by A.J. Wood

DFW Events – Week of March 8th

Good morning dear readers. Here is what’s happening around the Dallas metroplex this week:

Texas Glamour Club – Wednesday, March 11 at 7pm – Dinner at Cutie Pies in Grapevine. Gang’s gettin’ together for grub & gab.

Dallas Digital Photography Group – Friday, March 13th at 6:30pm – 2009 Chocolate Fest (non-profit event). Cost is $45.

Digital Photography Workflow – Friday, March 13th at 7pm – Good for any photographers currently using Lightroom or Bridge/ACR for their digital photography. I’ll be giving a presentation on best practices, and handling questions all night. $75 in advance, $99 at the door.

GUILD – Texas Animator J. Schuh brings us Round Two of amazing things in After Effects. You may recall his stunning presentation last month, where he gave everyone a sneak peek at his Heroes tutorial slated for release on Layers Magazine.

Dallas Digital Photography Group – Saturday, March 14th at 10:45am – A Day of Chocolate & Art. Cost is $20 for meetup members.

Texas Glamour Club – Saturday, March 14th at 1pm – Come to the Dark Side… not for the feint of heart, this will be a fetish session. Nothing too extreme, so come on out if you want to add a little spice to your portfolio. Cost $99.

Texas Glamour Club – Sunday, March 15th at 1pm – Photo-Walk-a-Bout. Enjoy an afternoon taking in the scenery shooting a beautiful model with fellow photographers. No studio, no pretense, just some afternoon enjoyment. Cost $20.

Please feel free to contact me if you have future events planned, or if you would like me to add your usergroup to my community page.

in Adobe / Events 0 comments
 by A.J. Wood

Quick Links for Thursday

It’s a short post this morning, as it was one heckuva day today. I should probably blog it, but frankly I’m tired and have a 5AM day coming in a few hours. Here are some quick links for today:

iPhone Apps Tell The Future – Interesting article about where portable devices, cell phone tech, etc., may be heading based on apps seen in Apple’s App store. There were a handful of apps that I hadn’t downloaded yet so it was a good read for me.

Cursebird – See how foulmouth some of your Twitter peeps can be when they get to chatting. Being a new dad, I’m happy to report no swearing over here. (Old posts within this blog are another story)

20 Best Web Comics – Thought the list wasn’t complete as they left out Sinfest (that’s .NET not .COM) and What the Duck. I thought the comments had a better list than the article.

Download the update for Lightroom 2.3 (Mac|PC)

Photoshop CS4 users will want to update to Camera Raw 5.3. If not already prompted by the Adobe Updater, you can manually install by visiting the Adobe web site.

in Adobe / News / Technology 2 comments
 by A.J. Wood

Do Stupid People Require Big Government?

This morning’s post was inspired by a tweet thread between @kirkyuhnke and @Jesse about texting while driving.

I saw it coming, but thought I would be different… being a parent changes everything.

Recently, my inbox was hit with one of those mass forwards, you know, the kind that one person ALWAYS sends you even though you tell them repeatedly, “STOP! For the love of all that’s decent–STOP!” This particular message relayed a story from last October 2008 regarding a little boy who was injured in the car accident. The point of the email was banning text messaging while driving.

Long time readers know I have posted against cell phone bans since 2001. I revisited cell phone usage in 2003 and in 2004 I ranted many a time about cell phone etiquette and bathroom phone calls.

My opinion about stupid people hasn’t changed, but I’m starting to rethink my position about what we do about it. As a younger man, the idea that the government would regulate my ability to drive just went against my core because frankly I hate being told what to do. I am Joe Opposite when it comes to listening to authority. Loyal readers know I have a track record of dissenting opinion with “the Man.” In terms of cell phones, I used a headset while driving long before bluetooth was an option just because it was common sense. I’ve even been known to–God forbid–let my phone go to voicemail when I’m driving or at least pull over somewhere to take that important call. I believe I’m fully capable of driving while using my cell phone, but I firmly believe that YOU CAN’T.

Texting while driving is not the same thing as talking.

But then… it is. Talking, texting, eating, doing your makeup, changing CDs, these are just a few of the things that modern day drivers do during the course of their daily commute. Bottom line, when you’re doing something else in your car YOU’RE NOT PAYING ATTENTION TO THE ROAD.

I used to think that stupid people were the exception, but now I’m wondering if they’re the norm. A moment ago I made a statement about my capabilities versus yours, and truly I didn’t mean that. However, I think that’s the problem, I believe everyone tells themselves that same thing, “I’m capable, go harass the idiots.”

I still don’t agree that a ban on cell phones is good legislation, however, I believe stiffer penalties for those individuals that cause accidents would make people reconsider the need to do such things.

Last week I was drivin’ to dinner when I received a call from an important client. I could have picked it up, but then my daughter was in the back seat so I let the call go to voicemail.

in Editorial 3 comments
 by A.J. Wood

Quick Links Around the Internet

If you hadn’t already caught the buzz on Twitter, there’s a new iPhone app Photo Keys that turns the phone into a controller for Photoshop. Works on Mac or PC. Downloaded it yesterday, looks pretty cool so far.

Adobe has Photoshop.com but have you wondered what a web version of Photoshop might be like? Give Pixlr a spin. Doesn’t have all the bells & whistles, but was surprised to find Layers, Levels and other standard PS fare.

It’s after midnight, and if the rumors are true Apple should have some announcements today about new iMacs & Mac Minis.

Scott & Matt probably set a new record for comments with their new weekly Nikon DSLR podcast. Maybe I should talk to Jason over at Canon Blogger about doing a Canon show.

That’s it, I’m out. Enjoy your day!

in Adobe / News 1 comments
 by A.J. Wood

DFW Events – Week of March 1st

Good morning dear readers. Here is what’s happening around the Dallas metroplex this week:

DFW North Photography Club – Wednesday, March 4th at 6pm – The evening topic will be Creative Landscape Photography. Image critiques and post-processing tips will be discussed.

DFW Digital Photo Club – Wednesday, March 4th at 7pm – Dinner gathering at Fuddruckers to socialize and see the new direction of this group.

Digital Photography for Artists – Friday, March 6th at 6:30pm – $225, Instructor Dave Kramer will help students develop photography skills as an artist. NOTE – this is a two day event. Also meets Saturday, March 7th at 10am.

Dallas Digital Photography Group – Friday, March 6th at 7pm – Darryl Briggs will deliver a presentation on Portrait Lighting 101. Cost is $20 and all proceeds go to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Nikon School – Saturday, March 7th at 9:30am – $119. Intro to Digitial SLR course for new photographers.

North Texas Irish Festival – Saturday, March 7th at 1pm – $15, at Fair Park downtown Dallas.

Texas Glamour Club – Saturday, March 7th at 1pm – $99, the club will be shooting both Saturday & Sunday.

Dallas Digital Photography Group – Sunday, March 8th at 6pm – Virginia Brodie will be giving a mini-Photoshop workshop for group members. All proceeds go to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Please feel free to contact me if you have future events planned, or if you would like me to add your usergroup to my community page.

UPDATE – via @falc04 the Make-A-Wish Foundation has a Race for Wishes in Irving on Saturday, March 7th. Oh, and how could I forget about the DSVC meeting Wednesday evening, March 4th?

in Adobe / Events 1 comments