Totally Rad Actions

Jake,

Not ridiculous at all, if you could do that, why not did that in the first place to define your own style?

jdhart73 wrote in post #9213741
Thats a ridiculous statement. Anyone that knows anything about actions knows that you can customize them 1000 ways to make them "your own" after you apply them to your image. Your statement does not reflect the flexibility of actions in my opinion.

Jake

I'm with Viet on that. I don't use actions for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that I'm deliberate in trying to develop a reputation for a look that is unique to me.

viet wrote in post #9214097
Jake,

Not ridiculous at all, if you could do that, why not did that in the first place to define your own style?

And this is coming from someone who uses a templated web page. They serve the same purpose, a starting point.

If this is a personal attack, try harder. We are discussing Photoshop actions, has nothing to do with my templated website. Just a tool for me to display my work.

cory1848 wrote in post #9215116
And this is coming from someone who uses a templated web page. They serve the same purpose, a starting point.

i think actions definately cuts down work load. i'm pretty new to photo editing and it's great for learning too. i can see some seasoned photoshopper who've developed their own actions wouldn't need TRA, to each his own, everyone has their unique needs.

viet wrote in post #9215689
If this is a personal attack, try harder. We are discussing Photoshop actions, has nothing to do with my templated website. Just a tool for me to display my work.

Not a personal attack at all. You gave your reasons for not using actions as not defining ones work, etc. I just dont see how someone can advocate this advice without following it themselves. A website is part of presentation which is part of your work. Or it should be. Everything you do should be part of your work.

Actions are tools, Photoshop is a tool. Both of those do not deal with presentation directly. A unique website will define and compliment your work more than any action would.

Actions can streamline your workload. I created an action that I add to most of my photos. Instead of doing the adjustments every single time for each image, I just play the action and done, a few tweaks then I build on it from there. It's a tool like Cory said.

geo1976 wrote in post #9216177
Actions can streamline your workload. I created an action that I add to most of my photos. Instead of doing the adjustments every single time for each image, I just play the action and done, a few tweaks then I build on it from there. It's a tool like Cory said.

I think the issue is that you're talking about puttnig together a series of steps that you like that ultimately leads to your look. Not to speak for Viet, but what he's saying is that if everyone buys the same action, all of our work looks the same. And, oh BTW, is it really your art if someone else created the actions for you (tweaking aside)? It's kinda like hiring a landscaper to put in a large garden and delcaring yourself a gardener.

Absolutely no disrespect to those who use and love actions. They're not for me for a couple of reasons and that's some of it.

90% of what I deliver is usually straight out of Lightrooom, but for photoshop work, I do use a handfull of these actions regularly and they are helpful. Everything has to be tweaked to personal taste, but they do provide a nice starting point to get what I want, or to just experiment. I think they run a good company and they support their customers with updates, etc. so I'm happy to do business with them.

Peacefield wrote in post #9216311
I think the issue is that you're talking about puttnig together a series of steps that you like that ultimately leads to your look. Not to speak for Viet, but what he's saying is that if everyone buys the same action, all of our work looks the same. And, oh BTW, is it really your art if someone else created the actions for you (tweaking aside)? It's kinda like hiring a landscaper to put in a large garden and delcaring yourself a gardener.

Absolutely no disrespect to those who use and love actions. They're not for me for a couple of reasons and that's some of it.

I think what you're feeling is as if you were cheating using actions. To use your example, a neighbor comes to you and congratulates you on your fine garden. You say thank you but inside you feel like you don't deserve the praise.lol See, I don't have that problem.lol

Personally, I enjoy tweaking and figuring photoshop out. I spend lots of time searching for tutorials and youtube videos on it. When I get an action, I immediately run it and go to the history panel and dissect it.

But like you said, its not for everyone.

Here is a cool site that talks about actions and a host of other photoshop processes: http://www.ronbigelow.​com/articles/articles.​htm

Hope this helps someone out.

cory1848 wrote in post #9216044
Not a personal attack at all. You gave your reasons for not using actions as not defining ones work, etc. I just dont see how someone can advocate this advice without following it themselves. A website is part of presentation which is part of your work. Or it should be. Everything you do should be part of your work.

Actions are tools, Photoshop is a tool. Both of those do not deal with presentation directly. A unique website will define and compliment your work more than any action would.

May I suggest you re-read the original question & my answer? where did I say I'm not using actions?

If you want to discuss the use of website, make your own thread and don't derail someone else's.

Actions, website templates, camera, lens or whatever you can come up with are tools of the trade. Just because you use an action, doesn't mean you can't have unique look. Just because you use a website template doesn't mean you can't have a unique look. Use them or don't use them. It's a personal choice. Get over it.

Agree with most on here. Actions cut workload and serve as a great starting point as I pointed out.
I would suggest that we could all use the exact same action on the same photo and through tweaking opacity and levels within the action could come up with totally different looks...hence it is not a canned look unless you simply click apply and never touch the settings within that action.
Great discussion gang!

asysin2leads wrote in post #9217552
Actions, website templates, camera, lens or whatever you can come up with are tools of the trade. Just because you use an action, doesn't mean you can't have unique look. Just because you use a website template doesn't mean you can't have a unique look. Use them or don't use them. It's a personal choice. Get over it.

Bingo.

TRA worth it? Yes, to me they are. I bought all of them and never looked back.
Every photo is different... I can use the SAME exact action on one, and then use it on another photo, and the result can be totally different. It all depends on the colors and style in the original photo.
I use the editing tools more than the actual creative edits from TRA, tho... they save me time, and time is money, so they're worth the price, IMHO.
Besides, most of our unique look should come from the photos themselves, not the color treatment that we apply. The creative actions just add an edge, or something different, if you will, to a normal color photo. I create recipe upon recipe with TRA's and love the results. It's actually a lot of fun!
I added them on Facebook and once in a while they run specials just for their fans. I got the whole package at 25% off. Worth a try, I say