Happy July 4th!

As we head into July and peak vacation time, photo-taking will hit a new high. I've learned about some great deals on reasonably priced cameras and camcorders, so if you're in the market, check out the deals below. And, if you like to print your photos at home, I have some tips for you on printing great looking photos.

Photo Deals of the Month

Now is the time to make that graduation or summer photo book. Here are the top promos and freebies.

• FujiFilm's SeeHere photo service is offering 50% Off All Photo Books plus Free Standard Shipping with Promo Code 'july4' on July 1&2 ONLY.
  
  
• Kodak Gallery - FREE 5x7 autofil Photo Book! Thru July 20. And they're also offering 10 cent prints.
  
  
• Snapfish is also offering a free photo book: FREE 5x7 Custom Cover Book for New Customers!, Exp 7/31
  
  
• Got hundreds of old photos and slides fading away in your attic? Get your prints and 35mm slides scanned to DVD. ScanDigital is offer a 4th of July Special. 10% Off Total Order. Use Coupon Code: July4th thru July 31
  
  
• SmileBooks is offering 2 for 1 photo books! Order 2 books & enter Coupon Code Coupon code: 4JULY10 thru July 11.
  

If you sign up for SmileBooks photo books free newsletter, you'll get a coupon for a free 8x8 softcover photo book. Sign up here. It's free. And their software is also free to download.

How to Print Great Photos at Home

If you've tried to print your photos at home and they didn't come out as well as you expected, there are some actions you can take to improve them.

1. Do you have the right printer?

Most multi-purpose inkjet printers will print photos at drugstore quality, which means the colors will likely be off and overall they will be mediocre. A dedicated photo printer or near-dedicated photo printer is your best bet. A dedicated photo printer will usually print only 4x6 prints, sometimes 5x7, but quality will be much better than drugstore prints. A near-dedicated photo printer will print excellent photos and is aimed at serious amateur photographers. It is generally more more expensive and can print photos as large as 13x19 inches. Check out my printer suggestions here.

2. Experiment with your printer's features

• Try printing directly from your camera and from camera's memory card. This can make a difference and one may print better than the other.
• Also try your printer's auto fix feature. Your printer may automatically correct color, contrast, brightness and even red-eye. Be careful, though. While often this feature will improve photos sometimes it makes things worse.
• Take advantage of the chance to preview your photos before printing. You can either use the preview screen or print an index sheet of all your photos. Often times you can edit your photos from the preview screen. Usually these features are basic, like cropping, removing red-eye and adjusting the contrast.

3. What you see on screen may not be what prints

There are variations in the color calibration of computer monitors as well as preview screens on printers, so chances are what you see on either screen may not be exactly what prints. So if the photo is important, you may want to print a test print before making any adjustments.

4. Edit photos with dedicated image editing software

You'll get much better control, many more options and sophisticated editing and enhancement tools by using a dedicated image editing program like Photoshop Elements or Corel Paint Shop Pro. You can print your photos directly from these programs (after uploading your photos to your computer). Be sure to edit COPIES. Always preserve your originals in case you mess up.

5. Use the right photo paper

If you use low-budget paper, your prints won't last as long and the colors and quality of your photos may not be what you expect. It is generally recommended that you use the same brand of photo paper as your printer. If you find a great deal on Canon paper but you have an HP printer, it may work out for you, as both are quality photo papers. However, you may want to print some samples before you stock up on a brand other than that of your printer.

Digital Cameras & Software Sales

Hot Deals: Check out the Great Savings and Offers at the KODAK Store. Go to Kodak Amazon: Get a free accessory when you buy a Flip SlideHD Instant savings on select popular Canon PowerShot cameras Buy a ContourHD Wearable Camcorder, Get a $50 Amazon.com Gift Card Up to $200 Instant Savings on Canon Camcorders Thru July 10, get instant savings--from $25 to $130--on some of Canon's most popular lenses for digital SLR's Go to Amazon Best selling Digital Cameras Return to top Software Sales Corel Corel makes some great software. I use Corel Paint Shop Pro for for editing. It's very easy to use, with great results. COREL PROMOS: Get Free Ground Shipping on orders $49+ until Dec 31 • Save up to 50% on Corel's award winning software line-up. Plus free gift, 25GB of Online storage by Storegate ($47.99 Value). • Save $20 on Corel VideoStudio Pro X4 ULTIMATE Was $99.99, now $79.99. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate. • Save $20 on PaintShop Pro X4. Only $59.99. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate • 50% off of Corel VideoStudio Pro X4 Was $99.99, now $49.99. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate. • Save $50 on Corel Photo & Video Bundle X4 Ultimate. Only $99.99. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate •Save $20 on PaintShop Pro X4 ULTIMATE. Only $79.99. Includes over $250 in free extras. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate • Save $30 on the New Corel PDF Fusion. All-in-one PDF creator. View more than 100 file types. Only $39.99. Limited Time Only • Save $100 on CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X5. Now Only $399. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate • Save $70 on Corel Painter 12. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate. • Save $20 on the new version of WinDVD Pro 11. Only $59.99. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate. The worlds leader in playback software • Save $140 on CorelDRAW Premium Suite X5. Premium design software Only $559. Plus Free Gift 25GB of online storage with storegate   Return to top

Return to top

Have a fun July 4th Weekend!

Valerie
www.digitalphotos101.com
How to get the best from your digital camera

To access prior newsletters: Click on this link.