amanda's image.

This is one of Sunny's images.

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Talk to you soon. ~kimi~

Creating a Dramatic Focal Point

Click on any image for a larger view.

With all the political debates going on...
Today we have Sophia's imitation of a Politician.
Notice her face is highlighted by a slight vignette effect.
That is what we will learn today.

Create a new blank layer.
Hit "D" to set your color picker to the default colors of black and white. Now let's hit "X". We want white be on the top and black on the bottom.
Pick your gradient tool. Open the gradient picker and choose the first one. It will be white and black.
You will select your Radial Gradient on your top tool bar. (it is the second one)
Draw a small line where you want your accent to fall. You may have to undo a few times to get this just right.
Now, we want to see our image. Change your blend mode to Multiply. Why? Because Multiply hides white so our focal point will show through.
I tend to draw a small gradient and use "Ctrl T" to free transform the size into what I need.
This is why we apply the gradient on it's own layer.

Lower your opacity on the gradient layer until you have an effect that you like. Remember, you want a slight effect. Not total darkness.

This was kimi's Kreative homework #9.
You may find the entire thread here.
Photoshop Creative Elements
Please feel free to add your image to the thread.
Everyone is Welcomed!
Hope everyone has a Happy and Kreative day!
See ya soon.

Stepping outside the box again...

Click on any image for a bigger view.

This is my daughter Kristen. (awfully cute, isn't she?) Here is her image straight out of the camera. I liked the color version just fine but that harsh black shadow from the flash drives me bananas. So I had to look at other options.

First I cropped the image. Used Nicole Vans black and white action. Then I used my paint brush and brushed black into all of the area that still showed in the background.
This is what I now have. A very nice image but Kristen was not impressed.

So I had to take it a step further. I samples her face color with the eye dropper tool, made a new layer and started digging in my grunge brushes. I would stamp 4 or 5 on a layer, make a new blank layer and keep going.

Using her face color kept everything in the same tones. When I was happy with my grunge, I merged just the grunge layers together. Then using a soft edge brush I erased anything that overlapped onto her face, hair and neck.

Last I added just a hint of sepia to it, really reducing the opacity until it barley showed.
So now my 22 year old has a new edgy myspace picture.
(and all is right with her world)
well... at least for today.

So remember, you have all of the control. Take that camera image and kreate a piece of ART.
Have a happy and kreative day!

Here are a few sites that offer grunge brushes. I have directions for starting a separate brush folder on this blog. Scroll down and look for the post labeled. Brushes, Brushes... Everyone loves brushes!

Grunge brushes at Brusheezy
Great Corner Grunge
Obsidiandawn.com

I would love to see what you come up with. Please feel free to post a link to your image in the comment area.

Just a note

to see if the e-mail notifications worked?
please let me know.
Thanks~

Nicole Van's Actions

I have a friend named Denise... her images are breathtaking! Here is her site. Mommy and Me Photography
She uses Nicole Van's actions on some of her images. So, I went out and bought myself some. Now I am not foolish enough to believe my images will turn out like Denise's but hey, you have to start somewhere. (hehe)
Here is the link to Nicole's site. NicoleV photography
Designed for Photoshop Elements 5 and Photoshop 7, CS, CS2, and CS3.

Here is Sophia using the color pop action.



Here is the same image using Nicole's dark and moody black and white action, with a chocolate tone applied.

Click on an image for a bigger view.

Do you have a favorite?

Processing Your Images

My New Years resolutions is to learn CS3, so I worked on this yesterday. Everything I did can be done in Photoshop Elements. I took this shot during the holidays. Let's talk about how to make it look a little better. Sophia was sitting next to a window and I used the flash on my camera with a diffuser. It came out a little dark. That is fine. We can work with dark. She picked her pose, I did ask her to raise her finger. :)

First thing to do is make a duplicate copy and change the blend mode to screen. Next because we have so much black in the background, we will take our paint brush on a new layer and paint away the ugly elements in the background with black. I also cropped to an 8x10 ratio. Remembering that we want her eyes in the upper third of the image. Makes a huge difference, doesn't it?

