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Created 2 Create Working in Lightroom with Adobe Portfolio and the Print Module  I Did It – This Is It!!! I started on this journey to write for 31 days in October in 2013 and each year since I have joined a community of bloggers at #Write31Days . Each year I’ve chosen different theme, usually inspirational or motivational. I wanted to step outside my comfort zone and do something a little different. This year’s theme incorporates my hobby - Photography and God’s Word; it’s based on the scripture from Exodus 35:35 (NIV), “He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them skilled workers and designers.” My gifts might look different from yours but you have one too – it might be artsy or craftsy, communicating with others, serving others, teaching, even preaching. Whatever your gift God wants you to use it. So, don’t be shy or selfish – share it. ...

Created 2 Create Adding Text to Images Photoshop provides capabilities to add text to images with control of the font, style, color, size and much more. Select Text from along the left-side tool bar and enter your text by typing on the keyboard or touch-screen. To change the font, style, color, size, etc., select all (cmd/ctrl + A) and the make the desired changes. When the text is selected, use the Option or ALT key plus and arrow key to change the character or line spacing. Click on the text layer to reveal the Layer Styles window. Add your choice of styles like Drop shadow to enhance your text. Because our work is a calling from God – because we are called to create – our work is not our own. We create for the glory of God and for the good of others. The Lord has equipped us with the passions and giftings to create new things. Embrace those good gifts and lay them down at the feet of our Creator God as an offering of worship and serv...

  Created 2 Create Content-Aware Fill in Photoshop Have you ever straightened or rotated an image only to be left with blank areas? Here’s where Content-Aware comes to the rescues to fill in those areas. You can call it smart technology! Use the Magic Wand tool and select the blank areas. Next go to the select Menu and click Modify > Expand. Increase the selection area up to 10 pixels depending on the size of your picture and the amount of empty space. Then go to Fill in the edit menu. Click on it and you’ll see the Fill options window appear. Content-Aware should be selected by default, but if not choose it from the drop-down menu. There will be a short pause while Photoshop goes to work filling in the blank areas with textures derived from the content of the immediately surrounding area. And like magic - no need to crop those areas unless you want to!!! Lastly, to add a creative effect I applied an Oil Paint Filter (Filter > Stylize ...

Created 2 Create Another One of My Favorite Apps… Adobe Spark Adobe Spark is part of the Adobe Creative Cloud family and also is available as an iOS app. Adobe Spark works very much like Canva for creating your very own graphic designs. Additionally, it allows you to create video stories. There are many templates you can edit or you can create your own. What I like about using this app, is that it syncs your work and updates across all your devices. This is a sample of designs you can create with Adobe Spark ! Be Blessed and be a blessing! Related posts All Photographs in this post/blog © Cheryl Howard

Created 2 Create One More of My Favorite Apps PicMonkey Photo Editor PicMonkey is a Fun, Easy to Use and Powerful Tool. Your All-In-One Editor. You can use the free version or sign up for the free 30-day Trial to gain access to many of the locked features. Make Your Images Pop · Adjustable Drop Shadow · Give Your Pics Some Love · Awesome Clip Art Give your photography a perfect finish with cool graphics, photo editing features, layers, effects, design features, add a logo or watermark. This is one of photos I downloaded from Pexels and edited using PicMonkey… “We live in such a way that on one will stumble because of us, and no one will find fault in our ministry. In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles, hardships and calamities of every kind. We have been beaten, been put in prison, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, endured sleepless nights, and gone wi...

Created 2 Create Twitter Cover Image Design Canva - One of My Favorite Design Programs and Apps With Canva , you don’t have to be a design pro, it makes designing easy. You can use your own photos or you can you upload images from sites like Unsplash or Pexels  and download them on your computer totally FREE. Canva also offers an app for you phone. Canva lets you Create designs for Web or print: blog graphics, presentations, Facebook & social media covers, flyers, posters, invitations and many more.  The design options are endless, and the site is very user-friendly – you can modify one the their designs or create your own using one of the templates. Unsplash offers professional images that you can modify, edit and use as you desire. Again, totally free! Pexels ’ site is just like Upsplash , these are royalty-free photographs for you to use as you wish. These are some of the designs I created using Canva … Click on l...

Created 2 Create Size and Export Images from Lightroom for Facebook Lightroom offers a huge amount of options for saving and exporting images.  For Facebook, you’ll want to export images at the highest resolution it will accept; 2048 pixels is what Facebook recommends. So first, you’ll have to tell Lightroom where you want to save your image. Lightroom offers a lot of choices, one of the being to save the new resulting image into the same folder as the original. It can be a good idea to keep the original and your final copies in the same space or you can create a subfolder to the original and label it “For Facebook.” Another option is to define a “specific folder” for your outputs. This allow you to send all exported images for Facebook to the same location on your hard drive. This also works well to automatically save files into an online storage cloud storage such as into a Dropbox, iCloud, or OneDrive folder on your disk. File format Further down...

Created 2 Create Write a Signature – yours! This is so quick and easy; it literally takes less than 10 minutes from start to finish! In Photoshop, create a new document (File > New) using a size of 500 pixels wide and 200 pixels high with a white background. Then use the Type tool and type out your name in black; select your favorite font style. I chose Edwardian Script. Flatten the image and select all; then go to Edit > Define Brush Preset > Name your Brush Preset and click save. It resides in your Brush Palette; you can increase/decrease the brush size and/or  increase/decrease the opacity . Now you can add this signature brush to any image. Have fun creating your signature. As entrepreneurs and creatives, we face a lot of life’s obstacles. Therefore, we need lots of boldness. Perhaps you are considering launching a new venture or beginning work on a new piece of art; you need boldness. As Christians,...

Created 2 Create Quick Tips for Macro Photography The great thing about Macro Photography is that you can do this from your living room at home, if necessary. Of course, you can, and should, go outdoors too and setup shots in a park or at the beach, but you can also setup shots indoors of everyday subjects and shoot them up close. Think of an old watch, a flower or even some food items that could be shot on your kitchen table. The shapes, textures and colors come to life in the world of macro photography, but it can be tricky and fidgety. Like any other aspect of photography, you need to understand how your camera works, and work within the limits of the equipment you have. Do you NEED to have a macro lens? In short, no. There are a few other cheaper options that you can experiment with before investing in a macro lens, such as focus stacking, close-up filters and extensions tubes. Also, your mobile phone camera and point-and-shoot digital cameras ...

Created 2 Create The skyline of Québec City, Canada at night.  Québec City sits on the north bank of the Saint Lawrence River and is one of the oldest European settlements in North America.   Québec City serves as the capital of the Canadian province of Québec. The Montmorecy Fall is 1 1/2 times the height of Niagara Falls; it's an impressive view with nature paths near the falls. The powerful force of nature at work as the water roars down a 270-foot cliff into the Montmorency River where it eventually meets the St. Lawrence River. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.” Proverbs 3:5; 16:3 (NLT) In the midst of our daily hustle, we must trust that it is God who has called us to create, and it is God who will accomplish what He wills in and through our creating. This is what the Apostle Paul was getting at when discussing the ...