"That'll do," he said, after I'd finished about a dozen clicks and, as he reduced the image back to its original size, the catchlights began to look as natural as if they'd been there in the first place. I became an instant believer.

My darkroom has lain fallow now for many a season...with all the equipment I once revered preserved, as if in a museum. I work in a comfortable room with a beautiful view instead of standing for hours on my feet in dim brown light breathing poisonous vapors (although there was a certain tranquility and time for introspection in that...ah, come on, who am I kidding...it was sheer drudgery).

If you, too, are now ready to come out of the dark, let's look at some digital imaging programs that will give you proficiency in practically no time at all. I've even negotiated some special software discounts for you which I'll list at the end, along with links to appropriate web sites.

Almost every high-priced digital imaging program has been developed for graphic designers whose final output is an image on a printed page­ and the demands of laying down millions of itty-bitty dots in exact registration during four passes of unstable paper through a temperamental printing press is a lot tougher than ending up with a photograph from your own desktop printer.

That's why I suggest you avoid high-end programs that'll bog you down in a morass of printer's terms and functions that don't apply to photographers. You'll just be paying an exorbitant price to become indentured to a long and difficult learning process with software that requires an expensive computer configuration to run properly. It's like buying an 8x10 camera to shoot action pictures.

The following easy-to-learn programs will give you instant gratification. After all, if you can't enjoy it, why even get into it? All require almost no RAM to speak of (as little as 4MB, in some cases) and very little hard disk space. Most will run just fine on older machines, albeit a bit slower, and they cost very little. All come with photos you can start to practice on until we get to the next column, when I'll tell you to input your own.

PhotoEnhancer Plus 3.2. by PictureWorks is a program that has many "photographic" features that should be familiar to you. It comes in both a MAC and PC version and cuts through all the mumbo-jumbo of techno-graphics terminology with easy-to-understand words like "a little," "a lot," "fine," "medium," and "coarse." No interpretations needed here...you just tell it what you want and it says: "Yes, boss, comin' right up." Let's say you're working on a photograph shot under fluorescent lighting without a correction filter. Just go to the Enhance menu and ask the program to correct it, which it will obligingly do by applying the proper color filter.

Still, not completely satisfied? Not to worry. Just click on "By Example" and any preconceptions you may have had about the complexity of digital imaging will vanish. You'll probably spend an hour or more just marveling over how, in a few seconds, this program can give you a nine-photo ring-around for different effects such as focus (sharpening), exposure, brightness, contrast, and color correction. from

After you pick the combination you like, go to SmartPix and the program will print out nine small test-strip-like pictures from which you can make your final choice. However, like a basic camera, PhotoEnhancer Plus, has its limitations; you can't do ultra-precision work with its tools, they are limited in scope, and the program lacks multiple undo/redo (more about that, later).

So I?m going to recommend ­for each platform­ one additional program in addition to PhotoEnhancer Plus, because it will be the one you'll probably end up using most. Remember, though, you can always bring your images back into PhotoEnhancer Plus to use features you like ­like SmartPix­ after you've worked on them in a different program as all manipulations you do in one program stays with the picture when it's exported from that program and imported into another.

For WIN 95 (and NT 4.0 or later) the winner is Picture Window 2.0, probably the best-conceived, feature-rich, inexpensive, digital imaging software ever released. It is the lovechild of Jonathan Sachs, an avid photographer and developer of the original Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet program. It seems everyone who tries it feels compelled to write words of praise and wonderment to Sachs? company, Digital Light & Color.

As a photographer, you'll feel very comfortable with it. The program has multiple levels of undo/redo (will explain, soon), allows you to see changes you've made side by side with the original image, and comes with a detailed, comprehensive online manual that explains everything and is actually a joy to read! At their web site you'll see what this electronic darkroom can do (and you'll be putting your view camera up for sale after you see how easy this program handles perspective control). Download a free 60-day trial version...better yet, just buy it outright because companies like Digital Light & Color that market quality software at reasonable cost deserve to be supported.

