News, news, news..

Landmark Release Packs Powerful Editing Punch and Harnesses the Creative Potential of 3D

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Sept. 23, 2008 - Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced Adobe(r) Photoshop(r) CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended, the highly anticipated, new editions of the professional industry standard software for digital imaging. Providing a fluid user experience, complete creative control and higher efficiency, Photoshop CS4 leverages the power of the latest hardware to extend imaging possibilities and offer faster, more flexible ways to accomplish core tasks like image adjustments and masks. All of these features and more can be found in Photoshop CS4 Extended, which serves users with advanced motion graphics functions, dramatically expanded 3D visualization capabilities and precise image analysis.

Photoshop CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended will be available as stand-alone applications or key components of the Adobe Creative Suite® 4 family (see separate releases).

“Photoshop is about delivering cutting-edge innovation that really pushes the boundaries of digital image editing,” said Kevin Connor, vice president of product management for professional digital imaging at Adobe. “This version is no exception with some stunning new imaging technology that complements our work to bring more control, simplicity and speed to everyday tasks. By streamlining the most popular workflows for the professional, technical or home user, Photoshop CS4 brings new levels of accessibility to the gold standard in digital imaging software.”

Photoshop CS4 software now makes impossible tasks, possible. Content-Aware Scaling adds a revolutionary technology that enables users to intelligently size and scale images with a simple drag of the mouse. New Auto-align and Auto-blend modes generate composites based on extended depth of field and 360 degree panoramas now with seamless tones and colors.

Finding, previewing and managing image assets jumps to a new level of power and convenience with Adobe Bridge CS4, beginning with fast start-up performance, right through to speedy transfer of images to Photoshop CS4. New path-bar navigation and workspace selection buttons across the top of the Bridge window let you instantly go to just the right display for every task. Also included are new Camera Import controls, visual folder navigation, and a Carousel View for larger image-group selections.

Photoshop CS4 takes advantage of the latest graphics processing unit (GPU) hardware to deliver superior performance. The software offers a smooth pan and zoom experience that allows users to easily edit images at the highest magnification while maintaining clarity. The new Canvas Rotation tool makes it simple to rotate and work on an image from any angle. Photoshop CS4 helps keep work areas clutter-free with a new unified application frame, tab-based interface and self-adjusting panels that make it easy to quickly access advanced tools, and provide a more fluid way to interact with the application.

Photoshop CS4 Extended includes all the new features of Photoshop CS4 plus the ability to manipulate 3D imagery easier than ever before. Now, creativity knows no bounds, as users can paint directly on 3D models and surfaces, merge 2-D files onto 3D images and animate 3D objects. The 3D engine has been rebuilt from the ground up to provide faster performance, allow editing of properties like light and the ability to create more realistic renderings with a new high-quality ray-tracer. Video professionals have the ability to turn any 3D object into a video display zone and can animate 3D objects and properties with ease. In addition, the core motion graphics editing has been improved with more efficient single-key shortcuts.

“The 3D painting enhancements in Adobe Photoshop CS4 Extended save us valuable time by enabling artists to paint directly on our 3D flight simulator models in Photoshop instead of using a separate 3D paint program,” says Luis Barcena, executive vice president of databases and modeling for Aechelon Technology, Inc., a leader in real time computer graphics applications for training, simulation and entertainment markets. “Additionally, the ability to perform localized color correction in Photoshop CS4 Extended lets us easily color correct and balance simulated environments and terrain databases using images taken in different climates to achieve a more realistic and compelling user experience.”

Photoshop CS4 Extended software continues to challenge traditional use, allowing medical professionals to volume render multiple medical image scans (DICOM image stack) into a volume that can be viewed from all angles.

