Hi folks,

A short while ago I created a new section on this site called User Tips. I’ve seen some great tips and advice flowing through the Forums, but the problem is that most readers don’t go through the entire Forum, and so may be missing some real gems. So I created User Tips as a place for readers like you to post detailed, advanced tips and techniques that you wanted to share.

Thanks to everyone who entered the twitter contest. By tweeting a simple phrase, you were automatically entered into the contest, and of all the entrants I randomly selected four winners for the $50 “gift certificate” for eBooks on ApertureExpert.com. Join me in congratulating the four winners!

I realized that other than the few samples in the product description itself, I haven’t shared any other examples of the possible results from my ApertureExpert’s PresetPack #1 Looks adjustment preset pack. On a photo walk today that I led as part of another job I’m doing in Ottawa, I made a few photos that I applied the preset “Desaturated Film Look” to. Here’s one sample; click it to see a few more.

Reader @afringedweller just pointed out this MacNN article on HumanSoftware’s HSC Edit&

I’m running my first Twitter contest, and the prizes are FOUR $50 coupon-codes for the ApertureExpert store! Simply copy and paste the following text into a new tweet (don’t just retweet it… you gotta do a new one!) and on July 4th I’ll randomly select FOUR winners from all who’ve tweeted!

It’s finally arrived! Expanded from 10 tips to 15, this eBook has grown with Aperture. Every chapter has been revised to accommodate changes in Aperture 3, and a bunch of new ones have been added to help you take advantage of Aperture’s newest features.

Read all about it, check out the chapter overview, and of course purchase it here!

A user recently asked, “I am realizing that Referenced images are the way to go for my RAW wedding workflow. I don’t know much about Vault. Is this something I use even if my images are Referenced or is this just for Managed images?”. Great question. The Vault can be very useful, but as most users already know, if you’re working referenced, then the Vault doesn’t back up your photos. So what good is it? Learn all about Vaults, and what they do and don’t do in this post.

The title says it all… proper tethering support is finally here! No more Hot Folder actions, no more dropped connections (well at least that’s the idea), no more rubbish Canon software, no more crashed Canon mid-shoot. It’s fast and it works. I’ve just tested this with both the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III and the 5D Mark II, and it’s beautiful. Here we go.

A recent post in the forums asked a very specific workflow question, but I’m sure many others have or will come across similar workflow needs, so I wanted to respond to the question as a tip.

You can read the complete question here, however the simplified need is to:

1. Import only the best photos
2. On import, label them sequentially with a custom name
3. Export the photos, keeping the custom name intact

1. Import Options

You have basically two choices when you import—to import all, or to import some. And there are several tools to help you import just the ones you need.

The first is easy, of course. To import all, it’s as simple as inserting a memory card into the reader, selecting (or creating) a Project to import them to, and clicking the Import Checked button.

However he’s asked about importing selects. That means there’s two stages to importing; viewing the photos to choose which ones are worth importing, then selecting only those images for import. Aperture 3 added some really great features to the Import window to facilitate this, so let’s take a look at those.

I’ve just created a new “User Tips” section to this site (look for it in the toolbar), where readers like you can post your invaluable Aperture tips for the community to enjoy. Head on over and check it out, and be the first to post!

My first suggestion for a new topic would be on migrating from iPhoto… I know a lot of users out there have done it, and I haven’t! So let’s hear what you went through, what went right and wrong, and help out some newbies in their migration.

Register now for this limited seating event… get your Aperture 3 questions answered and meet fellow Aperture users at the “What’s New in Aperture 3” seminar on Wednesday, June 09 from 6:00 PM—9:00 PM at the 

Understanding Previews and Thumbnails in Aperture can greatly enhance your experience. This is one of those “the more you know…” topics. Do you need to know this? No… Aperture is designed so that you don’t have to think about it. But if you do know it, then your overall understanding of Aperture will go up several levels.

Lately I’ve found that I’m spending more time responding to questions in the forums than I am to writing posts in “Tips & Tricks”—which in itself is fine, except that unless you’re digging through the forums (which I’d imagine you’re not unless you posted a question there), it looks largely like I’m ignoring the site—which isn’t good!