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Reviewing the Software
“Software, like computers, changes frequently, and it is difficult to provide a critique of something that may not be available in a year or two” (Malchiodi, 2000, p. 39). Image processing generally includes retouching or enhancement of photographs, computer vision, and creation of works of art. The programs necessary to execute this type of imaging include 2D paint and photopaint applications, 3D software, and stock-image resource libraries or CDs. This section details the programs and resources illustrated throughout this paper as well as others that look promising in terms of digital imaging.
Preinstalled Applications
Some kind of creativity, art making, or photo editing software usually comes preinstalled on computers as part of a package. Although these applications are fairly limited in terms of art making tools, they are adequate in lieu of supplementary programs that can be purchased separately.
Microsoft Paint
Windows compatible PCs come with Microsoft (MS) Paint, a drawing tool you can use to create simple or elaborate drawings. Microsoft Paint comes with the following options in its Tool Box: Free-Form Select, Select, Eraser/Color Eraser, Fill With Color, Pick Color, Magnifier, Pencil, Brush, Airbrush, Text, Line, Curve, Rectangle, Polygon, Ellipse, and Rounded Rectangle. However, MS Paint does not have the ability to create color gradients. The images can be either black-and-white or color, and can be opened and saved as Windows bitmap, JPEG, GIF, PNG, and TIFF formats. The finished images can be printed, used as your desktop background, or pasted it into another document. Somewhat more difficult to do convincingly, Paint can be used to view and edit scanned photographs.
iPhoto
Made by Apple Computer, iPhoto is designed to help manage the digital photos of the user. iPhoto allows users to organize, view and share their digital photos with friends and family at home and over the web. Photos can be organized into "albums" by the user, for easy referencing. The program has some basic editing capabilities including red eye reduction, brightness and contrast adjustments, cropping, resizing, and conversion to black and white, among others. It will also present an "album" of pictures as customizable slideshows, adding selected music and transitional effects.
Basic Imaging
Kid Pix Studio Deluxe
A child oriented painting program, Kid Pix has several applications including drawing, painting, stamp art, slide show production, and animation. The various versions, Kid Pix Studio Deluxe, Kid Pix Studio 3, and Kid Pix Studio 4 can be found online for $3 to $40. Malchiodi (2000) found:
The program seems popular with elementary-school-age children and is mainly suited for that age group or developmental level. Children who have access to a computer at home or in school are often familiar with the program. This is an added benefit to the therapist when time is of the essence in settings such as a hospital bedside where there can be interruptions for vital signs, family visits, or doctor’s rounds. (p. 40)
Flying Colors
Primarily a stamp and draw application, Flying Colors is advertised to be appropriate for ages 8 through adult. While the savvy computer artist might find this program too childlike, the available stamps, backgrounds, and vivid moving colors will engage most users. Some of the palettes encompassed within the application are: colors, patterns, gradients, a Stamp tool and browser, Eraser, Mover, Zoom, Eyedropper, Polygon tool, Oval tool, Rectangle tool, Bucket fill, Line tool, Spray can, Brush, Text, Symmetry, and Stencil. Parker-Bell’s primary complaint in 1999 was that “there is no racial or age variety in available figures. Human figure stamps are limited to blond and blue-eyed Caucasians in one adult age range and few poses” (p. 182). Although Flying Colors 2 has made an effort to expand the variety of their human stamps, they are still fairly stereotyped. However, as I demonstrated in Julian’s case study, the artist is not limited to the prepackaged stamps. Personal customization is possible by cutting and pasting desirable photographs into the Stamp browser. Flying Colors is available online for $29.
Haptek People Putty
People Putty is a tool that allows you to make your very own interactive 3D talking head by altering the pre-made faces and shapes available in the program, or by loading an image from your digital camera, scanner or hard drive. In the Texture palette, you can add wrinkles, makeup, hair, change teeth, eyes, as well as add tattoos or wounds. In the Shapes palette, you can mold your character like putty or choose from many shapes that resemble animals and objects. In the Personality palette, you can give your character a range of emotions from broken hearted to raging mad. The Accessories palette houses items such as earrings, glasses, wigs, hairs, and neck wear. Finally, the Theatre palette is where everything comes together. When you record your own voice (or use the available sound clips), your character instantly lip syncs to your words. Additional animation features allow you to send your character moving across the screen, changing shape, and change expression over time. People Putty is available online for $55.