The Photoshop product family has experienced an unprecedented year, in which new products have been introduced and every existing product has been updated. The year began with the anticipated launch of Photoshop Elements 6 for Mac, winning Best of Show at Macworld 2008. The launch of Photoshop Express in the Spring marked a new direction for the line — a free, rich Internet application (RIA) for anyone who wants to store, sort and show off digital photos online with eye-catching effects. In July, major updates and enhancements were made to the popular Photoshop Lightroom™ 2 solution for serious photographers, followed by the launch of Photoshop Elements 7 and Adobe Premiere Elements 7 software for hobbyists and now, Photoshop CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended for professionals.

Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended for Mac OS X on Intel® based and PowerPC® based systems and for Microsoft® Windows® XP and Windows Vista® platform are scheduled to ship October 2008 with availability through Adobe Authorized Resellers and the Adobe Store at www.adobe.com/go/gn_store . Estimated street price for Adobe Photoshop CS4 is US$699 and US$999 for Photoshop CS4 Extended. Upgrade pricing is available. For more detailed information about features, upgrade policies and pricing, please visit:www.adobe.com/photoshop .

Adobe revolutionizes how the world engages with ideas and information - anytime, anywhere and through any medium. For more information, visit www.adobe.com .

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Not known for its ability to keep secrets, Adobe has announced that it will announce Creative Suite 4 (CS4) which will presumably include Photoshop CS4 (we don’t “know” this because the announcement of the announcement was a bit vague). But you can find out for sure by registering for an invite-only webcast which will be aired on September 23rd, 2008. The registration page is here.

The reason we “presume” that Photoshop CS4 will be announced along with the rest of the Creative Suite is that Johnny L (John Loiacono, Adobe’s VP of their Creative Business Unit) kinda let the rabbit out of the hat at the Photoshop World Keynote a couple of weeks ago.

John Loiacono, Adobe’s VP of their Creative Business Unit at the PSW Keynote.

Johnny L actually did some Photoshop CS4 demos (much to the mild surprise of other Adobe people since everybody was told NOT to talk about CS4).

Johnny talked about the main goals for CS4…time saving performance, better integration with other CS4 apps and “cutting-edge” new technologies.

One of the cool things demo’ed was some new 3d features.

Keynote attendees were given 3D glasses to get the full effect.

A technology “sneak peak”, Photoshop CS10 will come with a free Vulcan Mind-meld option so you can connect directly to Scott Kelby’s mind.

Johnny L also revealed the launch of Scott Kelby’s 2012 Presidential Campaign. He said something about “Visualize the Future” and indicated that much of Scott’s campaign would be centered around “Photoshopping Our Future” (ok, Johnny didn’t say Photoshopping–he’s not allowed to by Adobe legal).

Now, back to the announcement of the announcement…even John Nack had this to say on his blog CS4: Nearing the door.

By the way, PhotoshopNews.com will be at the announcement and be posting some info from San Francisco next week.

Photoshop CS4, one week to wait to find out when…

Original post by Jeff Schewe

Adobe has released the final version of Camera Raw 4.5 as well as the DNG Converter 4.5. The updates are available for download from the Camera Raw Product Page.

In addition to new camera support (now at over 180 cameras), Camera Raw 4.5 and DNG Converter 4.5 also adds support for rendering the newly released Lightroom 2.0 functionality.

The direct download pages are here; Macintosh, Windows

From the Camera Raw 4.5 Read Me:

Working with Lightroom 2 and Adobe Photoshop Camera Raw
Lightroom and Photoshop Camera Raw share the same image processing technology to ensureconsistent and compatible results across applications that support raw processing. These applications include Photoshop CS3, Photoshop Elements 6.0 and Premiere Elements 4.0. Photoshop Camera Raw 4.5

Adobe applications must be updated with the Camera Raw 4.5 plug-in in order to ensure compatibility with Lightroom 2 develop module settings. Photoshop CS3 users can update the Camera Raw plug-in automatically using the Update tool listed under the Help menu. The Camera Raw 4.5 plug-in can also be downloaded and installed manually by visiting the Adobe web site: www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/cameraraw.html. Please follow the installation instructions carefully.

