Friday, February 06, 2009

CoffeeShop Perfect Portrait PS/PSE Action!


UPDATE, Sept. 2011:  Please check out my updated Perfect Portrait action HERE!  This action below works fine, but I have made a newer version that I think is a bit improved.  :-)


If you are new to my blog, welcome!!! The CoffeeShop Blog is a one-woman-owned business (by me, Rita!) and I create all of the tutorials and freebies posted here. If you want to grab hundreds of my Photoshop/PSE actions (including exclusive sets not found here on my blog), Lightroom Presets, and professional digital designs (including all of my favorite holiday sets) in a single download AND help support my site please check out my CoffeeShop Download Pack. Thanks to you The CoffeeShop Blog is possible.


Click here to download the CoffeeShop Perfect Portrait PS/PSE Action!




This is my 100th post!!! I seriously never guessed I would become so blog "obsessed". ;-)  CoffeeShop was started on a lark one day last March to share Photoshop tips/actions with my sis who lives out of town. Ironically she hardly ever has the time to stop by, but now close to 1000 other people a day pop in! :-) This scientist turned photo-editor and blogger is humbled and thankful for every one of you.

So thank you so much for not only your generous donations and incredibly wonderful comments, but thank you for visiting here and thus making me use my creaky old dusty brain to create new things to post. And truth be told, I hardly miss the science at all (and when I do the boys and I just do a fun science experiment here at home and I don't have to worry about writing it up as most people know what happens when you put baking soda and vinegar in a homemade volcano!).

Here it is, the free CoffeeShop Perfect Portrait PS/PSE Action! This action combines CoffeeShop PowderRoom 2 with many other enhancing layers which make Perfect Portrait your one-stop portrait action. You should clone out any bad blemishes before starting, but once you do that just click on the action and adjust the level's adjustment layer to correct color/contrast and let it run. Once it is finished you fine-tune the layers to make your image "pop". You have to be familiar with layer masks (download the PSE CoffeeShop Layer Mask if you haven't already).

The best part of this action is that you are in control as you set the opacity of your brushes and layers. This action requires your input, and that is why your images will look more professional and hopefully stunning after using it. And this action saves you so much time. Just imagine doing all of those layers on your own!


The Vivid Color layer lets you saturate the color. Just use a low opacity soft white brush, select the layer mask, and paint on the image where you want supersaturated colors (like backgrounds). The Color Pop layer gives you a subtle color/contrast pop. Adjust the opacity of this layer to taste and use the layer mask to mask out skin if the effect is too much. Finally, the Urban Grit is my favorite "drastic" effect. It adds a high contrast gritty look, almost a bit HDR, and it works great for backgrounds. Like the Vivid Color layer, you use a low opacity soft white brush, select the layer mask, and paint on the image where you want the Urban Grit effect. Try it on brick wall backgrounds, it is amazing! The brighten layer gives a subtle brightness/contrast pop and it can be adjusted by tweaking the layer opacity.

You can turn on/off the vignette, adjust the layer opacity to taste, and even change the blending mode to multiply for a dramatic vignette. The Sharpen layer is set to be off, but if you want to use it, just turn on the eye icon and adjust opacity to taste. The Dodge/Burn layer allows you to lighten/brighten parts of the image without destroying the original. Use a low opacity soft white brush to lighten, a low opacity soft black brush to darken.

The retouching layers are from CoffeeShop PowderRoom 2. You might not know you can use the skin soften layer to soften other things. I sometimes use it on backgrounds (especially trees) as it gives them a nice muted soft effect. You can even use it over an entire image to soften everything.

The zipped file contains the .atn action file, 2 icon (thumbnail) files for PSE, brief instructions, and a sample image.

Click on the image above to download CoffeeShop Perfect Portrait, and if that doesn't work then click HERE!

Do you want to download thousands of professional CoffeeShop PSE/Photoshop actions (including exclusive ones not found anywhere for free), textures/overlays, scrapbooking papers, clip art/design elements, photo storyboards and frames, and Lightroom presets from this site in one convenient zipped file AND help support this one-woman blog?

Just click here for my CoffeeShop Mega Download Pack!

112 comments:

  1. Hi Rita, thank you for sharing! it looks wonderful! but when I click to download, it tells me that it's set to private...?

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  2. Oh hi Rita!! thanks again...I check your site daily because it is so great. So generous of you again to make an action!! I tried to download it but the download file is set to private. Just thought I would let you know.

