It is not every day Adobe goes back and changes the de-mosaicing algorithms for previously supported cameras, but this time they've done it, and the first preliminary reports are in. DPreview's Amadou Diallo runs some tests with a couple of X-Pro1 raw files: 

"Capture One Pro 7 produces more crisp results than ACR with contrast and saturation defaults that more closely mimic the in-camera JPEG. Having said that, however, ACR 7.4 RC avoids the edge halos and even more obvious aliasing patterns that exist in the Capture One Pro 7 renderings of our real world and studio test scene. Overall, the ACR 7.4 RC files deliver more realistic, natural results in areas of organic low-contrast detail like the foliage in the street scene above and the fuzzy balls in the studio scene below." . . . read more

You should read 'faking it' as 'almost kinda make it look like', because some things cannot (yet) be replicated in software, be it the polarizing effect, or the golden hour.

"There are two official golden hours each day – the hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset. In both cases, the sun is very low in the sky and casts a golden light over the landscape. In this tutorial we’ll show you a quick way to recreate this golden glow on the computer should you have not been fortunate enough to capture it in-camera. . . . read more

The Dxo Film Pack is a plug-in that gives several 'film-like' renderings of your images, like negative or positive prints, black & white, cross processing etc.

Dxo Press Release

DxO FilmPack v3.2.3 now fully compatible with Adobe® Photoshop® Elements 11

DxO FilmPack v3.2.3 now integrates automatically with Adobe® Photoshop® Elements 11 to instantly and faithfully . . . read more

"For convenience and reliability, we highly recommend that you apply this update directly from within Photoshop. To do so, choose Help > Updates in Photoshop CS6 and apply all of the updates listed under Adobe Photoshop CS6 in the Adobe Application Manager. The Adobe Photoshop 13.0.4 update enables support for new HiDPI displays on the Macintosh platform for a dramatic improvement in image fidelity and resolution. This update applies to all languages of Adobe Photoshop CS6. To install the Photoshop 13.0.4 update: . . . read more

This piece of code is now almost 10 years old, and of no use to someone that wants the Adobe raw converter to work with his or hers latast raw  capable camera. According to Gizmodo, Adobe got tired of keeping the dedicated activation servers running to support legitimate installations of CS2 (and costing them money), so, instead, the company decided to just give it away for free. If you're really desperate, try your luck getting the swamped download link work for you. . . . read more

Its all there, from Gimp and Photoshop tutorials, to zoos and sunsets, and the odd abstract with oil and water trick:

"First you need a glass dish. Something about 5-7cm deep will suffice. Give it a good wash and dry with a lint free cloth as it’s incredible how much fluff the average teacloth will leave on the dish. This is something you may not realize until you start taking the photographs! . . . read more

Bugs Corrected in Lightroom 4.3:

The following bugs that were part the Lightroom 4 releases have been corrected. The team appreciates the very detailed feedback the community has provided on Lightroom 4 and we’re excited to correct a number of issues experienced by our customers. These issues have been FIXED:
Autolayout produces a Book with the correct amount of pages but without any images added. Please note that this only occurs when the filter is set to “Unused”. . . . read more

Press release by Adobe:

SAN JOSE, Calif. — December 11, 2012

Adobe Systems Incorporated

Adobe  today is revealing a major update to its Adobe® Creative Cloud™ offering.

During Create Now, an online event this morning, the company is announcing that Creative . . . read more

"December 6, 2012 — AKVIS announces the release of AKVIS Coloriage v.9.0. This cutting edge software  lets  colorizing black and white photos and replacing colors in color photos. It is the ideal solution for color correction. Version 9.0 improves the Eyedropper tool, adds new features, fixes bugs, adds compatibility with Windows 8 and Mac OS X 10.8. . . . read more

OnOne Software Press Release

PORTLAND, Ore., Dec. 3, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- onOne Software, Inc., a leading developer of innovative, time-saving solutions for professional, advanced amateur, and hobbyist photographers, announced the availability of Perfect Effects 4 Premium Edition and Perfect Effects 4 Free Edition. Both software programs offer a library of photographic effects and powerful tools for image enhancement and creative stylization. Each may be used as a standalone application, as an external editor for Apple Aperture, Adobe Lightroom, or as a Photoshop plug-in. . . . read more

Seriously, this has got to be one of the most comprehensive Photoshop for starters tutorial there is:

"When photographer Devon Mikale was in high school, he created this lengthy manual for his newspaper class to help others learn how to get started in Photoshop. The high school’s faculty loved it so much that they ended up purchasing it for re-distribution in future classes. Mikale has graciously allowed us to publish the guide here for free. . . . read more

"Adobe Press Release:

Adobe Announces HiDPI Support in Lightroom 4.3 and Camera Raw 7.3 Release Candidates

Adobe today announced the availability of Lightroom 4.3 and Camera Raw 7.3 release candidates on Adobe Labs. . . . read more

OnOne Software Press Release

Portland, OR - October 30, 2012
onOne Software Announces Availability of Perfect Photo Suite 7
New version of fully-integrated software suite offers photographers new and inspiring ways to develop stunning black and white photographs, enhance images with professional effects, improve portrait retouching and resize images, all in a powerful layered file workflow.