Sharing Lightroom Settings with Camera Raw 4.5
By default, Lightroom’s develop module settings are stored in Lightroom’s database. In order to ensure that Lightroom develop settings can be viewed by Camera Raw 4.5 the settings must be written to the XMP metadata block for that file. This metadata is stored in an XMP sidecar file (Imagename.xmp) in the current image directory of proprietary raw files or stored directly within DNG files. To update images with the latest develop settings, choose the library module and select the group of target images. Choose the “Export XMP Metadata to File” option in the Metadata:XMP file menu. Note: This menu option is only available in the Lightroom Library.

Viewing Lightroom settings in Camera Raw 4.5
Before working in conjunction with Lightroom and Camera Raw please set the Camera Raw preference to: Save image settings in: Sidecar “.xmp” files. By default Camera Raw will display the image adjustments exactly as performed in Lightroom’s develop module. However, at this time Camera Raw 4.5 is unable to support further adjustments to the following settings or tools:
• Clone/Heal Opacity
• Post Crop Vignette
• Graduated Filter Adjustment
• Local Adjustment Brush
The controls currently available in Camera Raw 4.5 will continue to function normally and provide incremental edits beyond those performed in Lightroom. The Lightroom adjustments that are not available in Camera Raw 4.5 can be cleared by choosing the “Clear Imported Settings” option in the Camera Raw settings menu.

Viewing Camera Raw settings in Lightroom
Raw files edited by previous versions of Camera Raw files will maintain their previous appearance when imported into Lightroom. Note: Those files must have been edited with the preference set to Save image settings in: Sidecar “.xmp” files in order for Lightroom to respect the previous edit. Files edited in Camera Raw after importation into Lightroom can be updated in Lightroom by choosing the “Read Metadata from File” from the Metadata file menu. Note: This menu option is only available in the Lightroom Library.

This new version of the Camera Raw plug-in replaces the original Camera Raw plug-in that was installed with Photoshop CS3, Photoshop Elements 6.0 and Premiere Elements 4.0. The Camera Raw 4.5 plug-in is not compatible with versions of Photoshop earlier than Photoshop CS3 or versions of Photoshop Elements earlier than Photoshop Elements 5.0 for Windows and Photoshop Elements 4.01 for Mac.

The latest version of the Camera Raw plug-in available for Photoshop Elements 3.0 customers is Camera Raw 3.6. The latest version of the Camera Raw plug-in available for Photoshop Elements 4.0 (Windows) is Camera Raw 3.7.

Photoshop CS3 and Adobe Creative Suite 3:
Automated installation on Mac or Windows®:
1. Select “Updates…” from the Help menu

2. Follow the on-screen dialogs to download and install the latest available Camera Raw update

Manual installation on Mac or Windows®:
Windows®:
1. Exit Photoshop CS3 and Adobe Bridge.
2. Open My Computer.
3. Double-click Local Disk (C:).
4. Navigate to Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\Plug-Ins\CS3\File Formats.
5. Move the existing Camera Raw.8bi plug-in to another location (for example, a new folder on your desktop). Ensure you keep this version in case you need to revert back.
6. Copy the Camera Raw plug-in, Camera Raw.8bi, from the download into the same folder as Step 4.
7. Launch Photoshop CS3 or Adobe Bridge.

Mac:
1. Exit Photoshop CS3 and Adobe Bridge.
2. Open the Finder.
3. Navigate to the root of the local disk (not the user’

s home folder).
4. Navigate to Library/Application Support/Adobe/Plug-Ins/CS3/File Formats.
5. Move the existing plug-in to another location (for example, a new folder on your desktop). Ensure you keep this version in case you need to revert back.
6. Copy the Camera Raw plug-in, Camera Raw, from the download into the same folder as in Step 4.
7. Launch Photoshop CS3 or Adobe Bridge.