The price is only $39.95 for the CD ROM version which includes many additional goodies like slide viewers, various calculators, information on digital photo techniques, and a calibration scale, so you can get a good match between what's on the screen and how it will print out. Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, but he's known as "Picture Window" during the off-season. Incidentally, there's also a Version 1.2 that will run on WIN 3.1...but with somewhat fewer features.

In the MAC side, there's Microspot's PhotoFix 3.4, an OS 8 (and earlier) compatible program that has an elegant tool layout and a lightning fast intuitive learning curve that leaves every other MAC digital imaging program in the dust. Like Picture Window, its most outstanding feature is multiple undo/redo, up to 32 in all. You can perform many operations and then undo and redo them, going back and forth with ease. This speeds learning time, allowing you to easily compare and alter multiple series of effects, and experiment with many variations without having always to start over from scratch.

Let's say, for example, you decide to burn in an area. Then some more. And more yet. Then you add some color. And finally make it more saturated. You've now done five separate operations and suddenly it doesn't look quite right. With PhotoEnhancer Plus you can only toggle between the current and previous operation. But PhotoFix lets you go back and forth through all five of them and stop at any one­ where you can apply new effects and then continue on from that point or undo again. Very few programs have multiple undo/redo features...not even pricey PhotoShop or its little Ram-hog-of-a-brother, Photo Deluxe.

PhotoFix also has a superb calibration program for printing pictures accurately...and it can be matched to the printer you're using. It outputs numbered tinted squares and you then input the number that matches the one that's closest to neutral gray. The result? Beautiful color and B&W prints. It will also print "test-strip-like" images in different brightness and contrast combinations. It's just a swell program and comes with written documentation, sample images, and more.

Ishould also mention one other program called PhotoStudio 2.0, for WIN 3.1 and 95, a clone of PhotoFix...almost. Its main drawback is that it doesn't have multiple undo/redo, but I'm told this will be a feature of Version 3.0, due out around July. Go to ArcSoft's site and download a free trial version. If you like it, wait until the new version comes out or else be prepared to pay additional for the upgrade. As ArcSoft's marketing manager told me, there's no free lunch, any more...if you buy the current version on Monday, and the new one comes out Tuesday, you still pay the full upgrade price. Nevertheless, it's a program that deserves consideration because it has many fine features.

Most of the programs I've recommended let you crop, change overall exposure, dodge, burn-in, change contrast, do split contrast, sharpen and soften overall and locally, color correct, change colors, color B&W photos, remove unwanted details, alter details (such as making rectangular catchlights round) retouch blemishes, remove and change backgrounds, bleach areas, tone B&W prints, create photo montages, and much more. And all come with photo filing and retrieval capabilities...some even with money-back guarantees.

As a photographer, these programs are all you really need and each is under $100. Think about it. The money you save by not buying one of the high-priced packages gets you several programs with features not even the big guys have, and there will be enough left over for most of the hardware you need to get started in digital imaging.

So what are you waiting for?

Web site listings and special deals for ZoneZero visitors. All special discount offers must be ordered by phone and expire June 30, 1998. Shipping is extra.

Picture Window 2.0: WIN 95; NT 4.0 up. (Also v.1.5 for WIN 3.1)
<www.dl-c.com> Free 60-day trial download version, but the CD ROM (with all the extras) is the real jewel in the crown. The WIN 95 price/performance leader at $39.95. Call 617.489.8858.

PhotoFix 3.4: MAC 68K; POWER MAC <www.microspot.com> (Site also in Spanish.) This version is so new, they're probably still stuffing it into the box so you may have wait a couple of weeks for delivery. If it's not available when you call and you just can't wait, then buy version 3.2.3, and Microspot will give you a free upgrade when the new one ships! (You can also download version 3.2.3 as a demo.) Regular price direct: $139.00. Call 800.622-7568 or 408.253.2000 (outside USA) and mention the ZoneZero Special offer price of $59.95 for the full-boxed version of 3.4.

