Tutorials on how to add a film grain effect into your photos.

With all the discussions we have about digital cameras producing too much noise at high ISOs, some readers may be surprised to learn that the right kind of noise may not be a bad thing in a photo.

In fact, high ISO film grain (especially in B&W) has a charming effect all its own. In the following tutorials, the authors show how to add that film grain effect.

Film Grain Effect Tutorials:
- Film Grain Effect in Photoshop [video]
- Natural Film Grain using Photoshop
- Realistic Film Grain in Photoshop [step-by-step tutorial]
- Film Grain Effect in Flash [video]
- How to create a Film Grain effect in Flash

If you’ve watched the movie “Cider House Rules,” you know that there are rules to follow when living in the Cider House. Using a tripod (or even monopod) in a public venue also calls for some common sense rules that show courtesy to others (and other photographers) around you. Of course, you may decide to break some of the rules (like in the movie), but Gareth Glynn Ash writes in Black Star Rising why you shouldn’t break his “Tripod Use Rules” and end up being “that guy.”

Can you get exhibition quality prints at Sam’s Club? John Sevigny says so in his article, How to Make Exhibition-Quality Prints on a Budget. But there are a couple of things you’ll need to do first to prepare your prints….

Ask Thom Hogan and he’ll tell you. In fact, he already has in this article: The Ultimate Upgrade Guide. Read it and save yourself some anxiety — and dough.

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Category: Serious to Advanced Amateur

The Canon EOS 7D is a new series that sits between the 50D and the 5D Mark II. It features 18MP resolution using an APS-C size (22.3 x 14.9mm) CMOS sensor with an ISO range of 100-6400 (expandable to ISO 12,800), and claims that its enhanced, low-noise high-sensitivity optimization makes shooting in situations previously possible only with flash as simple as point and shoot.

Unheard of in a camera in this category, the EOS 7D features a blazing continuous shooting of 8fps, allowing capture of up to 126 Large/JPEGs with a UDMA CF card and 15 RAW. This makes the EOS 7D a perfect action shooting digital SLR camera.

Read the Canon EOS 7D QuickFact Sheet >>

Leica is set to begin “a new chapter in photography” and will unveil their next generation of Leica Cameras September 9, 2009 in a live webcast. You need to register to watch the webcast.

Live Webcast on 9/9/2009 – The next Generation of Leica Cameras from leica camera on Vimeo.

Register for Leica webcast
- Watch on Vimeo 09/09/09

Steve McCurry’s Afghan Girl on the cover of National Geographic and Korda’s photograph of Che Guevara are headshots that are two of the most well-known images of the 20th Century. In this article, John Sevigny covers equipment choice, depth-of-field, capturing emotion, and the need for patience.

John Sevigny was born in Miami and studied English and art history at Miami Dade College. He has spent more than 15 years as a professional photographer, working for the Associated Press, EFE News, and many newspapers. Currently working as an independent fine art and documentary photographer, he has exhibited his work in the United States, Portugal, and Mexico, where he currently lives. He is finishing a degree in art education at La Universidad Veracruzana and regularly gives photographic workshops. His writing on photography and the arts regularly appears in a number of online magazines. Check out his Gone City blog.

Read The Art of the Headshot

Nikon School of Photography has published their class schedule for 2010. They are offering “Introduction to Digital SLR Photography” (US $119) on Saturdays and “Next Steps: Color, Light, Technology” (US $159) on Sundays. Attendance is limited to the number of seats available.