Photoshop Elements:
Windows®:
1. Exit Photoshop Elements.
2. Open My Computer.
3. Double-click Local Disk (C:).
4. Navigate to Program Files\Adobe\Photoshop Elements 6.0\Plug-Ins\File Formats
5. Move the existing Camera Raw.8bi plug-in to another location (for example, a new folder on your desktop). Ensure you keep this version in case you need to revert back.
6. Copy the Camera Raw plug-in, Camera Raw.8bi, from the download into the same folder as Step 4.
7. Launch Photoshop Elements

Mac:
Photoshop Elements
1. Exit Photoshop Elements and Adobe Bridge.
2. Open the Finder.
3. Navigate to the root of the local disk (not the user’

s home folder).
4. Navigate to location designated by your version of Photoshop Elements:
a. Photoshop Elements 4.01: Library/Application Support/Adobe/Plug-Ins/CS2/File Formats
b. Photoshop Elements 6: Library/Application Support/Adobe/Plug-Ins/CS3/File Formats
5. Move the existing plug-in to another location (for example, a new folder on your desktop). Ensure you keep this version in case you need to revert back.
6. Copy the Camera Raw plug-in, Camera Raw, from the download into the same folder as in Step 4.
7. Launch Photoshop Elements or Adobe Bridge.

Premiere Elements:
Windows®:
1. Exit Premiere Elements.
2. Open My Computer.
3. Double-click Local Disk (C:).
4. Navigate to location designated by your version of Premiere Elements:
a. Premiere Elements 3.0: Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Premiere Elements 3.0\Plug-Ins\ Common\PSA
b. Premiere Elements 4.0: Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Premiere Elements 4.0\Plug-Ins\ Common\PSA
5. Move the existing Camera Raw.8bi plug-in to another location (for example, a new folder on your
desktop). Ensure you keep this version in case you need to revert back.
6. Copy the Camera Raw plug-in, Camera Raw.8bi, from the download into the folder designated in Step 4.
7. Launch Premiere Elements

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Major Software Upgrade Further Simplifies Photography Workflows

Press Release: SAN JOSE, Calif. — July 29, 2008 — Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced the immediate availability of Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® 2 software, the photographer’s essential toolbox for managing, adjusting and presenting large volumes of digital photographs. With new enhancements such as dual-monitor support, radical advances in non-destructive localized image correction, and streamlined search capabilities, Lightroom 2 is a compelling upgrade that simplifies photography from shoot to finish. As Adobe’s first application to support 64-bit for Mac OS X 10.5 Macintosh computers with Intel® processors and Microsoft® Windows® Vista® 64bit operating systems, Lightroom 2 also provides improved memory performance for dealing with large scale images.

“A worldwide community of photographers provided valuable insight and feedback, as part of the Lightroom 2 public beta program, ultimately helping us deliver a better product,” said Tom Hogarty, senior product manager for Lightroom and Camera Raw at Adobe. “We’ve considered their requests which helped us develop useful features that make it easier than ever for our customers to quickly refine, enhance and present brilliant photographs.

Photoshop Lightroom 2: Smarter, Faster and More Accurate
The enhanced Library module in Lightroom 2 helps streamline and accelerate photographers’workflows. With the ability to visually organize images across multiple hard drives, Lightroom 2 and its powerful Library Filter Bar makes it easy for users to quickly find the images they need. The Suggested Keywords feature helps photographers keyword their images by making intelligent suggestions based on their own previous efforts. New dual-monitor support allows users to expand their workspace, giving them flexibility to edit and organize images in a way that maximizes an additional display.

In the Develop module, the new Local Adjustment Brush lets photographers fine-tune specific areas of an image to precisely adjust color, exposure and tonal range without affecting other areas of the image. The new Graduated Filter expands the toolbox in Lightroom, allowing for edits to larger areas by applying gradually diminishing or increasing adjustment effects such as exposure, clarity, and saturation, alone, or in any combination. Lightroom 2 also helps photographers print more efficiently by quickly arranging photos of multiple sizes on one or many pages with flexible and customizable templates to maximize paper and ink. Intelligent algorithms automatically determine optimal sharpening for screen or print, producing crisper images faster.

Developers can further extend the Lightroom workflow with Web, Export and Metadata Software Development Kits available at the Adobe Developer Connection, http://www.adobe.com/devnet/.