    P.S. You do great work!!!

    thanks

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  3. Thanks, Rita!

    I can't download the file, however. It says that it's set to private. Any ideas? I'll just try again later, I guess.

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  4. it says that the profile is set to private when i try to download it.

    I can't wait!!
    :)

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  5. Looks great! The file is set to private however. Thanks much.

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  6. Yaaaay! Thanks so much. I've been looking forward to trying this.

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  7. YAY! Im the first comment! Thank you SOOO much! I cannot wait to use it. You are amazing and you rock! Have a great weekend!

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  8. hmmm, I must be a having a bad day because I don't see the tut and the link isn't working (says its set to private). I'll check back later and see if it's just me :)

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  9. Can't wait to play!! Thanks for all the wonderful actions-I LOVE THEM!!!
    Congrats on your 100th post as well!

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  10. Sorry, I tried downloading the link and it says its private....not sure what to do..just fyi!
    Thanks- J

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  11. When I click to download it tells me the file is set to private, even when I log in. Am I the only one having this issue?

    Can't wait to use this, you are awesome!

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  12. the link says it is set to private!

    So excited about this action!

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  13. Hi Rita! I am so excited to give this a try, I am loving the other actions I have downloaded, they have smoothed out my work flow tremendously! I just tried to download and it told me it was set to private.

    Thanks for sharing so generously with all of us!

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  14. The action file is marked as private for media fire?

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  15. This action looks great. Sadly the file site says it's private and can't be accessed.

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  16. Hi Rita...are you teasing me? LOL

    When I try to download it says that it's set to private.

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  17. I tried to download it, but I got an error message.

    "This file is currently set to private. If this problem persists or you need further assistance, contact support."

    This action looks amazing! Thank you in advance for sharing! I've been telling all of my friends about your fabulous actions.

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  18. The download is set to private..unless I am doing something wrong?

    Thanks so much, in advance, for another action. I LOVE your powderroom and use it on almost every single photo.

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  19. thank you so much for another wonderful action, Unfortunately it said "private" when I went to download??
    :)Leslie

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  20. First of all I love visiting your blog. You have done a fabulous job and thank you so much for sharing with me. I am an amateur and your blog has helped me so much!
    I love the way this astion looks on here, but when I click to download, it says that I don't have permission to. I am confused, what do I need to do to download this one. I haven't had any problems with any of the other files.
    Thanks for your time!

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  21. Hi Rita,

    I am unable to access your new portrait action :-( It seems the link is not set for public.

    Rich.

    (PS-I LOVE your blog, BTW!)

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  22. I've tried to download it, but the download site says that the file is set to private.

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  23. Thank you so much..i cant wait to try it out!!

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  24. OMG!! Wahoo #100 post !I am so lucky to be the first to congratulate you!! Rita you are amazing and so generous. Thank you for all that you do : )-lori

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  25. Man, this is awesome! You really are the coolest! Thanks for all these awesome actions. They are so easy and fun to play with. Thanks again.

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  26. That looks so cool! but the link says it's set to private and can't be downloaded... can't wait to try it when the link is working! you rock!

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  27. Love the look of your actions, but the file site shows them as private.

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  28. What a great action; can't wait to give it a try. Can't seem to download the file because Mediafire is giving the following message: "This file is currently set to private."

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  29. Hi Rita,

    I follow your blog and was excited to see the new Perfect Portrait Action, but when I attempt to download, I get a message stating that the file is marked as "Private" and not available for download... Is that on purpose???

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  30. I've been waiting for this! Your powder room is awesome and I can't thank you enough for continually being so generous!

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  31. I've been waiting for this! Your powder room is awesome and I can't thank you enough for continually being so generous!

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  32. I am having trouble downloading this action. I get a message stating that the file is "Private" and not available for download.

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  33. Acckkk!! Rita the file is set to private. Maybe I'm too soon, but I can't wait! It looks super.

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  34. I just tried to download this action but it keeps taking me directly to MediaFire website. That's fine if we need to have account with MediaFire but just wanted to let you know. Possibly I did something wrong...I'll keep trying.

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  35. Congrats on 100 posts! I'm so excited to try this action. Thank you so much for all you do. xoxo

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  36. I'm looking forward to this one... unfortunately, right now it tells me the link is private. But I'll wait patiently; this looks worth it! :-)

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  37. Thank you for all that you do.

    The Media Fire site gives the following error when trying to download Perfect Portrait.

    "This file is currently set to private. If this problem persists or you need further assistance, contact support.