Now our image is a little to bright. I made a duplicate layer again and changed the blend mode to soft light. I do this on almost all of my images. It gets rid of the camera fuzzies. (play with your opacity)
*A major thing for me is to lower the saturation when working with a portrait.* I find it gives me the realistic feel I am looking for. I used a layer mask to bring her eyes back in from the screen layer. I added a Scrap paper as a background on a very low opacity. I used a layer mask to get just the parts I was looking for. Add some text and we are done.

Click on any image for a bigger view.

Now we have something nice enough to put in a frame. Take a look at your images. Don't be afraid to get in there and play around. Always make a duplicate to start with so your original is untouched. If you don't like what you have done, throw all your experiments in the trash and start over. Make your own kreations!

Want a free layer mask as an add on to Photoshop Elements? :~)
Check out Grant's Tools.
Grant has a great Challenge that he post every Thursday. So if you go to his site, check that out also. It is open to anyone and it's a great way to get in there and learn your software. The challenge is for you to change the image, not compete with the other images.

I hope you learned something from my rantings today?
Wishing you all the best in the coming New Year!

A Very Merry Christmas!

thank·ful (thāngk'fəl) Pronunciation Key
adj.

1. Aware and appreciative of a benefit; grateful.
2. Expressive of gratitude: a thankful smile.

This year I am very thankful. Of course, for my wonderful husband but the fact that these 3 children are happy and safe is the most peaceful thing a mother can ask for.

My son Jeremy 29
My daughter Kristen 21
and my daughter Holly 16

For these three children.... I am extremely thankful!
I hope everyone has a Very Merry Christmas.

Click on image for a bigger view.

First Place!

Our local newspaper puts out a weekly magazine called "The Times of Acadiana". They ran a photo contest and my image placed First in the Macro/Detail category. It was one of those shots that when you click the camera, you knew the shot worked. This guy was on a Zinna in my backyard. Looks like he might have had a hard life but he was beautiful with the sun shining straight through his wings... like he was glowing.

They published my picture and had a very nice write up about me. (blush) What an honor!

The image below made honorable mention. I took this to hang in my husband Mike's office. He is the Operation Manager for our local utility company. A sub station at sunset.

Click on an image for a bigger view.

Picture Painting Kreations!

Click on image for a bigger view.

He is is quick and easy way to make your pictures look like paintings.

Make all corrections to your image. (levels ect.)
Make two duplicates. Ctrl J twice.

Edit: If you are using an image of a person... add a small amount of gaussian blur to it first. It will smooth out the skin tones.

Hide your top layer. (turn off the eye)
Let's work on the layer right above your original. Highlight that layer. Go to filter, artistic, poster edges. Move your setting to: 1, 1, and 1. (If you still have your top layer showing you will not see any changes.)

Now lets work on the top layer. Highlight the top layer. Go to filter, stylize, find edges. Ctrl U to remove the color. (move your saturation slider to -100)

Here is the fun part: with your top layer still highlighted. Click on the word normal in your blend mode palette. It will highlight the word. Use the up and down arrow keys on your keyboard to scroll thur your blend modes until you find the look you like.

The image of my daughter Kristen was set on soft light and the fall image was set to overlay.
I would love to see your painting kreation. Come and join us here.
Photoshop Creative Elements homework.

Have Fun!

Happy Scrappy Christmas!

Here is the kit that I used on the "Sugar Plum Fairy" page below.
At least the bits and pieces that I made, and a few extras. :~)
You may have the kit for free, just follow the Terms of Use enclosed.

kimi kristmas kreations

When you get to the page, you have to look at the bottom to see the download link.
Happy Scrapping!

Find Your Style...

Have you found your style?
The internet is a wonderful thing. It gives you the opportunity to spend time looking at all types of work, some you will like and some you will not. You will find yourself trying to create the kind of images that appeal to you. After trial and error, you will find your own rhythm and your own style. :~)

I bring this up because of my struggle with Scrapping. I just couldn't get it. I could do it technically but I didn't like the look of it. When I was first introduced to Scrapping it was at a very traditional site. I have learned I don't really care for traditional. ;) Once I learned I could put my own style into effect, it was a joy to do!

Scrapper's Guide is having an Ornament Contest. You had to follow the video instructions and create and ornament and then add your ornament to a Scrap page. Going beyond normal or traditional, here is the page that I submitted. (full of kimi style)
"The Sugar Plum Fairy".