onOne Software, Inc., a leading developer of innovative, time-saving solutions for professional, advanced amateur and hobbyist photographers, today announced the availability of Perfect Photo Suite 7. Improved to give photographers even more ways to maximize their creativity and solve common problems in digital photography, Perfect Photo Suite 7 provides easy-to-use and powerful tools to develop stunning black and white photographs, enhance the look and feel of images with professionally-designed effects, beautifully retouch portraits, replace unwanted backgrounds, control depth-of-field after the shot has been taken, as well as resize and prepare images for print, in robust layered file workflow—in one affordable package. . . . read more

If the first reviews are a good indicator about the 'goes to 11' version of Photoshop Elements, we have a winner in our hands. Imaging Resource were the first ones ready with a review, and they're really thankful for adobe's efforts to rejuvenate the UI:  . . . read more

The main common new feature between those 2 apps is the vastly redesigned new user interface and a bunch of new filters/effects.

Adobe Press Release

Adobe Introduces All-New Photoshop Elements 11 and Premiere Elements 11 . . . read more

"DxO told us the name has a double meaning reflecting the changes the software can make to an image.

The first meaning of ViewPoint is the meaning of a photo. The second meaning is the photographer's position. . . . read more

Jeffrey Tranberry from Adobe explains the weirdness of Win XP support in the official Photoshop Blog:

"I’m pleased to announce that we’ll be providing official support for Windows XP, in addition to Windows 7, with Photoshop CS6.

We know that some of our Windows customers were concerned about Photoshop CS6 dropping Windows XP support similar to Lightroom 4. . . . read more

"Start by simply painting in a black lightning-shaped brush stroke. Then, by ingeniously selecting parts of your bolt, you’ll apply the Difference Clouds filter to randomize the edges, and an unusual Levels command setting to convert that

blobby line into a tendril of light. Then, with some carefully applied Blend modes, some Gradient masks, and a hint of brushed-in contact spots for eerie glow, you’ll finish up your truly believable lightning effect." . . . read more

And as always, the 'what's new' part is pretty much identical to the latest Lightroom release. No its NOT, we got the Canon 5D Mark III included here! Is that a pitch fork toting mob yelling 'what about us X-Pro1 users' on its way to San Jose? Anyway, both Adobe and Fujifilm have expressed commitment to X-Pro1 proper support in Lightroom, so, no worries. Maybe the delay is because of the overly complex sensor Fuji uses, or a bug that won't go away? Don't think of the white orbs thing though,  . . . read more

PSkiss is a Photoshop plugin with the look of a mobile application whose purpose in life is to Instagramize your photos. Oh, and Seventiesize them too. Interesting stuff for anyone willing to bring this stupid fad​ modern expression of post-retro art onto his desktop. . . . read more

Usually, for the avid photographer, the best free photo editing program turns out to be...Photoshop, or its photography oriented sibling, Lightroom. There may be many excellent free programs in various other fields, but we're not there yet when it comes to efficient and reliable photography applications. However, each year it gets a little bit better. WDC has prepared a rather extensive roundup of many free photo editiors:  . . . read more

Yes, recompose. Neatly done too, with seemingly minimal effort. I guess this will this will make it a lot more tempting for photographers from all walks of life to cheat in contests, something that's been happening all too often lately.

For years we had dodge and burn, mask this and selective that. Recently we got 'content aware fill' that too gets an extensive overhaul this time around, and soon with 'recompose' and 'refocus' in the pipeline, we'll be closer to the blurry

line between reality and virtuality than ever before.  There are more sneak peeks into the future of Photoshop photography at the Youtube Adobe Photoshop channel. . . . read more

If you're anything like me, you a. think of Valentine's day as a nuisance, and b. want to cheapskate through it as bloodless as possible.

Here's a frugal way out, compose and print something cheesily romantic for your loved one(s):  . . . read more

Because, 'There's no crime against humanity a spot brush can't fix.'  

  . . . read more

As usual, when something like this hits the spotlight, two things happen:

1. more images by the same photographer are found to be manipulated. 

2. There's the usual uproar by those involved in the industry. . . . read more

Tiffen dxf3 is a filter simulation suite that works as a standalone or as a Photoshop plugin application. It can, to various degrees of satisfaction, emulate almost every kind of filters;except of course for polarizers. . . . read more

"Here’s a tutorial on how to do non-automated HDR for real estate photography using Photoshop CS5. The first thing you’ll need is a sturdy tripod with a level. The closer you are to a leveled image, the less correction you’ll have to do later. . . . read more

I've got a 6th tip: Let's petition Apple to come out with a better, unrestricted iPad, like say, unlocked WiFi and ports, a real battery and a bigger model for those of us that think the current iPad looks like an oversized iPhone. Things like they enjoy over at the Android camp. . . . read more

Topaz Labs Press Release

"In this video taken straight from the laptop of our Senior Product Manager, Bryan O'Neil Hughes, get an early look at some of the things the Photoshop team is working on for Camera Raw." . . . read more