    When a file is set to private by its owner only the owner of the file can access it. If you are the owner of the file please log into your account to access this file."


    Thank you again.

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  38. I've tried downloading this, but it says that the file is set to private.

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  39. Rita, Your file for downloading is set to private! Fix please!

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  40. Rita, I know I've said it before but I'm saying it again... you are a Godsend! I love your site and can't live without your PSE actions. You seem to be the only one who cares about us Elements users.
    Now one TINY complaint :)... MediaFire has this action set as private so desperate users like me can't access it right now.

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  41. I LOVE your actions and would be beside myself to have the Perfect Portrait action however, this is the error message I get when I click the link to download:

    " This file is currently set to private. If this problem persists or you need further assistance, contact support.

    When a file is set to private by its owner only the owner of the file can access it. If you are the owner of the file please log into your account to access this file."

    Please help! :0)
    Hugs,
    Tracy Marie

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  42. Thank-you so much & congrats on this being your 100th post!!!

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  43. Thanks so much for this - just wondering when it's going to be available for purchase or download as it says it's set to private? Thanks again!

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  44. I am super excited about this action, but it says that it is set to private, so I couldn't download it! Happy 100th post by the way!

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  45. Hey girl! I soooo love your blog! It is on my list of best and faves! I just went to download the new Portrait Action and the site says the download is set to private. Just wanted you to know.

    Hugs.. and thankyou for all you do!

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  46. Rita, I tried to download it and it says the file is set to private.

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  47. Thank you for all your wonderful free gifts. I love your actions! The new one sounds like it will be wonderful, but I just wanted to mention that the download link does not work. It says it is set to private, whatever that means. Just thought I would let you know before digifree catches it tomorrow and you get a thousand people telling you.

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  48. YES!!! I put a link in at 2peas. So, do I need the powder room 2? I have it, but will this cover everything? Peamail me!

    XOXOX

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  49. Huh, the link says it is set to private???

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  50. OH MY THIS IS AWESOME! THANKS!-but can't download-"set to private" :(

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  51. Hello Rita
    I love your actions they are fabulous! I tried downloading you perfect portrait and it says it is set to private.
    Thanks for the freebies!
    I ♥ them allot!

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  52. I can't wait to use this! It says that the file is private.. so I can't download it. I'll keep checking back!

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  53. This looks amazing Rita! I have been so looking forward to you releasing this one. It will be such a time saver. I tried to download but the file is set to private. Maybe I am just too quick?

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  54. I Love your actions, thank you for sharing them. This one says it's a private download though so I can't get access to it. :(

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  55. I tried to download the file, but it says it's set to private.

    I'm a recent fan and looking forward to trying this out - I have an acquaintance here that uses something similar and charges a whopping $450 for a portrait session. A little out of my price range :-)

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  56. Thank you Rita! This is going to be so helpful, you are awesome! :)

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  57. Fabulous! Thanks so much.

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  58. Thank you so much, Rita! You make it easy for soooo many of us :)

    WVButterfly

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  59. Wahoo!!!! It's up and available. Can't wait to start playing. Thanks so much for all you've hard work and sharing with this every growing community.

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  60. Thank you. Can't wait to try this.

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  61. You are brilliant...seriously. Thank you so much. I love this action! Thank you so much for taking the time to make these for us elements users.

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  62. Thank you Rita!! This is fabulous!

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  63. Thank you! Your blog post will be advertised on the DigiFree Digital Scrapbooking Freebie search engine today (look for timestamp: 06 Feb [LA 08:01pm, NY 11:01pm] - 07 Feb [UK 04:01am, OZ 03:01pm] ).

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  64. Thanks Rita, just returned from a Peter Pan production and took lots of pics. I can't wait to use your actions on them!

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  65. This is my first time commenting, but I just had to say THANK YOU! All of your actions are so awesome and I don't know how I lived without them before. They are easy to understand and very creative. You've got the best actions out there!

    Thank you again for taking the time to do this for us. I really appreciate it!

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  66. Thank you very much

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  67. Woohoo! Congrats on your 100th post! And I see you picked my suggestion: "Perfect Portrait" Very cool! I can't wait to use it. Thank you so much for all your generosity!!!

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  68. Thanks for sharing this fantastic action! I can't wait to use it!

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  69. Wow! This is going to take me a while to figure out, but I know I'm going to love it when I do - thanks!

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  70. Wonderful action! Thank you so much!

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  71. This looks FABULOUS!! I can't wait to give it a try! TSVM

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  72. Thanks so much for your action! I used Powder Room 2 on my kid's Christmas portrait, extracted them, put in a cool background. Had several people ask me where I took them! Can't wait to try this one!

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  73. Oh, Rita! A'm an admirer of your talent and generosity!!!
    Your actions are simply awesome!
    Miles of Smiles to you from Ukraine!!!

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  74. Can anyone suggest how I get round the error 'Layer via copy not available?' it stalls up the programme :0(

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  75. I think this might not work in PSE5 in XP... And I don't know how to work around that unfortunately.

    And thanks everyone, I hope you can use this action!

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  76. Rita, you have outdone yourself!!! I can't wait to play with this action! THANK YOU!!

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  77. Sigh - you are JUST so fantastic! Thank you!

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  78. Thank you so much for making these available! I have finally figured out how to install actions on PSE6 (on a Mac) ... I've been wanting to do this for a long time!

    Kim

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  79. Hi Rita,
    Great action - thank you so much for sharing.

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  80. Rita you are seriously the best!
    Does your donate section take paypal? I never have my cc handy, but I can link easily to paypal. I'd love to donate.

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  81. What wonderful actions you so kindly offer. I can't wait to put them to use. Thank you.

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  82. Wow! I feel like I've died and gone to Action heaven - you are talented and generous! Thx I'm so looking forward to exploring your blog.

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  83. Oh dear - mediafire says it's invalid...

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  84. Nevermind, worked in 4shared! :)

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  85. amazing! THANK YOU for sharing!

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  86. I am a newby and am so glad to have found you. Thank you so much! Is this the place to ask a question? When using this action my little fair skinned blond hair 2 yr old comes out kinda orange. Any suggestions how I adjust this?

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  87. Hi thank you so much for all of this fun stuff. It is awesome. I just had a question about the perfect portrait action. Sometimes when I run it the Urban grit layer, on the layer mask comes out weird. When i paint white on it the picture is at the top 1/4th of the mask. What is the deal. It doesn't do it everytime, just some of the time.

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  88. GRACIAS!!! THANK YOU SOOO MUCH FOR SHARING YOUR ACTIONS AND TEXTURES WITH US! =)
    I tried your action (I LOVE it) but it didn't quite came out like i expected, mainly because photoshop kept cancelling some of the actions because they were not available... is it because i have photoshop 7.0 and not cs3?

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  89. I use this action more than anything when editing my pics...
    Thanks

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  90. Can't wait to try this one! Thank you!!!

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  91. Great - can't wait to try it - many thanks!

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  92. This looks great. Thanks for sharing!

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  93. Hi Rita, thanks for your Action!
    I have a question, I can't get any of the layers to actually do anything? When I try to use the layers in the action, it doesn't do anything? I use a soft brush and it doesn't show anything on the picture. Any clues as to why?
    Thanks!

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  94. You need to click on the layer mask to select it, and use a black brush on a white layer mask or a white brush on a black layers mask. Make sure your brush is in normal blending mode!!!

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  95. Hi There!
    I love your perfect portrait action and have been using it a ton... all of a sudden I am able to get it to run, but for some reason I can't seem to get the layers mask to activate. Any tips?

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  96. You are amazing! Thank you so much for sharing! :)
    Melissa

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  97. Oh. My. GOSH! Perfect Portrait is the very first action I've ever tried. You may just convince me to use PSE! Thank you so much!

    Here's my "test"!
    http://magnoliasandsunshine.blogspot.com/2010/08/action.html

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  98. I've just used PP for the 1st time. I was on my lunch break, so I had to make it quick, not a lot of time to play with it as much as I plan to in the future. I. Love. IT!! WoW! I'm a working mom who absolutely loves photography, however, I don't get as much time to devote to the hobby as I would like. This helps tremendously. Thank You!
    I would love for you to see what I've done with it. Please feel free to critique...I can take it.
    Again, many thanks!

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  99. oops...my bad! Here's the link:
    http://4fabfranklins.blogspot.com/2011/04/sweet-shot-tuesday.html

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  100. This action is great :)

    I understand most of the layers however what exactly am I trying to do in the "Replace Color" layer?

    Also, could you explain, or point me towards a tutorial that explains the purpose behind the "blending modes" with layers?

    thanks!

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Thank you for taking the time to leave a message, I love reading them! All comments are personally moderated by me and I will post and answer them them as soon as possible.
Rita