March 24, 2008

3D text goodness

• Marion Bataille’s ABC3D popup book looks terrific; here’s a video of cruising through the pages. [Via]
• You The Designer features 25 Tasty 3D Graphic Design Treats, all centered around lettering.

Side note: I keep trying to tell developers that I think there’s an opportunity to knock together a very simple 3D extrusion/adjustment environment as a Photoshop plug-in, leveraging PS CS3 Extended’s ability to manipulate 3D layers.  No one has yet seized the opportunity, but I’ll keep trying.

Photoshop Elements 6 for Mac now shipping

I’m pleased to report that Photoshop Elements 6.0 for Mac is now shipping.  The new release runs natively on both Intel- and PowerPC-based Macs & offers a wealth of new features.  As Macworld sums up the highlights,

New features in Photoshop 6 include “Photomerge,” which lets users create group shots by combining the best facial expressions and body language from an entire group of shots. The software has three edit modes — Guided, Quick and Full. Guided Edit mode is new, offering step-by-step help for users. New tabs provide access to many of Photoshop Elements’ features. Color to black-and-white conversion has been improved.

A new copy runs $89.99 (upgrade $69.99), available via the Adobe.com store.

A pair of cool new Photoshop plug-ins

• People are raving about Nik Software’s Viveza plug-in for color correction within Photoshop.  The tool uses Nik’s unique U-Point technology for placing a control element onto the document, then tweaking hue, saturation, contrast, etc. on the canvas. Here’s a quick video intro to the basics.  Scott Kelby loves it, and the plug-in picked up a Best of Show from Macworld at PMA.  It’s $249 diretly from Nik.
• onOne Software, publishers of tools like Genuine Fractals and Mask Pro, have announced Focal Point for selectively blurring images, adding vignettes, and more.  I’ve mentioned ways to simulate lens blur & tilt-shift photography using Photoshop, but Focal Point goes further in offering an interative "lens bug" widget for fine control.  The plug-in is scheduled to ship next month and will cost $159.95. [Via]