Flight From Callahan County

 As an amature photographer interested in composites and image stylization, I love the use of machine learning/artificial intelligence now being incorporated in editing software. It speeds the workflow tremendously, but some features still need a little work. One of those is sky replacement. The software I use now does a good job of recognizing tree branches, leaves and large buildings sticking above the horizon. However, when it comes to automatically masking thin metal framework or structures like windmills extending into the middle or top area of the image, the software still needs more time in the classroom. The image below is a good example. Both ON1 Photo RAW 2022.1 and Skylum Luminar Neo Early Access masked the trees successfully, however they badly blew proper recognition of the blades and tower of the wind turbine, requiring a significant amount of time to correct. A second area of AI/ML problems is replacement of utility lines. Skylum Luminar Neo -- now with a limited-fea...

 Version 12.0.1 (Monterey) of the macOS provides the infrastructure for many of the powerful features available in the newest version of Pixelmator Pro. To use some of them, you don't have to be running Pixelmator Pro. They can be accessed from Finder utilizing macOS Shortcuts. One of my Pixelmator favorites is Remove Background with Quick Actions in Finder. Here's a free image taken by photographer Alessia Chinazzo and made available on Unsplash. To remove the background using the magic of Pixelmator Pro, in Finder navigate to the folder with the photo and select it. Right-click and scroll down to Quick Actions, then Left-click on Remove Background.  The machine learning tool in Pixelmator Pro begins working its magic. The time this operation takes depends on the speed of your system and the size and complexity of the photo selected. On my iMac, removal of the background of this JPEG took just a few seconds. And there it is -- a transparent image of the subject with the backg...

 I have just discovered an image app that may completely replace and streamline my photo editing workflow. It's Pixelmator Pro 2.3 Abracadabra , just released earlier this week. Pixelmator's graphic, introducing the latest version of this Mac-only image editing app. Making the transition to a Mac from Windows a few years ago, I stuck with the traditional multi-platform image editing software when I moved to my new system. I found alternatives to Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom, but they were all available for Windows, too. I saw an occasional reference to Pixelmator, but paid little attention because it was Mac only. Little attention until I recently watched a YouTube video  by Austin photographer Jim Nix. I purchased Pixelmator Pro a few days ago at a Black Friday sale price of about $16 USD. Normally the price is $39.99 USD, still a bargain for this powerful application. Layers-based Pixelmator Pro does all that most amateur photographers need and most of what all enthusiast a...