Selection tools are very important and useful for almost any photo editing. Starting with simple and basic selections made with a rectangular marquee tool through a bit more complex magnetic lasso tool to an advanced options such as pen tool or channel based selections, selection tools are a bread and butter of my daily work in photoshop, regardless whether I am editing an image or working on a complex photoshop manipulation. This video is aimed at beginners and it is a second in the series. I talk about selection tools and cover all necessary functions needed for basic retouching. More advanced videos will follow, including separate chapters for channels, pen tool, and more complex functions of basic selection tools, such as perspective warp, which was introduced in photoshop CS6. There are many videos onlien regarding photoshop, but I know how difficult is to find one ways around when you open the photoshop for the first time. I hope this series will make it easier for you. Stay tuned for upcoming videos in the beginners series. In new episodes I will be explaining how to use editing tools, vector tools, remaining tools, how to work on layers, and there also will be a separate video on adobe camera RAW basic functions. For more free photoshop tutorials feel free to view my YouTube channel.

My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
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You can purchase all of my books now on several sites on the net, including amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. If you click below logos you will be redirected to the store. Each of the book has a preview, so you can look inside and see the contents (preview is limited to a few pages, but long enough to give you a good understanding of the contents of a given book). If you have any questions please let me know.

I would like to thank all of you who purchased my recent publications, "Etymology of Japanese kanji - in-depth analysis of selected characters" in particular. If you enjoyed the read please leave a feedback on amazon or Barnes & noble pages, I really appreciate it.

This exhibition is one of the most interesting and impressive things to see in Tokyo National Museum in Ueno. The exhibited sculptures are superb, some of them are huge, others are smaller. Museum rotates items on the display every 3 months, so you can admire various masterpieces. Some of the sculptures can be photographed, so do not forget to bring your camera with you. The room with the statues has amazing energy, it is very peaceful and soothing. I have added my calligraphy to the below photo, written in cursive script, it reads 平穏, i.e. tranquility (heion). 

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We all love traveling and taking photos. The trouble is that most of the shots that people go back home with are mere snapshots. They do capture memories and fun moments, which is what photography is partially about. However, there is a huge difference between snapshots and photographs, and between photographs and art. Every single photo that I publish or or pass to my clients is not only a unique capture, but it is also fine tuned in post processing. I edit every single photo individually, without applying any presets or bulk editing methods, which is what most photographers do in order to save time. My approach to photography is artistic, and very emotional. Everyplace, angle or perspective is different, every person is an individual, every moment is unique, and so should be photos that document those. If you like snapshots you can ask anyone, if you enjoy art then you call me. 

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This new series of photoshop tutorials for beginners will cover all aspects of photoshop from practical point of view. I already created a video on how to tweak various PC and photoshop settings to improve performance of photoshop and speed up photo editing workflow. Today I have released first video of the series that should help anyone who is new to photoshop. In this video I cover the entire interface, explain photoshop menus, show you how you can set up your own personalized working space and save it as a default, and explain how various panels and menus interact with one another. In upcoming video tutorials I will teach you all the tools and menu options in depth, based on practical examples so it is much easier to learn and understand. Photoshop tools and menus are not that difficult to learn, the whole trick is in knowing how to use all those tools together to achieve the result you want. I am sure you will have solid knowledge base at the end of the series. Any suggestions / ideas - please let me know.

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For those of you dirty minded bastards who need some clarification, the size of the brush does not matter. It is all in the quality of brush strokes, the power of line, how skilled your mind and arm is. Chinese calligraphy line can be powerful and mighty even if written with a tiny brush. The brush tip, its movement on the paper, the balance, quality of ink and paper, handwriting style, etc. it all comes together in the final artwork. Those are the elements that decide on how powerful your calligraphy art will be. 威 in cursive script - it means might, power, also dignity. I wrote in in one stroke, with a small brush. I wanted to express well defined and flexible line, continuum of movement, but at the same time an airy and light feeling to the whole structure of the character. 

