Software Tips

There’s no question that do-it-yourself photo books have captured the imagination of photographers, from pros to those who simply want to create a remembrance of a journey or to gather family photos. While just about every imaging software and online picture service, from iPhoto to Shutterfly, offers quick and easy bookmaking, there are some companies dedicated to serving the higher-end market, generally pros but also including every photographer who wants a stylish, custom-designed book. Software to help design the book is a key ingredient, as are options for book materials and binding. And in the end, the quality of the images reproduced, and the facility of ordering and making images ready, is what makes the bookmaking process a creative, fun project that will result in a book that will be cherished for many years.

We all strive to produce photos that are perfect right out of the camera. Unfortunately, sometimes what comes out of the camera doesn't quite match what we envisioned when we pressed the shutter button. Here are some easy things you can do to improve your photos after the fact.

STEP 1: Crop The Image
It's best to get the framing right in...

Robert Herko is a professional photographer who's in great demand in New York (he's just settled into a larger shared studio in Manhattan), California, and Arizona, where he once lived. His clients include Hummer, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, VISA, Arizona's Department of Tourism, Arizona Highways magazine, Arizona Western College, and several casinos in the western...

Here are some fun (and/or useful) things to do with your images and image-editing software

Digital imaging makes it easier to produce effects that are difficult to do by traditional photographic means, and makes it possible to do things that can't be done otherwise. And you don't have to use a digital camera to do digital imaging—you can have your slides, negatives and prints...