Ground-Breaking Innovation in Raw Technology
New raw technology gives photographers access to flexible camera profiles. Camera profiles are the visual starting point for the raw processing workflow, but image preferences vary for every photographer. To minimize surprises, Adobe is supplying default camera profiles that closely emulate the visual looks that photographers are used to seeing from their favorite camera, while also providing the ability to create highly customized profiles to suit different tastes. Camera profiles are available for immediate download on Adobe Labs (http://labs.adobe.com) for use with Lightroom 2 and Camera Raw 4.5, along with the DNG Profile Editor for the community to test and create their own profiles.

The Adobe Camera Raw 4.5 plug-in and DNG Converter 4.5 are also now available on Adobe.com and support over 190 camera models including the Olympus E 420 and E 520 models.

“One of the big reasons why Lightroom has become such a phenomenon among serious photographers is that Adobe built it with the input of a very vocal user community,” said Scott Kelby, president of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP). “Adobe really listens to the issues and challenges today’s photographers face and they’ve built a complete solution that not only meets the needs of photographers; it really feels like it was made just for us. The enhancements to Lightroom 2, combined with the power of Photoshop, give photographers the ultimate freedom to produce professional images quickly.”

Pricing and Availability
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 is available now through the Adobe Store at www.adobe.com/store in English, French and German with the Japanese language version planned to be released at a future date. The estimated street price is USD$299 for new users with an upgrade price of USD$99 for registered users of qualifying Lightroom customers. Recommended system requirements are Macintosh OSX 10.4, 10.5 1 GHz PowerPC G4 or G5 or Intel® based processor, or Microsoft Windows® XP SP2 or Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, Ultimate, or Enterprise, Intel Pentium 4® processor, 1 GB RAM and a 1024×768 resolution screen. Additional information on product features, upgrade policies, pricing, and language versions is available on www.adobe.com/products/photoshoplightroom/.

About Adobe Systems Incorporated
Adobe revolutionizes how the world engages with ideas and information –anytime, anywhere and through any medium. For more information, visit www.adobe.com.

© 2008 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved. Adobe, the Adobe logo, and Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. Mac, Mac OS and Macintosh are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the United States and other countries. Microsoft, Windows, and Windows Vista are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United Sates and/or other countries. Pentium is a trademark or registered trademark of Intel Corporation, or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

George Jardine, Adobe evangelist for Lightroom and digital photography is leaving Adobe effective the beginning of this month, July, 2008. George has posted his farewell  on his blog and can be read here.

This is the second time George has done time at Adobe. He had worked with Russell Brown during the 1990’s acting as evangelist for Photoshop. He left and turned to working in video and other mediums. He came back to Adobe for the purpose of working on Shadowland (AKA Lightroom) with Mark Hamburg. You can read the PSN story on Shadowland’s development here. 

George will be missed but not forgotten and I suspect he’ll be around the industry working on different projects after he takes his summer vacation. I know that after our recent bike trip together he went out and bought a new K1200 GT BMW motorcycle that he’ll be touring around on. We may hook up for another trip later in the summer.

I personally would like to say a hearty thanks and congratulations to George on the work he has done and what he has brought to Adobe. Thanks George…see ya around!

Original post by Jeff Schewe

No, I’m not going to Disney World…but I am in Orlando getting ready for the kick-off of this year’s Photoshop World.

The theme this year is THE EVOLUTION (probably because of the “evolution” of Photoshop) and rumor has it that Scott Kelby will be dressed as Captain Kirk and the staff will be the crew of the Starship Enterprise.

I’ve already run into Scott (not literally-I just saw him walking by on crutches). Seems Scott had a little accident. It’s either a 1)-a skiing accident while in the Swiss Alps, 2)-a kick boxing accident when delivering a vicious round kick or 3)-an unfortunate treadmill incident. We’ll investigate and report back so stay tuned…

Just found this story from Scott’s blog: I’m Heading to Photoshop World today. On Crutches!

