There are lots of favorite Photoshop editing tools I like but this one is my all time "go to" tool especially when I am not quite sure what the photo needs. Here's a great example. This photo just isn't quite right. I thought about adjusting the color but decided to try the Levels tool first. You can do this 2 ways. You can adjust directly on the photo by choosing Control L or Command L (Mac) or a much safer way to adjust is by adding an adjustment layer. (To be honest - I do not know if you have... Continue reading

I saw these Grunge Backgrounds by Lavender Designs in the Nifty Boutique the other day and fell in love with them! I really think they were calling me by name to come and play. I can't resist a great set of grunge papers and after downloading these papers I was not disappointed. It didn't take me long to crank out 3 samples of how to use them. Not only will I show you my final result but tell you what I did. Yes, it was really easy! First I chose my photo and overlay from the Grunge Background set above.... Continue reading

I have totally ignored this BLOG for too long. It's time to focus my attention on a hobby I love and that's photography. So let's start this happy reunion with a wonderfully easy tuturial along with a coupon for some fantastic overlays. I recently visited Arizona and found myself immersed in photo opps everywhere. It is truly a beautiful state. Sometimes when you get home and take a look at your photos up close and on the big screen of your computer you can get a little bit annoyed that they didn't capture the true beauty of what your eyes... Continue reading

Just arrived this week! Artistic Photo Overlays #5 This set of 14 watercolor overlays adds the most exciting looks to your photos. In Photoshop, you simply add the overlay on top of your photo, resize it to fit, then experiment with the blending modes and opacities to get a never ending variety of looks to your photos. They are sure to spark creativity for you. The set includes 14 overlays sized at 11 x 14 inches, resolution at 300 ppi. These overlays are original watercolor paintings by Julie. It comes in a professional use and personal use versions. Samples of... Continue reading

May I suggest a white Inner Glow on those beautiful spring photos? It's simple and adds such a soft look. Choose Layer Styles. Here are my suggested settings. You can adjust those to suit your photos best. All of my beautiful spring flowers are just popping out. The grape hyacinths are blooming along with apple blossoms and tulips. Before adding the Inner Glow press Control L (mac: Command L) to open up the Levels. I like to lighten it up quite a bit by moving the right slider and the middle slider to the left. Not too much, you don't... Continue reading

A few weeks ago it was rather rainy here. On the way home from work I stopped to take a photo of a rainy road. I don't know what kind of person gets excited about puddles and reflections but I definitely fall into that category. This post isn't even about the muddy road photo I stopped for but the last one I took before heading on home. Just as I started to roll up the window the side mirror on my car caught my attention. Al the drops on it were pretty cool, they reminded me of a song we... Continue reading

This week the studio is coming along quite nicely! It's actually looking like a room now. They are now in the process of mudding the walls. This photo is looking towards the front entrance. Here's the lunchroom for the crew! They even have a microwave oven. This will eventually be MY storage room. Continue reading

Don't forget to turn your camera when taking photos. You might be really good at remembering to change from vertical to horizontal photos with your camera but also add a slight tilt to it too, especially if you are capturing fun moments like coloring Easter eggs. A small angle added to the camera can add a bit of pizazz and make your photos really stand out! On these photo I did the following: -Added a dark edge. -Created a small amount of blur to the outside of the photo. -Increased the Saturation just a bit to make those colors pop!... Continue reading

I let one week go by and now I have major changes to share. The studio changes every day. This photo is going to be the entrance. Hopefully we will have much more than a plank for everyone to walk up. This photo shows my prop closet and where most of photography stuff will be located. I think I am really going to love this wall. A large desk will be built under these windows. My computer will be here and I'll have a beautiful view! This photo is looking towards the front entryway. A large work island will be... Continue reading

With the holiday weekend being here my family and I headed to a movie Friday evening. After the movie we needed to run by Wal-Mart to pick up a couple of items before heading home. The plan was to drop off my daughter and I so we could run in and run out. I got my 3 items and hurried up to the check-out. As I approached I noticed carts had been left everywhere! Full carts were left in line at the register, there was no one there to check me out either. I was quickly approached by an employee... Continue reading

The floor has been put down and the walls for the studio are now up! Things are moving very quickly. With the walls up I can now have a better vision of how big this is going to be. This small room at the back will be my props and supplies closet. Continue reading

