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February 8, 2006 Organizing and Editing Your Digital Photos
The new Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006 (Microsoft, Windows 98SE/Me/2000/XP, $69.95, after $30 rebate) includes a digital image organizer, image editor and slide show creator. Using these modules you’ll be able to: 1) add to and organize any number of digital photographs in your computer in a way that makes it easy to find any photo; 2) fix common photo problems and/or enhance photos; 3) assemble selected digital photos in a slide show, add music and/or narration and then share the show with family and friends; 4) archive your digital photos to CD for safekeeping.
Using the Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006 Library, you can import digital images from a digital camera, scanner or hard drive. Library will also display and organize video clips (video editing PLUS Edition only) and images in RAW camera format. Images are presented in a thumbnail display, and if you archive images to a CD and remove the image files from your hard drive, the thumbnails will still be displayed and their CD noted for you. Thumbnail size can be adjusted using a simple slider control. Hover the mouse cursor over any image, and an enlarged image displaying better detail appears. Select the image by clicking on it and you get complete info, such as file name, size, date, image caption, labels, flags, Star rating and more. The program allows you to apply one or more labels to each image, making it easy to find any images. A few sample labels are included with the program, but you can add as many as needed for your situation. For example, you could create labels such as Family, Pets, Friends, Skiing, Vacation, Rocky Mountains July 2004, Bob, and so on. Multiple labels can also be attached to each image. Later when you ask the program to display all the images labeled "Bob," for example, just those labeled with "Bob" will be displayed. Or, you can request images with labels of "Bob" and "Skiing," and that set will be displayed. Flags can be set for images independent of the labels. These flags will mark images for printing, review, touch up, e-mail and user defined. So, for example, when time comes to e-mail photos, just those images flagged as e-mail will be displayed. No need to wade through hundreds of photos to find the two you wanted to send. An interesting feature is "Find similar," where the program scans all the images in the library for images with similar characteristics and displays them in groups in a hierarchical fashion (most similar, somewhat similar and least similar). Images from the Library can also be easily selected for editing, and batch edits are supported. An important feature of Library is Archive. Using this feature, you can copy or transfer your digital images to a CD for safekeeping. You can set an automatic reminder to prompt you to archive every week, month or whenever. Using this feature can save much grief if anything happens to your hard drive. And, since stories abound about people who have lost treasured digital photos when their hard drive crashed, we strongly recommend you use this or another program to make a backup copy of all your photos.
Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006 Editor provides all the usual photo editing tools to adjust brightness and contrast, color, hue, saturation and such. Tools are placed in groups for common tasks such as Quick Fixes, Touch up, Format, Effects, Edges and Add Something. This feature makes it easy to find the tool you need to make changes in your photos, and some tools are available as Auto Fixes for no-fuss corrections. There are also slider adjustments for better control or curve adjustments for even more precise control. Curves are best used as your skill level increases and you gain more experience with the program. A Quick Fix, for example, automatically adjusts your camera phone pictures for the best quality. Touch ups include red eye removal (just two clicks!) and Smart Eraser wrinkle remover (many people will love you for this one). Format includes intelligent crop and horizon straightening, and Effects allow you to create a black and white or sepia picture from your image. Text can also be added to any photo as well as included clip art and frames. For a dramatic composite picture, use the Panorama feature to easily stitch together a series of digital photos. Several sophisticated tools allow you to select parts of pictures for cutting and pasting so you can add a different background to a portrait or just create some fun effects. From the Editor you can create and print postcards, calendars, brochures, awards, albums and much more. Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006 Photo Story 3.0 provides the tools to create a slide show from images you have selected in Library. Thumbnails are arranged along a track at the bottom of the screen, and you can rearrange the sequence and add or delete pictures as needed. You can also add music and/or narration to any slide or series of slides. Help is available from a printed 176-page manual that includes sections on tips and tricks for digital photographers. The program also includes video tutorials and extensive on-line help. We found Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006 very effective in providing a comprehensive set of tools that will be useful for all levels of digital photographers. Note: Standard Edition $34.95 after $15 rebate, Suite PLUS Edition $99.95 after $30 rebate, includes video editor. |