Cosmic Blobs
Created by Dassault Systèmes, a world leader in the development of 3D design software, Cosmic Blobs may be the most powerful 3D graphics software ever invented for kids. Recommended for children ages 7 to 14, the program allows the user to quickly design and build high quality 3D creations. Although the interface is childlike, resembling a colorful chemistry lab, I believe that the 3D modeling techniques would engage the older adolescent and adult as well. In the lab, users intuitively apply 3D sculpting processes like stretching, squeezing, and rotating. The completed Blob can have elegant lines and any of hundreds of possible colors and textures. Later, the Blobs can be animated, e-mailed to friends, printed, or imported into other applications. Cosmic Blobs is available online for $40 to $45 but occasionally goes on sale for $30 to $35.
Advanced Imaging
Adobe Photoshop
Photoshop is the market leader for commercial bitmap image manipulation but has the disadvantage of a high price. This has allowed competing programs such as Jasc Software's Paint Shop Pro to become popular. To capture this lost market share, Adobe has introduced a much less expensive program called Photoshop Elements that consists of Photoshop minus some of the high-end output capabilities.
Photoshop Elements
Now easier to use, this all-in-one home photo solution, provides powerful photo editing functionality plus intuitive organizing and sharing capabilities. Organize your photos the way you want using new tagging, searching , and viewing options. Make your photos look their best by clicking away red-eye, cropping and rotating, and brushing away flaws. Artistically enhance photos by converting to sepia or black and white, applying various effects, and simulate painting. Photoshop Elements is available online for $88 to $100.
Photoshop & Image Ready CS
Used by graphic and web designers, photographers, and video professionals alike, Photoshop’s key features include: a full assortment of painting, drawing, and retouching tools; professional color-correction tools; enhanced layer control and layer compositions; improved File Browser; advanced web capabilities; the Healing Brush; special effects filters; advanced type control; customizable workspace; and automated production tasks. Photoshop CS is available online for $450 to $650.
Stock Image Libraries
Stock photography is photography or other imagery of common landmarks, concepts, and events that can be used and reused for commercial design purposes. Book publishers, specialty publishers, magazines, advertising agencies, film makers, web designers, graphic artists, interior decor firms, corporate creative groups, and other entities utilize stock photography to fulfill the needs of their creative assignments. With a wealth of images, stock photography databases may be searched online, in books, or in CD-ROMS. While the high end versions of these images may be purchased, lower quality equivalents, known as comps, are usually downloadable for free from any given stock photography site. Photo archive or image banks often refers to the website or physical location where the photographs are stored.
CD-ROM
Hemera Photo Clip Art 150,000. Photo Clip Art 150,000 by Hemera is an image collection of over 150,000 real photo images with solid changeable backgrounds, so they are as easy to use as clip art and blend seamlessly into your compositions. This photo archive can be found in your local computer store or online for $25 to $30.
Getty Images
Employing some of the world’s most renowned photographers, artists, photojournalists and creative researchers, Getty Images keeps the company on the cutting edge of relevant and unique imagery that helps shape the visual world. Getty Images has been credited with the introduction of royalty-free photography and was the first company to license imagery via the web.
Google Images
Simply stated, Google Images is the most comprehensive image search on the web. However, unlike the other web photo archives, not all of the images that are displayed in the search are royalty free.
Index Stock Imagery
Claiming to be the leading source of high-quality stock photography and images, Index Stock Imagery caters to advertisers, graphic designers, publishers, and multimedia producers. They have an extensive stock photography collection of over 800,000 images housed at
Stock.XCHNG
Welcoming you to browse through the categories of their extensive online gallery containing over 100,000 stock photos. SXC is a community of 9,000+ users who offer their photographic works to the public free of charge.
Free Applications on the Web
Obviously, the various hardware and essential software necessary for a computer art studio can easily eat up any budget. Luckily, there are websites that offer free web-based imaging applications. Even though these limited programs cater to a certain themes or genres, they are nice additions to the already established creativity software.
Mr. Picasso Head
Created by Ruder Film Interactive, Mr. Picasso Head offers users a variety of line and facial elements to create your own image reminiscent of the drawings of Pablo Picasso.
Hero Machine
Presented by UnderGroundOnline (UGO), Hero Machine is the ultimate fantasy comic book character creator. The user can choose from different body types before customizing the character’s facial features, hair, clothing, weapons, accessories, colors, and backgrounds.
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