We oftentimes overlook our white balance setting whenever we take photographs. This is probably one of the main reasons the colors in the images we capture look too orangey, too blue, or too yellow. It is a dead giveaway for being amateurish and it is the most appalling way to ruin a beautiful subject or scene. Getting the colors right in photography is important to capture the pure essence of your subject, if not enhance it.

There are different sources of light and there are many ranges of color temperatures to use, from the lightest and coolest of blues to the warmest of yellows. Choosing the correct type will help cast the proper lighting to capture an image. Our eyes automatically adjust to the differences in color temperatures unlike digital cameras. Sometimes, we need to make slight changes in the settings to make the lighting just right. You’ll notice in the first photo above in comparison to the side by side that the “yellow” in the spaghetti is more apparent.

{Warm Tones using Light Room First Photo Warm Temp + 16 Tint +34}
Left Photo Warm Right Cool

Here are a few simple tips to get the perfect white balance in your Lightroom:

Tip 1 – Use the drop down menu in Lightroom to change the white balance.

The drop down menu in Lightroom will give you a number of options. Your camera is equipped with the same type of settings. Try previewing each of these settings to determine the type of outcome you get in your images.

Tip 2 – Get to know what sliders can do for your images.

Lightroom has two slider options for white balance correction:

Tint – is best utilized to temper the green and magenta. It would be better to use the temperature slider to initially adjust the color and the slider for tin will neutralize whatever tints of magenta and green are left.
Temperature – the temperature slider adjusts the color temperature. Moving the slider to the left will make the colors cooler while moving the slider to the right will give the image a warmer color cast.

{Cool Tones Temp -9 Tint + 2}

Tip 3 – The wonders of the dropper tool.

The dropper tool in Lightroom usually works with neutral colors, especially neutral gray, to correct your photo’s white balance. Click on the dropper tool in the WB window and hover it over the image you are working on. If your shot does not have gray areas, doing this will help you find the areas where the R, G, & B have equal values.

Photoshop vs. Photoshop Elements

Photoshop and Elements are two other programs you can use to magically transform your photographs into works of art! Many people say Photoshop is the best because it offers a lot more that Elements. It also costs a LOT more! More may not necessarily mean the best for you. It all depends on what you need.

Photoshop is everything you could ever want in a professional, full feature program. It comes with Paint Shop Pro and Elements. It give you a broad spectrum of functions you may need such as a 16 –bit support, an array of color management options, layer compositions, animation, non- square pixels, HTML exports, slices, large images custom CMYK separations and a whole bunch of other things I cannot even begin to comprehend. The whole program is pretty much hardcore! It can be daunting for a user with basic needs.

Photoshop Elements is adapted from Photoshop. It does away with some of the more elaborate features of Photoshop and keeps the core functions any ordinary Tom, Dick, Harry, or a Jane would care to use such as Channel Mixer, Curves, CMYK, Color Balance, calculations, running actions, and channels By removing some of the more complex features that give us the best part, it’s a whole lot cheaper. It still comes out as a powerful package that doesn’t sacrifice the quality of your work.

Halloween is a much anticipated holiday, especially in the US. Children dress up in scary or funny costumes and knock on neighbors’ doors and shout “Trick or Treat!” From ghastly ghosts to pink princesses, they carry huge bags and open them for people to stuff in candies and other sweet goodies. This occasion has Christian origins and has been celebrated since 800 BCE. It precedes All Saints’ Day and the mass said on this day was called “Allhallowmas.” That’s why the evening was known as “All Hallow e’en,” or as we now know it, “Halloween.” Because of the US influence, a lot of countries also celebrate this tradition albeit in different ways, such as New Zealand, the Philippines, and Australia.

The Halloween celebration has always been connected to spirits. The holiday is also represented with witches on broomsticks, goblins, ghosts, black cats, and other scary creatures of the night. They have become popular costumes and decorations to commemorate the holiday. Black is the traditional color for Halloween, and orange seems to be all the rage as well.

Pumpkins are also a recognizable symbol of Halloween. Pumpkin carving is something adults and children enjoy together as a family activity. Jack o’lanterns are pumpkins that have already been carved with faces. This custom dates back all the way to ancient Ireland where a legend about a man named Jack was so stingy that he wasn’t allowed to enter Heaven when he died. The funny thing was that he wasn’t allowed in Hell, either, because he had angered the Devil. In the end, Jack was doomed to walk the earth carrying a lantern until Judgment Day. During Halloween, the Irish carved scary faces on turnips, potatoes, or beets to represent Jack of the lantern. The Irish migrated to the US and brought this custom with them. They carved pumpkins because it was a bountiful crop during autumn. And probably because it was much easier to carve pumpkins rather than turnips. It’s a good thing because I just can’t picture out a turnip looking scary. Today, Halloween would not be complete without a jack o’lantern adorning every house. It is a sure sign for children who are out trick or treating that the people in the house would be giving out treats aplenty.

Another much anticipated Halloween tradition is the hayride. There are also haunted hayrides, corn mazes, and pumpkin patches. Halloween hayrides are a fun and memorable activity that children always enjoy. It brings a sense of togetherness in the neighborhood, where children not only dress up in costumes but also experience a hayride with their family and other children. Hayrides usually need a tractor, a trailer, and hay. Some adult supervision is needed to make sure the kids are safe. In some urban areas, you can substitute a pick-up for a tractor.

As an american child growing up in the U.S. in elementary school, we would go on hayrides sponsored by our schools. After the ride, it was then off to the pumpkin patch.  We’d even pick apples and drink hot apple cider from the orchards. Those were the good old days!

For some, Halloween can exude an atmosphere of melancholy in the midst of all the festivities. For one, Halloween precedes All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day. We are supposed to remember our departed ones. Also, Halloween occurs in the Fall, a season when trees begin to lose their leaves and change colors. The days are shorter and it can quickly turn to dusk. The mood of the environment can feel gloomy and sad, evoking similar feelings in people.

To cap off the Halloween festivities, there are numerous horror movies that can send chills down your spine and make you scream at the top of your lungs. My all-time favorite would be the original Exorcist, starring Linda Blair. I still can’t seem to stomach green pea soup after watching her spew out who knows how many cans of pea soup. I also can’t forget that 360 degree head turn! Other must-watch horror movies include Halloween, Frankenstein (a classic!) and The Ring where looking down a well, even to wish, doesn’t seem as fun anymore. How about Insidious, and the new TV show “American Horror Story” (with Jessica Lange). One thing about horror movies that I find funny is that people seem to always want to take their date out to watch them. Most likely, they think that the scary scenes will make their dates want to cling to them. But what if their date is a screamer? They’ll have to sit through the whole movie with their date shrieking in their ears. Now that’s horrific!

Some upcoming horror flicks that many people are waiting for include The Innkeepers, Paranorman, The Evil Dead, The Lords of Salem, Grim Night, Resident Evil: Retribution, and The Corridor. Time will tell if these films will end up as classics years from now.

Halloween can be lots of fun! It’s never difficult to get in the mood and groove of the season, just make sure you keep a handle on the fun and not get too wild and make the festivities a horror story of your own!

As we all know, work can be so hectic along with all the hustle and bustle of daily life. Hopefully, an early notice on the planned event for the holiday season, “The Tastes of Christmas” card exchange, will give you enough time to prepare and join in the festivities. All the information you need to know is available for your perusal on the right-hand side bar. We warmly welcome all aspiring chefs, food photographers, food bloggers, food enthusiasts, et al. Everyone who are invited to join belong to the food community and we encourage all to connect with our close knit group where we share a kinship for having the same passion.

How to participate: We value all personal information you will be sharing. As a safety measure, to join in on the fun, please send us your information by using the contact form. Both of us will be participating, and we are so excited.

1. Please send us your e-mail address, and your mailing address.  If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach us through the contact form as well. In an effort to bring the people of the world closer together, we thank you in advance for taking the time to participate.
2. Everyone who would like to participate, we will need your information by December 1st. This is the day we will mail out the mailing addresses to all who will be joining in on the festivity. We kindly ask that you title the subject “Tastes of Christmas”.
3. We will highlight this festivity on the right hand side of the site under “inside myfudo” .
4. We value your privacy, and any information which is sent to us is kept private, and only shared with others who participate in the 2011 Christmas Card exchange. No one outside of the exchange list gets the information.

Food is an international language. It never discriminates and it explicitly speaks more than words about a culture, history and tradition of each country. Christmas, is a season that is celebrated in many different ways all over the world. Called Christmas by many, the holiday goes by many different names and with just as many traditions. But, most importantly, the true essence of this holiday is the spirit of love, a truly human experience.

Let us all gather to a global table and share the sensations of tastes andsmells that speak to us of the holiday season. In the spirit of giving and community we hope to bring together all the foodies of the world whether a novice or professional. In this age of communication it is such a pity to waste the opportunity to get to know and understand others and their cultures. Many cultures celebrate Christmas. They celebrate in just as many different ways. The food on dining tables can range from simple to bountiful. But, no matter what your traditions the results are usually the same; shared feelings of happiness and love that draws friends and families together.

We encourage you to open your doors this Christmas by signing up to join “The Tastes of Christmas” card exchange. It would be wonderful to get to know what observing the season is like for you, what meaning the holidays have for you, how you celebrate it, and anything and everything at all that you would like to share. We will send the list out to participants by the 1st of December 2011. We look forward to sharing a peek into your world with a Christmas card to break all cultural boundaries, and you never know, there may be another kismet among us.