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

In the grand scheme of human history, February 19th may not go down as a momentous occasion, but it’s recently come to light that at least in the world of digital imaging, today signifies a more important date than most anybody realized. And that folks, is the delicious irony.

I’ve been noted as somewhat of a historian when it comes to Photoshop lore. I wrote an article for the now defunct publication Photo Electric Imaging (PEI). Elmo Sapwater, the senior editor at the time, had known that at one point in time, I was going to do a Photoshop book (ironically still listed here by Amazon) and one chapter was going to be a History of Photoshop. Due to a lot of factors, the book was never produced, but I had gathered a lot of info (and portraits of a lot of engineers) so Elmo thought it would make for a great story for the Feb, 2000 issue-Photoshop’s 10th birthday.

The image above was the cover (click here to read the story behind making the cover image). The article is still available in PDF form from my website here.

Photoshop 1.0 box shot (by Jeff Schewe)

So, okay, I knew that Photoshop shipped in February of 1990. But recently, Kevin Connor of Adobe was asked by PC World magazine EXACTLY when Photoshop 1.0 “officially” shipped. Kevin didn’t know, so he sent out an email to Russell Brown (because Russell was actually at Adobe then) as well as Thomas Knoll (since he was the co-author) and myself (since I had written the “History”).

Neither Russell nor I knew…but Thomas sent this along in an email:

On 1/3/08 7:49 AM, “Thomas Knoll” wrote:
> I’m about 80% sure it was Feb 19, 1990.

Well, if Thomas is 80% sure about anything, that’s good enough for me…so from that point on, I considered Photoshop’s “birthday” to be February 19th, 1990. Even Adobe finally woke up to the birthday occasion, it seems Adobe Germany wanted to celebrate Photoshop’s 18th birthday because in Germany, it denotes an official coming of age. I got phone calls and emails from Adobe marketing about making stuff available, such as the History article and box shots, which I did. I even filled out an email questionnaire for the Addison-Wesly blog about the birthday (my part is in English). So did Katrin Eismann (most of hers is in English but some in German, which Katrin speaks fluently).

But, something about February 19th stuck with me. I remembered that last year on 02-19-2007, I was down in Antarctica with Michael Reichmann on our 2nd photo expedition along with Bill Atkinson, JP Caponigro, Stephen Johnson, Ian Lyons and Seth Resnick. Read Michael’s article Antarctica 2007 – What Worked? What Didn’t. I specifically remember that on the 19th, we organized an instructors only Zodiak cruise to shoot material for the Lightroom 1.0 on-line launch party that was due to happen after we returned. I even did a story about the party on Lightroom-News.com called Backstage at The Lightroom Launch Party.

I had posted both the video we shot while in Antarctica as well as a slideshow of images shot on February 19th, 2007. You can find the videos and slideshow here. In addition to the video (which is, in itself very funny) there’s also a video of Seth going swimming with the icebergs (well, bergy bits) which is worth the view.

One of the shots I took on 02-19-2007.

I thought it was pretty interesting to find out that Lighroom and Photoshop both shipped on the same day, thus sharing “birthdays”. It’s also interesting that the original co-author of Photoshop, Thomas Knoll, was also involved in Lightroom (Lighroom uses the Camera Raw pipeline) and that the #2 engineer on Photoshop, Mark Hamburg, was also the founder of Lightroom.

Photoshop turns 18 (old enough to vote) while Lightroom is only one year old–still in diapers.

What are the odds?

But that February 19 date was still bouncing around in my head. Then it hit me, Camera Raw was announced and shipped February 19th, 2003. The announcement was made by Bryan Lamkin at Photoshop World in Los Angeles which ran the 19th, 20th and 21st. I was there because Adobe convinced Thomas Knoll to show up and help promote Camera Raw 1.0 and that it would work in Photoshop 7. Bryan introduced Thomas at the keynote. After the event, we all went over to Greg Gorman’s house for a big party. Greg called it my 50th birthday party (my birthday is the 22nd of February).