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If you come to Tokyo on a group tour you cant really see all the hidden gems in the city. It is not just about the places, but the way they are discovered or details that should not be missed. Tours go to most common places, always follow the same patterns and so you will end up with photos exactly the same as the person next to you. Tour operators are not photographers, and they have no idea where to bring the group so they can take some really cool photos. By hiring a pro photographer who lives permanently in Tokyo, and who specializes in portraiture and architecture photography, you will not only go back home with some truly amazing photos that no one else has, but you are not constrained to a rather boring and mechanically orchestrated tour.

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I am studying Lantingji Xu by Wang Xizhi, and so here is a short phrase from this amazing classic in semi-cursive. If follows the original to an extend, with a few alterations in my own calligraphic style. If you want to read more about Xizhi, just do a search on my blog, I have quite a few articles about him and his legendary calligraphy masterpieces. I scanned my work and brought it inside photoshop and played a bit with colors and background. Enjoy!

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There are two ways that you can improve performance of your photoshop. One is via upgrading and tweaking your PC hardware, and the other is through software settings of your OS, photoshop, and other related programs. In terms of hardware, the key PC components that may have an impact on the performance of photoshop are the amount of RAM, number of CPU cores and their speed, VRAM of your graphics card, type of hard drives you are using (HDD vs. SSD, and monitor size / type. In terms of software, one has to consider OS version, anti virus programs, hardware settings and their drivers, photoshop updates, photoshop plugin updates, how many programs are running in the background, and numerous settings that have to be performed inside photoshop. To learn more about how you can improve the performance of your photoshop, watch the video linked below, in which I go through all those items in depth.

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Officially published as of today! Learn Japanese Hiragana is one of three books on the subject of Japanese language and etymology  that I have been working on for some time now. Although Learn Japanese Hiragana and Learn Japanese Katakana  are separate and stand alone books, so it is possible to buy them as stand alone volumes.

The most significant thing that distinguishes my books from any other hiragana and katakana textbooks out there, is that all and every single syllabary or a character was handwritten the way it should be. There is a huge discrepancy between a handwritten Japanese and computer fonts, and this subject is hugely neglected. When I started to study Japanese language 14 years ago, I always wished I had a book with handwritten examples of kanji, hiragana or katakana.

But there is more. Not only each book has handwritten examples of hiragana and katakana, but also the kanji from which each of kana syllabaries evolved. Further, since hiragana evolved from kanji in cursive-script form, I included three different handwritten calligraphy scripts for each kanji to show a clear evolution from the standard script through semi-cursive to cursive script. In case of katakana I did the same thing with kanji radicals that each katakana evolved from.

I have provided a detailed explanation of the origins of sounds of modern katakana and added a phonetic guidance based on pronunciation found in the online Oxford dictionary of English language. You should be able to replicate the proper sound of each katakana syllabary wit ease.

In addition, I discuss the history of evolution of hiragana and katakana on a background of the history of Japanese calligraphy. I have included hand written stroke order charts of each syllabogram, with arrows pointing towards the correct direction of writing. All handwritten examples are based on traditional or historical Japanese calligraphy.

Last but not least, I have included space for exercises, where you can practice your writing modelling yourself on the examples I have provided.

Learn Japanese Katakana and Learn Japanese Hiragana is now available on my store on lulu.com, but in few weeks it will be available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. but if I receive enough requests I consider publishing it also in electronic form for Kindle, Nook, iBooks.

Visit my page on Lulu bookstore to see preview of the book. 

Officially published as of today! Learn Japanese Katakana is one of three books on the subject of Japanese language and etymology  that I have been working on for some time now. Although Learn Japanese Katakana and Learn Japanese Hiragana are separate and stand alone books, so it is possible to buy them as stand alone volumes.

The most significant thing that distinguishes my books from any other hiragana and katakana textbooks out there, is that all and every single syllabary or a character was handwritten the way it should be. There is a huge discrepancy between a handwritten Japanese and computer fonts, and this subject is hugely neglected. When I started to study Japanese language 14 years ago, I always wished I had a book with handwritten examples of kanji, hiragana or katakana.