March is Heritage Month. A great time to learn an easy way to turn any photo into one with an antique look. I am also including free overlays for you so you can follow along! 1. Choose a photo to use for this tutorial. If you want to follow along download the Antique Photo Overlays. This is the photo I will be using. 2. You will need to set up 3 layers above the original photo. (by the way, it's a good idea to duplicate the photo and put the original one away) Now drag the overlay to your photo... Continue reading

Follow along as I share with you the building of my new studio. I started planning an addition to my house over a year ago. The addition was to house a new photo/art studio for all my passions including photography, digital designing, and painting. Last year we hired an architect to draw up the floor plans. It took a long time before we could get a contractor to start but now the building has begun. They started digging the ground for the footings. Here's another picture to show how deep the hole is. The forms are ready for the cement.... Continue reading

Consider joining the E-scape Artist Design Team! The E-scape and Scrap site is well established and will be celebrating its 6th year this June! This is our first designer call so don't let this opportunity slip by! We do NOT require our designers to be exclusive. If interested you can email me privately with questions to: esands@gbta.net We would love to hear from you! If you have product previews please send us a few when applying. Don't delay. This window of opportunity will only be open for a short time. As a bonus we have a wonderfully talented creative team,... Continue reading

Enjoy this set of 6 photomasks centered around a theme of love and blessings. Each photomasks is one of Julie's original painting creations. Each masks contains small hearts of affection, 5 of the masks contain word art. As an added bonus Julie has created a set of ABR brushes (compatible with all Photoshop versions) out of the masks for even more creative uses. Continue reading

The rose in this layout is for my tutorial in the February 2010 issue of Artisan Notebook. You can learn how I created it in my follow along tutorial. Stock photo Caring Hands. Continue reading

Julie's tutorial in the February Artisan Notebook will teach you how to make super hero layouts like this one for your kiddos. Julie used Kaboom, Bam, Pow kit by Kay Eflin. Continue reading

Julie's Extreme Duotones for Scrapbooking is an easy to follow and fun tutorial found in the April 2009 Artisan Notebook. You may purchase digital magazine HERE. I used the tutorial with a photo of my granddaughter then blended it gently into the background. Kit used in this layout is Ex Libris by Kay Eflin. Continue reading

You won't want to miss Julie's tutorial for making beautiful mirror reflection cards using Photoshop in the December 09 issue of Artisan Notebook, now on sale at The Nifty Boutique. Here's a sample of how the mirror reflection looks...used in a layout. Continue reading

Artistic Photo Overlays set #4 consists of 5 bokeh blending overlays. Bokeh overlays can be used to focus attention on a subject in the photo and help tone down distracting backgrounds. Other uses for the overlays is to add unique looks or even a touch of whimsy with shapes and color. Sample photos with simple Photoshop instructions for using the bokeh overlays are included in the product. Basic knowledge of the photo editing program of your choice is suggested.Each Bokeh Blending Overlay is sized at 9 x 12 inches with a resolution of 300 dpi. Other uses for the overlays... Continue reading

I hope you enjoy this layout. I came across some old slides that were in some pretty bad shape. I had to do a lot work on them after I scanned them in. I wish the quality was better but I am so thankful to have them. This is me(the big sis), my sister, and my dad from years ago. This is one of the house's we lived in when my dad got his first job right out of chaplaincy training. My dad was great, he spent a lot of time playing with us kids. The extracted photo was very... Continue reading

Julie writes tutorials for the fabulous digital magazine, Artisian Notebook (tm) each month. October's issue features her tips for using the mosaic filter in both PSE6 and PSCS3. Artisian Notebook is packed full of wonderful layout ideas, the latest trends to try, and creative eye candy! Available monthly at E-scapeandscrap.net Continue reading

There are 2 sets of Artistic Photo Overlays in the boutique. I am often asked how to use them. Actually, once you start playing with them using the different layer modes for the overlays plus different opacity settings you can get a wonderful variety of looks. Sometimes you may get a really unexpected look that is very pleasing to your eye. This layout has a small sample of some easy ways to use them in Photoshop. The Artistic Photo Overlays come in personal use versions and also Professional Use versions for photographers and scrap for others. Artistic Photo Overlays Set... Continue reading