Barry Beckham

Patrick Sorry Patrick, but I found the images far too dark to be enjoyable and they are so easy to fix (if you have Photoshop) using Image > Adjustments > Shadow and Highlights. I did a screen grab of your first image and it came up fine in seconds. I also didn't find the first piece of music very appropriate to the show. It was too futuristic and the images didn’t keep pace with it. It felt to me that the images should have been moving along at a faster pace given that music and with a faster transition. The second part was much better, the misty appearance captured some mood and the music then worked in harmony with it. Too be honest it was like two separate slide shows. However, the quality of the second batch of images could also do with some manipulation. They need to be adjusted with levels, while retaining the misty charm. Again, this is not difficult to do and it would lift the appeal of your sequence considerably. As it is, it has limited appeal

Lin It's a good job that slide shopped when it did. That Wolf was about to step into my study. Phew !

Lin Thanks for the explanation

Lin Why would you want to use an effect that only shows a fraction of the screen, is there a practical use you had in mind.?

Conflow You sound a little tetchy I misunderstood you a little, I thought you were saying that buyers from outside the UE pay VAT on UK goods. However, we have bought stuff on credit card from the USA and can't recall paying VAT. It was a couple of years ago now and perhaps things have tightened up. It would make sense because the world is becoming a global market. Ken There is an irational fear about the internet as you know and people will phone us to make an order for a DVD. We have to write down the card number and all the details. We are then trusted to shred that information when is has gone through our machine, but how careful are other companies where employees are just looking for an easy life. If they ordered from us on line their details are all encrypted and we cannot see them in our shop or in worldpay.

You don't pay VAT if you buy from outside the EU People from the USA, Australia etc do not pay VAT to us on their purchases Only EU contries

Brian I supply PTE5 on a CD for those who like it that way. I also include an installable product key on the disk as supplied to me by Igor. There is no need for an internet connection at all for those who do not have one, or those who are nervous about buying over the net. It spreads PTE wider and we all benefit. People like to buy the software on CD at demos when they see examples of how easy it is to get a show made. I have never understood this fear of buying on the internet though. People hand the cards to a waitress in a cafe and they disappear with it, far safer on line and the fear is caused by the usual media rubbish and scare mongering.

They just need someone to download the new PTE file for them and supply it on a USB pen or CD, Then install it in the usual way and the existing product key will be accepted. Alternatively they can call us and we can usually find a way to do it. With a small charge for the disk and postage they can always get their upgrade. We have a contact page on our site that is always fully up to date with phone numbers.

I downloaded and played the video and had to use some obscure player on my PC to do so, the resulting image on screen was probaly only 3in by 3in. Is that the size I should be seeing or will I get a bigger image with something like quicktime

Charles VAT on PTE is just over a a fiver, you have been trying so long to buy PTE, you could have had it safe on a CD by now The effort you are putting in is not worth it to save a fiver. In any case PTE is worth 3 times what it costs Order it here and it will be in the mail this afternoon http://www.beckhamdigital.co.uk/digitalav/pte/pte.htm

The Photo Album is a great way to present odd sized images and on the page below there are two demos. One animated and one static. http://www.beckhamdigital.co.uk/digitalav/...m?idCategory=84

Peter I think you have done a pretty good job here and I know a lot of work and research has been put into it. I do agree with others that the blue border is competing somewhat with your images, tone that down to a dark charcoal grey and take a little of the texture depth off too. I thought your commentary style, delivery and the sound quality of it was just about perfect for this style of sequence, as was the music nicely in the background. I liked to be able to see both the images as I found myself looking from one to the other for comparison. This sequence IMHO is also one of those that doesn't really need, the backgound at all really. Its one that needs all the space you can use so we get a good view of both the old and new image. It is one of those sequences that is perfect for a 1280*1024 monitor. Its a great idea well executed.

Dave Seeing as there has been comment of late about lack of comment, here goes. I think your show is aimed mainly at family and friends and particulalry those who took part in the trip, but it has a wider appeal too. The picture quality was good and that held my attention and the presentation worked well with the outline. The inclusion of the map and route was a must and a good choice. Those of us outside of the States generally have a fascination with the USA, but much of it when you get out of the cities is very much like the UK. The music you chose worked well for me and the animation was slow and measured, just about right in my view. I thought you could have made a bit more of that beautiful Harley motorcycle and adding some creative photography into your travelogue. It would not have done it any harm and may have given more impact. Judges in the old days would have said. Good record photography, meaning everything was very competantly handled, but maybe lacking in vision a bit. However, with a travelogue there is not much esle you could do, the people have to feature in it. I agree with one comment about keeping your portraits off to one side rather than central in the frame, but as travelogues go, I sat through this and enjoyed it. The only thing I would try, if I were doing the same thing, would be to try an add some creativity to the images, so that the sequence does have a greater appeal outside of family, friends and us enthusiasts. Keep up the good work I say

Ken Cox has hit the nail on the head. Dammed if you do and dammed if you don't. If you place a slide show onto the forum it implies to me that comments are welcome and invited, if not, don't post it ! There is no point in one person making a comment and because they made a valid point no-one else does. How it that going to help anyone at all. If one person says your panned images go on too long, you can shrug and say, well that's just one persons opinion. If 6 people say the same then perhaps it's time to take a little more notice. You can't have your work appraised (which is good) without some disappointment at times. If you can't live with that, don't post. I am not a lover of this clinical way of delivering comment, but as long as your are constructive and not rude in your views, then the comments will be welcome. None of us like our masterpiece to miss the mark, but it happenes to us all from time to time, no matter what level.

Open PTE5 and it will probably load up your last show automatically. Go to the menu bar and select saveas to save your project file and then create slide showas from the same menu. Choose your own location to save it

It sounds like you have saved the slide show to the winsoft folders by default the first time and now you are over writing that file in the same place. Go to C>Program Files>wnsoft picturesToExe>look in folder 5.1 and it will probably be there. Next time save it to a more convenient place. Install PTE5 on your other PC the same way as you did the first one.

Xaver Because comments help you to learn and improve. You don't have take any notice of what people say if you don't want to, but after a while when many people say the same thing, it can help to point you in the right direction. That is the basis of Camera clubs in the UK and whatever you feel about photographic competitions or AV competitions, they work. Human beings are competitive, even those who say they only enter a competition to take part. The competitive spirit drives us to suceed, learn and get better at what we do. You don't have to ask for comments at all, but if it helps those who are unsure whether they should or shouldn't comment, then why not

Xaver No, it's not fishing for compliments. When we are doing creative work, wheather that is creating images in Photoshop or slide shows there is an invisible mist that comes down and dulls our sences. Its not unique to digital and those of us who worked in the darkroom suffered it too. This invisible mist prevents us from seeing the most obvious mistakes sometimes and it often needs a fresh eye to do that. Even someone who does not have any skills at all in how to put together an AV has an opinion and it will be valid. There is a difference between right and wrong and personal preference so when the author does receive a comment on their slide show its up to them to decide if the person making the comment has a point. We don't have to react to the comment if we feel it is wrong, but often someone unconnected with our sequence will spot something useful. Comment from others, no matter what your skill level is useful as long as it is constructive and said for the right reasons.

Yes, we are a bit more expensive, unfortunately we must charge VAT or the UK taxman gets cross. We also provide the software on CD by post which does cost more than a download. Our CD does include full slide shows, demos slide shows and videos on the disk and many people like to have a disk rather than a download. I am sure the PTE server is OK, I can't see Igor allowing it to be not accessable for this amount of time. Try again

PTE will not work in a Mac, but that option is being worked on as we speak. I suspect it will be some time before that happens. In the meantime, you could buy a PC

Get PTE5 on CD here http://www.beckhamdigital.co.uk/digitalav/pte/pte.htm

Try a search for a conversion program on the net, if you don't already have one you can try

I think this sequence has quite a lot going for it, particularly if you like history and the snippits of information added to the sequence. I think the information needs to remain on screen long enough for viewers to read it, but then the images and the show would grind to a stop. Using different images and transparent text you could have 3-4 background shots changing while we read the informtion or better still add the info as a commentary. I agree that some that the images need a little more impact and when you start your show with an image, it has to be a good one. That first image isn't sharp and you know what they say about first impressions? I thought the music worked well, but there are probably better alternatives out there. Again it depends on whether this was aimed for those interested in the Bike trip or American history. The sequence for me was not the bike trip at all, but the history, which really comes back to the question someone alse asked. Who was this made for and for what purpose. It seems to try and sit between the two and concentrating more on the history of the soldiers and Indians was more appealing to me. However, that could be because I am in the UK and this type of history is all new to me. Those who live in the USA, may not be so interested in the history angle.

I can't believe how much of a pain this has been with AVG and I am glad its resolved. I wonder what AVG will pick up next time. First it was PTE files, then Multi Media Builder menus. I uninstalled AVG and went for another free virus protection that is said to have beaten AVG in tests. Anyone interested try Avast, its working great for me. It doesn't do an automatic scan, but I am not sure that is essential as it catches everything when it comes in and automatic scans can be a pain. Better to set one going when you don't need the PC for an hour. http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html

I don't think this should come as much of a surprise to anyone. I would suspect that most people visiting this site see the regular members as experts and they will not feel they have the knowledge, skill or experience to be able to make a construtive comment on the work and they are more likely to say nothing. I suspect also that some senior members see some slide shows where finding something positive to say before offering advice is difficult. What do you do, tell a white lie, be honest and perhaps offend, or say nothing. Well, we know what generally happens. If we want comments on our images in a camera club we invite an expert judge. (well that's the theory) What is different here?