But there is more. Not only each book has handwritten examples of hiragana and katakana, but also the kanji from which each of kana syllabaries evolved. Further, since hiragana evolved from kanji in cursive-script form, I included three different handwritten calligraphy scripts for each kanji to show a clear evolution from the standard script through semi-cursive to cursive script. In case of katakana I did the same thing with kanji radicals that each katakana evolved from.

I have provided a detailed explanation of the origins of sounds of modern katakana and added a phonetic guidance based on pronunciation found in the online Oxford dictionary of English language. You should be able to replicate the proper sound of each katakana syllabary wit ease.

In addition, I discuss the history of evolution of hiragana and katakana on a background of the history of Japanese calligraphy. I have included hand written stroke order charts of each syllabogram, with arrows pointing towards the correct direction of writing. All handwritten examples are based on traditional or historical Japanese calligraphy.

Last but not least, I have included space for exercises, where you can practice your writing modelling yourself on the examples I have provided.

Learn Japanese Katakana and Learn Japanese Hiragana is now available on my store on lulu.com, but in few weeks it will be available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. but if I receive enough requests I consider publishing it also in electronic form for Kindle, Nook, iBooks.

Visit my page on Lulu bookstore to see preview of the book.


We all have photos that we are not sure what to do with. Most of them are casual emotional snapshots of something that we though looked cool at the moment of taking. Either that, or we just take shots with the photoshop compositing in mind. To the left is a photo of one of my photoshop workshops students, taken in Croatia. Below, you can see my photoshop manipulation of that shot, in attempt to redesign the entire composition and feel to the photo. I really like that wall, it adds a lot of the Continental feel, that fragment of an island is something to balance that wall with, but the original image had no clear focus or a self sustained subject of the photo. Success of a photo is based on balance between the shapes and light, and it can be weighted like on a scale. Half of the job is to capture an image, and the other half lays in post production. Either is equally important, though as you can see from this example, knowledge of photo editing can be more powerful that the ability of capturing a good image. I teach photography with the vision of post processing, and you can see why I put so much stress on mastering photoshop. If you are interested in improving your photoshop knowledge you can read more about it here, or contact me directly. 

My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
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Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website!

Here is my new photoshop manipulation fantasy landscape art. I was thinking of compositing a Chinese or Japanese castle, since that horseback archer is a Japanese yabusame (horseback archer), but I decided to go for a collision of two cultures, so there is a Western European castle and a ship, and the archer. Planets of course - you guys know i love sci fi, plus those two planets frame the entire composition perfectly, and add a bit of a cinematic look to the whole image. It is not a complex manipulation, but it came out pretty cool. As always, I have recorded my photoshop workflow and you can watch in on my YouTube channel.  Enjoy!

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This is my first fully digital Chinese calligraphy art, based on a semi-cursive script form of the character for dragon (龍). I created it entirely inside photoshop from scratch using pen tool, textures and a bit of fun with selective toning, etc. I also added some dimension to the character, so it doesn't appear flat, and created an illusion of metallic material. The character itself follows traditional calligraphy rules to certain extend, naturally I added to it my personal calligraphic style, but I wanted to keep it in a modern feel, slightly leaning towards a logo design or some sort of an emblem. Hope you guys like it!

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When I was younger I hated school with passion. Not because I do not like to learn, quite the contrary, simply school was too intellectually confined, lacking finesse, and rather dull. I teach photography art the same way as I would like to have learned when I was a kid. I teach not what I know but whatever is that interest you, bearing in mind your current level and skill. I also teach with the vision of post processing and image retouching, as I believe that post processing is equally, if not more important than taking photos, and I really mean that. The technical side of photography, like setting proper ISO, shutter speed and aperture is not that complicated, and sooner or later you will pick it up naturally with practice.  Photography is an art, not a geek show. Leave the technicalities to those who cannot see a bigger picture. The most essential thing to master in photography is understanding the light (with the exception of portrait photography, in which case you also need to understand human psychology, to be able to evoke or comprehend their body language and reactions). You have to fall in love with light, learn how to adjust to it or control it. Light determines compositions, both during night and day. Photography does not exist without light, and good photography does not exist without understanding of how to capture it. I put a huge stress on composition, not in a technical sense, I rather emphasize the artistic  feel of composition and how to sense balance in the image. I teach how to find a photograph in a mess of nothingness, a scene that is loud and convoluted, how to appreciate art in what you thought was mundane, how to see and compose with energy and aura of a scene, rather than place items on the crossing lines of rule of thirds, because the book or article told you to do so. In addition, I also teach post processing and advanced photoshop manipulation online via desktop sharing, so once you return home with your images that you took in Tokyo or any other place, we can continue the education through the internet. My experience and scope as an artist goes far beyond photography, which allows me to see a much bigger picture. I do not just teach photography, I teach art. Contact me for details here. Available photography workshops:  portrait photography, street photography, architecture photography and night photography.