Click on image for a bigger view.

What if God thought Pink?

Click on an image for a bigger view.

I have always loved this image. Every time I look at it I think...
What if God had thought Pink?

Here is a fast and easy way to kreate Art from your images. :~)

Open an image.
Make your adjustments.
Hit Ctrl U to bring up your hue/saturation adjustments.
Where is says Master.... Pick the color you would like to change.
Play with the hue slider until you get the color you want.
You may also want to increase your saturation.

Remember... Have Fun and try to think outside the box!

If you would like to see how others have used this tip or post your own image to share, you may go here. http://www.photoshopcreativeelements.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=936

A Great Shortcut Tip!

Have you ever worked on an image, merged down and found your image no longer looks the same after you merged your layers together? This tip is a life saver...

Instead of merging your layers together. How about creating a new layer with all of your work combined.
Highlight your top layer. Press Ctrl, Shift, Alt and E all at the same time. This will combine your work on a brand new layer. It's great, wonderful, fantastic! Easy Peasy. :~)

I had a photo shoot this weekend. Here are 2 of my images.
(she bought both of them, yeah!)
............................ Everyone, this is Maddie.

Click on an Image to get a bigger view.

Add a little Chocolate to you images!

I have a pretty sick child today. My daughter Holly is not feeling well. Temp was 102 this morning.
Since I may be missing for a few days, here is a tip.

Chocolate filters have become all of the rage. You can make your own. :~)
Take you plain old black and white and add a little chocolate to it....
After you have completed your black and white conversion.
(I like mine heavy on the darks)
Create a new layer above the image and fill with a nice dark brown color. Here is one of my favorites. (3f2c02) Change the blend mode to soft light, you can also try color. Adjust opacity as needed. Done!

Here is the latest picture of my daughter Holly. She is 16. A black and white conversion with a chocolate filter added. The image didn't have a very good background so I changed that also. Remember, thinking outside the box is a good thing! Be Kreative!

Click on an image to get a bigger view.

Brushes, Brushes... Everyone Loves Brushes!

This is one of the very first things I ever did using a brush. I made a set of 3 prints for my daughter. She way going away to college and wanted something to decorate with. They were all made using Strange Angel brushes, created by Annika Von Holt. I was so excited.... I thought they looked like Art. Open a new document, choose a nice brown color and stamp away. The link to her brushes are below.

Click on an Image to get a bigger view.

Here are few of my favorite sites. Dig around in here and you should be able to find just about anything your little heart desires. :~)

http://www.brusheezy.com/brushes?page=1

http://www.photoshopsupport.com/tools/brushes.html

http://annikavonholdt.com/brushes/

Now if you are a brushaholic like I am. You will want to make a separate brush folder for all of these new toys. This has quite a few advantages... you will have your brushes in a separate folder if you ever upgrade your software and you won't bog down you current software.

Go into Documents and create a New Folder and name it Downloaded Photoshop Brushes.
Save you new brushes there. The next time you open your brushes in Photoshop, choose load. Navigate to the new folder you created in Documents. Photoshop or Elements will remember that path and go there from now on.
Happy Brushing!

Wild Gradient Art!

Today we are going to make a quick and easy piece of Art.

Open a new document.
Select your gradient tool.
Choose the Chrome gradient color.
Set your blend mode to difference on the top tool bar and pick the liner gradient.
Draw at least 6 lines or until you like it.
Then pick the radial gradient and make some small lines for the circles.

All of this is done on your original background layer.
Hope you had fun!

Here or some more examples:
http://www.pbase.com/carbone/gradients_museum&page=1

If you would like to post a copy of your Art to share, you can post it here.
http://www.photoshopcreativeelements.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=805

Learning something New.

I followed a tutorial posted by Reka at http://www.photoshopcreativeelements.com/
Please feel free to check it out. We practiced making lightning. The tutorial is under the Title, "Get Technical with CS". It can be worked in Photoshop or Elements.

Here are my before and after images. Hopefully it opens a door for you. Everything is not always as it appears. Try and look at your pictures and let your imagination soar!

Click on an Image to get a bigger view.

This cutie is my niece Sophia Spadoni.

Under Contruction

Hi Everyone, Welcome!