Bryan’s Powerpoint presentation slide…

…announcing Camera Raw. It was made available for download for $99.95 starting that day.

This is what Camera Raw 1.0 looked like running in Photoshop 7 (rather primitive when compared to Camera Raw 4). Camera Raw 2 was released later in 2003 when Photoshop CS was shipped the same week as Photo Plus Expo.

So, now we must come to the conclusion that the day, February 19, 2008 does have some real significance. It’s Photoshop’s 18th birthday, Camera Raw’s 5th birthday and Lightroom’s 1st birthday. One might wonder if some elf at Adobe has done this on purpose…well, I’m here to tell you that ain’t so. Adobe is always worried more about the “next version” and rarely, if ever, marks the passing of some distant milestone…even if it does have great significance.

About all I can say is, thanks Thomas (and John) for getting hooked up in the first place to write a little application that Adobe thought would sell a few hundred copies a year (and turned into a pivotal point in the history of the digital imaging industry).

Here are some additional links to Photoshop and Lightroom lore on PhotoshopNews.com:

Profile of Thomas & John

The Evolution of the Photoshop Splash Screen

The Evolution of the Photoshop Tool Bar

The Shadowland/Lightroom Development Story

A Visit to Adobe

A Visit to the Adobe Lightroom Engineers

The Photoshop Widows Club (Photoshop history by Ruth Knoll)

Photoshop Widows Club–Parte Due (Camera Raw history by Ruth Knoll)

Photoshop Widows Club–Rebecca Schewe (Jeff’s history with Photoshop by Becky Schewe)

Original post by Jeff Schewe

An Industry Celebration and Tribute
DVD Captures Poignant Macworld 2007 Tribute to Charismatic Digital Imaging Pioneer, Bruce Fraser

Press Release: January 30, 2008, San Francisco

The stars of imaging came out en masse during Macworld 2007 to honor one of their own: digital imaging pioneer Bruce Fraser. Much like the way Bruce’s inspired and generous work moved many thousands to create superior imaging; so were the industry’s giants, both corporate and individual, moved to come together to share their unique perspective, anecdotes, and most of all - appreciation for Bruce’s enormous contributions to the arts.

Now, a year later, the Bruce Fraser Tribute organizing committee, with the support of Adobe Systems, Inc., Apple, Inc., Epson America, Inc., Hewlett Packard Company, Microsoft Corporation, Peachpit Press, and X-Rite, Incorporated; is offering a faithful record of last year’s remarkable event, captured on DVD and available at no charge (shipping and handling fees apply) via www.brucefrasertribute.com .

The Tribute committee, comprised of Larry Baca, R. Mac Holbert, Chris Murphy, Andrew Rodney and Jeff Schewe, are asking the graphic arts community to consider making a voluntary donation to help retire medical expenses left behind by the rare lung cancer that took Bruce away from us. The donations can be made directly on the Tribute website.

“If you were fortunate to attend the Tribute itself, you will find the DVD to be a treasured keepsake; if not, you will experience a program that will touch your heart, make you laugh and most of all demonstrate how one thoughtful individual can hold a unique place in an industry and in the lives of all whom he touched,” says Baca.

The DVD culminates with an extraordinarily moving gesture of gratitude expressed by Bruce’s wife, Angela; recited over a specially-composed and synchronized version of “Scotland the Brave”, created and produced by famed musician Ronan Hardiman, specifically for the DVD.

The “Industry Celebration and Tribute to Bruce Fraser” DVD

An Industry Celebration and Tribute to Bruce Fraser was a lively and engaging recollection of how digital imaging and desktop color has evolved over more than 20 years to become the everyday phenomenon it is. Hosted with grace and unrehearsed humor by Bruce’s friend and fellow musician and artist, Graham Nash, the Tribute was filled with striking still visuals, video clips and told by the geeks and non-geeks who knew Bruce along the way, (including famed landscape photographer and digital pioneer Stephen Johnson; Bill Atkinson, an Apple Fellow and now a photographer himself; and Adobe Photoshop engineers and friends, Thomas Knoll and Mark Hamburg, to name but a few),

An Industry Celebration and Tribute to Bruce Fraser gave attendees a vivid, inside look at how one dedicated and focused person of extraordinary humility could shape an industry, from billion dollar manufacturers to home-based photo enthusiasts.

