Fort Collins Digital Camera Club

Interested in joining us?
Join us
Contact us for more info
Facebook

Meetings/Outings 2026
• January
• February
• March
• April
• May
• June
• July
• August
• September
• October
• November
• December

Quick recap

The Fort Collins Digital Camera Club meeting focused on photography techniques, with members sharing their experiences with film grain, lens ball photography, and digital editing tools. The discussion began with members reflecting on film grain preferences and the cost of processing film, with Ed sharing his recent experiences shooting film and processing it through a Kansas lab. The group then spent significant time sharing lens ball photography techniques and results, with Pam, Ed, Jim, Jack, and Heather all presenting their creative approaches using both mirrors and iPad displays. Mike demonstrated a Photoshop technique for creating painterly effects using mixer brushes, showing a detailed 5-hour transformation of a horse photograph into a more artistic style. The conversation ended with a discussion about the artistic value and market perception of manually created versus AI-generated artwork, with members debating whether hand-crafted digital art commands higher value than similar results achieved through automated tools.

Next steps

Summary

Film Photography Discussion Group

The group discussed film photography, with Mike sharing his experience of exploring why people prefer film grain over digital noise, despite his previous goal of minimizing grain when shooting film. Ed shared his recent experience with film photography, including purchasing film from Walgreens and Amazon, and mentioned challenges with one of his cameras producing blank photos after processing. Rich Roberts joined the conversation to discuss his ongoing restoration of a 1950s Japanese Leica-style camera with a 39mm screw mount, while Pam expressed concern about processing two rolls of exposed film she had been storing.

Film and Digital Photography Discussion

The group discussed film photography, digital noise reduction, and camera features. They explored the new film grain tool in Photoshop and debated its effectiveness. Rich Roberts shared his experience with old photographs and emphasized that most photographers only use a small fraction of their camera's capabilities. The conversation touched on the complexity of modern photography tools and the challenge of finding the most useful features for everyday shooting.

Lens Ball Photography Techniques Discussion

The group discussed lens ball and iPad photography techniques, with Pam and Ed sharing their experiences and results. Pam demonstrated various photos taken with a lens ball, including a successful shot of Christmas lights and a challenging attempt with the Northern Lights. Ed showcased his extensive collection of lens balls, including a large 8-10 inch crystal ball, and shared photos taken over the years with different techniques and equipment. The group discussed challenges like depth of field, camera settings, and stabilizing the lens ball for shots. They also briefly mentioned a Japanese store called Daiso where Pam found affordable stands for lens balls.

Lens Ball Photography Techniques Discussion

The group shared and discussed various photos they had taken using lens balls, with different techniques and setups. Ed shared his homemade stand and adapter, while Jim showed examples of single and double ball reflections, experimenting with different backgrounds and lighting. Mike demonstrated iPad paintings using Procreate, and Jack presented photos taken with a crystal stand and various lighting setups. The group discussed challenges like focusing, cleaning the lens ball, and dealing with reflections, with Jim noting that using a front surface mirror helped reduce double images. They also explored techniques like focus stacking and using AI tools in Photoshop.

Photoshop Flame Effects Demonstration

Mike demonstrated how to create flame effects in Photoshop using the filter render flames feature, which can be applied along a path. The group discussed various Photoshop painting techniques, with Mike showing how to use the mixer brush to create a painted version of a photograph, which he described as a relaxing process that takes several hours. Rich Roberts admired Mike's patience and dedication to the detailed painting process, while Rich Ernst shared his experience with Corel Painter as an alternative tool for similar effects.

Digital Painting Techniques Demonstration

Mike demonstrated his digital painting techniques using Photoshop, explaining how he simplifies details and creates an impressionistic style rather than a photorealistic approach. He shared his process of painting elements like chains and hair, emphasizing the importance of brush settings and edge control. Mike also showed examples of portrait paintings and discussed his preference for shooting subjects against solid backgrounds, adjusting colors, and adding painted elements. The group discussed the time investment in digital painting, with Mike estimating around 3-4 hours for some pieces, and Rich Roberts noted the artistic choice of defocusing certain details to make them less obvious.