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I was approached by Wendy Wu Tours in regards to writing a short article for their website about Japanese calligraphy and possibilities of studying it during your stay here in Tokyo. It would seem that more and more people are willing to discover the culture of Japan and are interested in all kinds of wonders, one of them being Japanese calligraphy. Links are below, so have a look and read, enjoy!

Last year I was shooting hands of on of my body art models, she has really amazing hands. I just knew that at some point I will be using those images for photoshop manipulations. I have started to work on a new image yesterday, and I have just finished it. I created a cyber hand but while working on it I was thinking what way will I composite into an image. Then I thought, one cyborg is fun, but how about adding a size scale to the image by adding a smaller cyborg girl. So I grabbed the image I have created earlier on this week, and cooked something on the verge of fantasy and sci fi cyber reality. Below is a galery of few images in different stages, including some details etc. I am uploading a speed art video to my YouTube channel as we speak, so you can watch later on how I have created the hand, and then the final composite image. Enjoy!

Girls interested in a photo shoot - currently looking for female models in Tokyo area interested in cyber sci fi art, Japanese calligraphy body art, or portrait shots. I am always looking for new faces and bodies so e-mail me in interested.  Anyone interested in learning photoshop, photo editing or photo manipulation - contact me directly and we can discuss private workshops

My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
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It is possible that computers and robotics will kill us all off at some point but I plan to have as much fun with technology as possible until it happens. It is all down to learning the tools and how to use them in conjunction with one another, and it can be overwhelming in case of programs like photoshop, but it can be learned, and once you do you just down want to go back (if you are interested in learning photoshop, photo editing or photo manipulation - contact me directly and we can discuss private workshops). The same as it happened with cameras, when the digital ones phased out the film cameras. I know that film is still in use, but in all honesty, why bother. Digital is far more fun, clean and does not honk. Digital art and the literally endless creative possibilities it offers is all too good to pass on. I am already working on merging 2D with 3D and going completely mental with my sci fi projects. 

Girls interested in a photo shoot - currently looking for female models in Tokyo area interested in cyber sci fi art, Japanese calligraphy body art, or portrait shots. I am always looking for new faces and bodies so e-mail me in interested.  

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Sci fi sexy cyborg girl photoshop manipulation speed art video

I decided to go fucking nuts with this one and spend tons of time polishing the details of the engine parts, armor and then blending the image with a background. The most time consuming part was creating the armor and all adding all the details, joints, engines, lights, lines, and so on. The final image is about 10,000 x 6000 pixels, so I am posting two 100% crops of the original image, so you can see some close ups. Good composite photography and photoshop manipulation are all about matching the light, perspective, and color. Having some sort of idea or a artistic concept of which direction to go with the image is also very helpful. Although I haven't used any reference photos, it often helps to look at some examples in case you need to get inspired. I have recorded a video on how tis image was created, from start to finish, and I will post it tomorrow on my Youtube channel. If you want to learn advanced photoshop and photo manipulation / composite photography, then check my photoshop workshops (one to one and online via desktop sharing).

My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
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I am working on a  new sexy cyborg girl photoshop manipulation, and it looks like this one will be by far the most complex one have created so far. I am about half way through and I already started a 145th layer in photoshop. The more details are in a composite image the better, and the more work you put into polishing those details the better, and those details take a lot of time. I ve been working on this 6h so far, and it seems that another 5h or so should do it. Regardless the time spent, I love working on my hot cyber girl army and sci fi projects. Very relaxing and keeps me sane in this more and more retarded world. Anyways, I thought I will share with you an something that is being created at the very moment. If you want to learn advanced photoshop and photo manipulation / composite photography, then check my photoshop workshops (one to one and online via desktop sharing). 

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details

I took this photo today at my place. We had an amazing back light pouring through the window, being diffused by a paper cloth screen. I was taking photos for a new sci fi cyber girl photoshop manipulation and I just could not resist not taking a few silhouetted shots. So I brought this one into photoshop and had a bit of fun with it, added some textures, selective vignetting, my Chinese calligraphy art in ancient seal script, and the wings to complete the composition and add some mystery and fantasy elements to the photo. The text reads 別天地 and it means another world. Photography is great and all but photo editing, and especially photo manipulation and composite photography, is where the real creative fun starts. I find it very artistically fulfilling and relaxing at the same time. 

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This tutorial focuses not only on the removal of haze, but it covers a full workflow of editing a hazy photo from start to finish. Haze removal, if done properly, involves a few steps, and the more time you spend on editing your photos the better result you will have. That is the nature of things. To effectively remove haze in photoshop I am working with levels and curves adjustment layers, color channels, Adobe Camera Raw filter, high pass filter, then I am also using dodging burning and vignetting for best results. Hope you enjoy the video guys, if you do please like it and subscribe to my YouTube channel. If you have any requests for photoshop tutorials let me know, always happy to help. Cheers!

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before and after

Photoshop tutorial on how to remove haze in a photo and add more punch to it. 

Flash photography has the great advantage of offering an immense control over light. You can sculpt it and bend it the way you want. It is great in working in confined spaces, where strobes would blast the place with light like x-rays. Flash throws some very hard light, but when softened up with some light modifiers like softboxes is just amazing. Here is a result of a short photoshoot at my place today, I added my calligraphy to make the image a bit more interesting and dill the negative space to the left. I dropped the opacity so the attention goes to the model, which is mirrored by the faded kanji (麗 - graceful).

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model: Eccaia

Here is another image from the sci fi series of futuristic Tokyo. It is a photoshop manipulation of several images. First I digitally blended (watch my tutorial on digital blending in photoshop)a few photos in photoshop to get as much traffic and trains into one photo to make it look busy and crazy overcrowded. Then I added some spacecrafts (deviant art stock images, but soon I will be creating my own 3D art, so stay tuned). Finally I added some light effects, flares, toning, textures, etc. You can watch  a speed art video (scroll below the image) on how this image was created from start to finish. I also created a special section on my YouTube channel devoted to speed art, digital art videos, and photoshop manipulation, because this is what in absolutely love doing! Enjoy!

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Any type of photography that involves photographing people is based on some sort of a relationship between the model and the photographer. Naturally this applies to any type of art, like sculpture, or painting. Portrait photography for example is more difficult than people may think. Often times I have to be able to capture the real character and personality on my camera, after meeting them only a few minutes earlier. It is our job as photographers to be able to connect, to reach through all the social masks and safety doors, and get through to the core of a person. On top of this we have to be able to evoke real emotions, and be fast enough to photograph them before they fade away. Now, boudoir or nude photography brings this to a higher level. A model is trusting us with her intimacy, and it is crucial to respect it. I don't know about you but I love working with the same models over and over, as the more we work together the better the photos will be. Look at painters, they all had their favourite models, and for a good reason. It is a unique bond of mutual appreciation and trust, difficult to build, but easy to lose. Then there is body painting or in my case calligraphy body art. Ask a professional photographer if he would dare to touch a female model during a nude shoot. I highly doubt it. I have to spend hours (full body texts can take as long as 4h or more of continuous writing) touching the model head to toes during writing. This is one of the most intimate types of photography out there, and it could not be done without a really good understanding or trust. Respect and understand your models guys, listen to them and learn, and you will get great results.

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model: Asuka