Matt Silverman, Creative Director of Bonfire Labs,particularly known as being a roto expert in addition to a motion graphics and visual effects artist. Several years ago, he took it upon himself to enlist some of the best users in the field to construct a set of timeless, concept-based, software-agnostic visual effects training videos.

The links for Series 2 (covering compositing, keying, tracking, paint, and rotoscoping presented by Ron Brinkmann, Stu Maschwitz, and Scott Stewart) are below; watch them while you can:

Masters of Visual Effects 2.1 – Compositing Concepts 1 from Matt Silverman on Vimeo.

Masters of Visual Effects 2.2 – Composting Concepts 2 from Matt Silverman on Vimeo.

Masters of Visual Effects 2.3 – Keying from Matt Silverman on Vimeo.

Masters of Visual Effects 2.4 – Tracking from Matt Silverman on Vimeo.

Masters of Visual Effects 2.5 – Paint from Matt Silverman on Vimeo.

Masters of Visual Effects 2.6 – Rotoscoping from Matt Silverman on Vimeo.

from VideoPro Coalition

Lighting Effects

The O Series

Super Cool Abstract Vectors in Illustrator and Photoshop

Really Cool Eclipse Effect in Photoshop

Awesome Digital Bokeh Effect in Photoshop

Advanced Glow Effects

View Full List [here]

Pen Tool:

Photoshop’s Pen Tool: The Comprehensive Guide

Become a Master of the Pen Tool in Under 30 Minutes

Making Selections with the Pen Tool

All-In-One Pen Tool Resource

A Different Pen Tool Technique

View Full List [here]

Skin:

Airbrushing – Natural Smooth Skin

Really Cool Digital Make Up in Photoshop in 10 Minutes

Smooth Skin

Ultimate Makeup

How to Smooth Skin

Remove Freckles

View Full List [here]

Found this over at hongkiat.com really good article about B&W Photography Check it out

photo Credit: Jana by LudovicMazet

Monochrome photographs are timeless, especially black and white photographs. They enhance emotional substance and have a disposition of making photos look more artistic.

They can be used on many different scenes as it’s not required to think about all the colors that should look good together and match the amount of light available. And for those who love to play with color, black and white photography doesn’t necessarily need to be boring as there are so many different shades to choose from….

Read the full Article [here]

I came across this amazing Poor mans solution to film scanning. This is my no means a perfect high Rez solution but film scanners are really expansive and this solution can be done at home at a fraction of the cost

What you need

• A digital SLR
• A piece of raised glass, such as a glass coffee table or a picture frame, set on top of books or boxes to raise it up.
• A piece of glossy photo paper without writing on the back. Generally off brands don’t have any writing on the back.
• An off camera flash or a very bright desk lamp.
• A tripod.
• Macro lens recommended but not required.
• Photoshop or another graphics editing package.

View the Full Articale By Adam Everett Miller at PhotoTuts [here]

An Amazing Tutorial From Artist Chris Zwar Taking a look at his workflow and creative process

As Chris himself points out, this isn’t a tutorial series in the sense in which the word ‘tutorial’ has been used too much lately. He doesn’t show the click-by-click steps that the viewer can follow without actually building any understanding. Rather, this is a series that aims to demonstrate and explore some important concepts in the context of a real-world project. I think that this gets back to the root of the word ‘tutorial’: it teaches.

Part 1 [here]

Part 2 [here]

Part 3 [here]