A maximum of six DVDs may be requested per order. A shipping charge of $7.50 USD applies for the first DVD, plus $1.50 USD for each additional DVD when all are shipped to the same address.

If you would like to make a voluntary donation to help retire Bruce’s unmet medical expenses, please check the “Voluntary Donation” box and indicate the amount (in USD) to be added to your DVD order.

The first 100 donors who make gifts of $100.00 or more will be acknowledged by receiving a choice of a Commemorative Set (shown above) or Limited Edition Portrait. The print is a limited edition (not to exceed 200 copies) of a portrait of Bruce Fraser in Chicago on March 5th, 2006. The image is 9.5″x14.5″ on A3 (11.7″x16.5″) with piezo pigment inks The prints are signed and dated on the back by Jeff Schewe. This portrait of Bruce became the official Tribute Image on the DVD and banner above. We regret that supplies are strictly limited. Note, roses not included.

To learn more about Bruce’s life and contributions, go to http://www.brucefrasertribute.com/press.php

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Since the release of a slew of updates late Thursday night, November 15th, 2007, many users have downloaded updates for Photoshop CS3, Bridge CS3, Camera Raw 4.3 and Lightroom 1.3. However, many people seem unable to get to the product updates because regional servers have been slow to get updated URLS.

Usually, going to the New Downloads urls will allow users access to all the recently uploaded updates for all of Adobe’s products. However, many users from outside of the US and Canada are reporting that when they attempt to access the same download links, they are getting “not found” errors.

The problem is thought to be a failure of mirrored servers getting properly updated urls throughout Adobe’s extensive network. While some people in northern Europe like Sweden don’t seem to have a problem, users in the UK can not seem to get to the same download pages.

In the meantime, if your Adobe Updater can’t seem to find the updates or your locale’s local country servers haven’t been updated, you should still be able to access Adobe’s public FTP servers. The main public FTP is ftp://adobe.com.

To access Photoshop updates (including Camera Raw) go to: ftp://adobe.com/pub/adobe/photoshop.

To access Bridge updates, go to: ftp://adobe.com/pub/adobe/bridge.

To access Lightroom updates, go to: ftp://adobe.com/pub/adobe/lightroom.

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Adobe Also Updates Bridge CS3 to 2.1.1

It seems like Adobe is in a frenzy to update everything in the Photoshop family and now the Bridge CS3 update to version 2.1.1 is available for download (no word yet on Adobe Updater).

The Macintosh Bridge CS3 (2.1.1) Update is here.

The Windows Bridge CS3 (2.1.1) Update is here.

The Adobe Bridge CS3 2.1.1 update includes the following fixes and enhancements:

• A new preference to enable High Quality Preview has been added to Bridge’s Preferences > Advanced panel. When enabled, the preference addresses the problem of a soft or blurry preview appearing in the Preview panel and in Slideshow mode.
• Data loss that could result from replacing a folder with another folder by the same name has been prevented.
• Issues that could cause Bridge to crash (for example, when encountering a PDF or AI file) have been corrected.
• A problem that could cause Bridge to lock up when using arrows to navigate has been fixed.
• XMP data is now handled correctly when added to CR2 files.
• A problem that could cause the Loupe tool not to be available after exiting from Slideshow mode has been corrected.
• Rapid clicks to select multiple files are no longer interpreted as a double-click, so unintended opening of multiple files is now reduced.

All components of Bridge must be updated to provide stable and robust performance. The following components (released previously) provide important updates to search and collection functionality:

• Adobe Version Cue® Client 3.1.0 update
• Adobe Asset Services 3.1.0 update

If you are using Adobe Version Cue Server, the following update is required:

• Adobe Version Cue Server 3.1.0 update.

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff