We’ve got a few fun Elements-related things for you on this brisk, late autumn morning (at least here in Portland):

• Check out Dave Cross’ latest video, Creating a ‘Happy Accident’ through Experimentation. Instead of the usual, “lets-do-this-special-thing-in-10-steps” technique, Dave shows you how easy it is to experiment and play with your photos to create unique effects (my ‘experimental’ shot of Mount St. Helens is above). The key is to work with layers and adjustment layers, so you can remember the things you’ve done when you want to repeat your custom effect later on.

  It’s a perfect example of something I’m always telling students looking to get up to speed with Elements: just play around. It is one of the best things you can do to hone your skills and get more comfortable with the program. Try some tutorials, even if the technique or end result isn’t something you want to do all the time; they’re a great way to get comfortable with some of the key skills you’ll need to master Elements.

• Speaking of experimentation, over on Linda Sattgast’s Scrapper’s Guide, there’s a tutorial by Jan Walker on creating a comic book effect with Photoshop Elements. It’s a fun (and free) tutorial on a great site.
• I’ve mentioned in the past how much I love the paper and cards done by my friends over at Red River Paper; they’ve got a wonderful range of cut sheets, rolls and cards and envelopes. When I saw my buddy Drew from Red River recently, he told me that they had just posted a bunch of videos on printing custom-size inkjet cards with Photoshop Elements. Check them out!

Have a great week, everyone!

Rick