Artistic Portrait Discussion Meeting

The group discussed a portrait created by Mike, comparing it to a photograph and exploring the artistic value and techniques involved. They debated the differences between hand-painted portraits and AI-generated or photoshopped images, with Mike emphasizing the personal touch and time investment in his work. The conversation also touched on the aesthetic qualities of the portrait, with Rich Roberts comparing it to Victorian-era miniature portraits, and the group discussing how the image appears more painting-like when viewed at a distance.

Photoshop Mixer Brush Techniques

The group discussed painting techniques in Photoshop, with Mike demonstrating how to use a mixer brush for detailed artwork. Mike shared his brush settings, including wetness at 50%, load at 100%, and mix at 85%, while Rich Ernst explained the advantages of the mixer brush over the art history brush for precision. The conversation concluded with Mike mentioning his preference for using a Wacom tablet, though he noted that using an iPad with Procreate could be more convenient.

iPad Drawing and Monitor Setup

The group discussed using an iPad as a second monitor with an Apple Pencil for drawing, with Jim confirming it works on both Mac and Windows. Rich Ernst demonstrated pop-out image techniques and shared examples of his work, while Mike presented AI-generated background portraits of models. The conversation concluded with Pam reporting that the owls remained at Lowe's garden center, with two adult owls and an undetermined number of young ones present.

Wildlife and Nature Observations

The group discussed early arrival of birds and wildlife, including sandhill cranes on Owl Canyon Road and barn owls at High Plains Environmental Center. They shared observations about blue herons nesting and ospreys being spotted in various locations. The conversation shifted to painting and photography, with Rich Roberts planning to try painting and Albert sharing updates about his photos being displayed at a local brewery. The conversation ended with plans for future photography outings and discussions about weather patterns.

================ Digital Painting Notes ==================

My digital painting techniques are based on Jill Johnson's digital painting classes.

HOW TO PAINT A PHOTOGRAPH
=========================
1. Clean up photograph;
2. Extract subject from the photograph to a new layer - subject original layer
3. Add background src image to a new layer below the subject original layer - background original layer
4. Prepare for painting the new background
- change opacity of background original layer to 80%
- make all other layers transparent
- create a new blank layer above the background original layer - background paint layer
5. Paint in the background paint layer with a mixer brush, with large X strokes
- This will create a new version of the background, with similar colors and tones but different textures.
5. Prepare for painting the new subject
- the subject original layer should be directly above the background paint layer
- change opacity of subject original layer to 80%
- make all other layers transparent
- create a blank layer above the subject original layer - subject paint layer
6. Paint in the subject paint layer with a mixer brush, in the direction of subject texture,
- use a smaller brush for more important details
- use a larger brush for less important, less detailed areas
7. Prepare for painting final details
- turn off all layers except background paint layer and subject paint layer
- create a new blank layer above all others - final details paint layer
8. Fill "thin" areas in the painting layers
- sometimes your brush strokes will paint an area at less than 100% opacity, copying and merging will make the opacity 100%
- copy the background paint layer 4 times and then merge these 4 layers
- copy the subject paint layer 4 times and then merge these 4 layers
9. Clean up gaps in the painting layers
- you may see small gaps where your brush strokes didn't cover everything, paint over them with the mixer brush until they disappear
10. Clean up edges between the subject and background
- create a new final details paint layer at the top of the layer stack
- paint along edges to smoothe the transition between the subject and background
- extend hair and other items from subject to background

You will be painting with a mixer brush with these settings:
======================================
Size=7px; (variable)
Clean brush;
Don't load brush after each stroke
Clean brush after each stroke
Custom mixer brush combination
Wet: 50%
Load: 100%
Mix: 85%
Flow: 65%
Don't enable airbrush style build up effects
Smoothing: 0%
No smoothing options selected
Brush angle: 0'
Select Sample All Layers
Don't select always use pen pressure for brush size

If you don't have a mixer brush, you can convert any normal brush to a mixer brush
=======================================================
Choose which normal brush you want to convert to a mixer brush
Click on Mixer Brush tool
CTL - ALT- Click on chosen brush
Adjust the size
Right click the Brush to bring up the menu and choose the New Brush Preset
Name the brush
Check "Capture Brush Size in Preset"
Check "Include Tool Settings"
Don't check "Include Color"
Click OK
You now have a mixer brush that you can use to paint your photograph