PhotoStudio 2.0: WIN 3.1; 95; NT 3.5 up <www.arcsoft.com> Free 30-day trial (or 100 uses) download version...$69.95 if you purchase the "key." Full-boxed version (with more included) priced direct at: $99.95. Version 3.0 ($99.95) due for release around July. Upgrade from 2.0 to 3.0, $39.95. Call 800.762.8657 or 510.440.9901 outside USA.


Accelerating The Learning Curve

1. Spend the first day like a kid in a candy shop. Try everything and keep shouting to friends and family "come see this, it's incredible!" This will insure that no one will be around to bother you when you get down to business (they'll all be hiding).

2. During your learning stages, keep your images at low resolutions (the manual will explain this). This will speed up computer processing time as you begin to make changes to the image.

3. Start with one effect at a time and learn it thoroughly. Take notes as to what your settings are. Many tools have "settings" boxes (size, opacity, etc.) that can be displayed on the screen. After you finish with an effect, you can take a screenshot, showing the image and the tool setting(s) for future reference.

4. Start with easy effects first: sharpening, softening, dodging, burning-in, changing color­ things you're familiar with as a photographer. Expect your results to be a bit crude; after all how long did it take you to learn to make a good picture? Why should this be different?

5. Allow yourself a little experimentation time after each session. Play around with some of the tools that are not familiar to you and have fun with some of the special effects. Keep an eye on the clock, though­ time really flies when you're at this.

6. The image will usually appear on screen too big or too small depending on its resolution; use the program?s magnification scale to adjust it to a workable size and to enlarge it for fine detail work.

7. Know when to stop. Avoid the temptation to get everything perfect just because it?s possible­ you'll never finish that way.

8. Don't get overly frustrated. Photographers sometimes expect miraculous results just because they're used to working with pictures. Look at digital imaging the same way as spotting prints, working with the Zone System, your first time with a view camera or learning to print well, and it will all come into perspective.


The Digital Alchemist Can Turn Lead Into Gold

When it comes to digital imaging, if you can draw a straight line, you're probably over-qualified. I do not work with imaging programs regularly so it took me about 25 minutes to salvage this cat picture whereas a pro could probably do it in less than 10. It might take you an hour or so in your early learning stages, but without multiple undo/redo, it could take you forever. You will be able to digitally enhance photos with confidence in Picture Window or PhotoFix after just a few days of practice...trust me!



The Lead
This is horrible grab shot of one our many cats, Simba, taken with a digital camera I was testing. Because it only had an LCD for a viewfinder, I was holding the camera unsteadily at arm's length, trying to frame the cat who was trying to scram. The light was so low I just shot without seeing much of anything. The angle is terrible, the picture's soft, has very little contrast, weeds are in the way, and because it was taken with a very low resolution camera and highly compressed, the whiskers are beginning to pixelate and there are lots of digital artifacts ­little red, blue, and green speckles. Without an imaging program, it would be a throw-away, but I decided to challenge myself to see if it could be salvaged.



The Gold

I let the program take the first crack at automatically correcting brightness and contrast, which it did perfectly. Then I enlarged it a bit more and removed Simba?s back, replacing it with a black background. When I went too far, I just backed up as many steps as required and did it again until I got it right. After that, I gave him some more fur in the lower left hand corner, bottom, and right corner by just cloning it in (kind of like rubber-stamping, and easy to do). Next, the weeds were also removed by cloning fur over them, and then I told the program to automatically sharpen the entire image.


To handle the pixelization and artifacts, I decided to give the image a painterly quality so they'd look like part of the artistic technique and blend in. I experimented with several automated brush stroke effects until I hit one I liked. I would sometimes combine them, which meant backing up several steps to unscramble weird results. Finally, I added more color saturation (another automated process) to give the picture more snap and printed it
5" x 7" on Kodak paper with an Epson StylusColor II ink-jet printer. Compare it to the original. Could you ever do this with conventional photography?

Arthur Bleich