Accessory Genie Twitter Giveaway Comes to a Close

Yesterday marked the end of the Twitter Giveaway for the new FlexSmart X2 Bluetooth FM Transmitter.

The lucky winner of the giveaway is @saraminda. Congratulations on winning the new FlexSmart X2!!!

The contest was a success and we'll be hosting similar giveaways in the future. We'd really like to know what you think the next big giveaway should be??

Please go to: http://www.accessorygenie.com and let us know what gadget or electronic device you'd like to see given away in the next contest.

Win a New FlexSmart X2 Bluetooth FM Transmitter!!

That's right! You can win a FREE FlexSmart X2 Bluetooth FM Transmitter for iPhone and iPod and all you have to do is follow us on twitter and tweet one little message. Please check out all the rules below.

- Must be 18 or older to enter.
- Contest open to US residents only.
- Must be following @accessorygenie on twitter at www.twitter.com/accessorygenie
- Must send out this tweet EXACTLY as it appears.
- The winner is selected at random and will be announced and notified on Monday, August 25, 2010 via twitter.
- Tweeting the message multiple times does not increase your odds of winning, but it is not against the rules.
Here's the tweet you need to send out in order to enter the contest:
Win a new FlexSmart X2 Bluetooth FM Transmitter for iPhone & iPod from @AccessoryGenie Please RT! info at http://bit.ly/cUoQEi

Good luck and tell all your friends!
Click here to check out the FlexSmart X2 on our site!
Fine print stuff.

Contest open to US residents only. Must be 18 or over to enter. Contest is void where prohibited by law. Winner will be announced August 25, 2010. You must be following @accessorygenie on twitter and the message must be tweeted exactly as it appears above. No exceptions. We cover the shipping charge, winner does not have to pay anything out of pocket.

Why Neoprene Cases are a Good Choice for Protecting Your iPad

At Accessory Genie, we are constantly trying to stay current to meet the demands of our electronically-savvy customers. As soon as Apple announced its first tablet computer -- the iPad -- we ordered our own and then began scouring our sources for the accessories we thought you would need. After looking at countless options, we chose a line of neoprene cases that we think maximize protection, sleek appearance and function. Why neoprene? It fixes the biggest problem we encountered when playing with our new iPad: the slip factor.

We poured over the first reviews of the iPad itself and discovered something interesting. One of the biggest complaints about the device was its combination of thin and slippery. It might look snazzy, but it has a way of escaping people's grasps. It's far too easy to damage. Just handing it from employee to employee, we were handling it like a newborn baby. So, we went on the hunt for accessories to help rectify the problem.

We checked out several hard cases that would have fixed the slipping, but they also made the iPad twice as thick if not more. Part of the allure--at least to our techies--is the slender design. Adding a case twice the size of the actual device makes for a clunky final product, thereby defeating the whole purpose. Another hard-case concern was how it would handle any impact. It didn't seem like it would absorb any kind of impact, even if we just set the iPad down too hard on the table. With those potential issues in mind, we abandoned the hard case for awhile and went in search of something different. That's when we found neoprene cases.

The neoprene combines impact absorption and protection, and still allows the iPad to be as thin as possible. Neoprene is, essentially, synthetic rubber. The products we chose have several layers of thread, which add to their ability to protect against dents and absorb bumps. It's also scratch-proof, weather resistant and even stain resistant. Being that several of us are horribly accident-prone, we need all the help we can get.

Between the classic black option and two reversible bright blue and pink selections, there is something for everyone's sensibility. In case you need a few more options, one of our products has elastic straps inside to hold in the iPad itself; this means you can use your iPad without taking it out of the case. Now that you have the results of our slightly clumsy staff's comprehensive research, hopefully you can avoid the pitfalls and dangers of handling and protecting your iPad.

Tutorial! Adding A Screenshot To A Phone

Alright, so today we're going to be adding a screenshot to this sexy HTC Incredible. The Incredible is wearing a really awesome silicone case which you can check out right here.

Grab your image, or go shoot one. If you missed my first tutorial on how to shoot product on white with a reflection you can check that out right here. Open up the screenshot you want to use and place it into your document over the layer with the phone.

You'll want to lower the opacity on the screenshot layer so you can see where the corners of the phone's screen are.

Then go Edit>Transform>Distort.

Now drag each of the corners of the screenshot to meet the corners of the phone's screen. Hit enter when you're done to commit the changes.

You can bring the opacity back to 100%. Now, you could just leave it and call it a day, but to me it looks really fake, too fake. I like having a small hint of realism in my product work. So for the next step you'll have to set the screenshot layer to a blending mode. If you've never messed with blending modes, you should. They're a lot of fun and they can make your life a whole lot easier. I'm not really sure what each does technically, I typically just scroll through them all until I find the best looking one. I believe I opted for Overlay in this instance, but I do use Screen a lot too.

You can flatten your image and you're all done! It's a quick little thing that can add a whole lot to your product shots. Remember to check out the case I used and for you Android people out there, use code SOCIAL10 at checkout for 10% off the case! Not too shabby!

*If you know of any other cool ways of doing this, we'd love to hear them! Leave us a comment! And if you use this tutorial, We'd LOVE to see what you make!

http://www.accessorygenie.com/
http://www.twitter.com/accessorygenie
http://www.flickr.com/accessorygenie

SLR Camera Protection

What are they?

There are different kinds of protection for SLR cameras. The main two are bags and cases. They each serve their different purposes for different photographers.

A camera bag has at least one main pocket, sometimes having multiple compartments, for storage of lenses and a flash or something. Most bags also have outside pockets. These are to keep your extra batteries, lens caps, remotes, filters and other things that you do not necessarily use all of the time, but are good to have with you.

On the other hand, cases are more along the lines of one camera and one lens protection. Some of them have a pocket, but usually they are simply just placed around the camera. The one that I used to have you simply laced the elastic band around the lens, and slid the camera in. It was actually quite nice to have because the case protected it, but it was also attached to the camera, so I never had to worry about losing it.

Which one works for whom?

First I will discuss camera bags. If you are a beginning photographer who is looking to become more involved in photography, or if you are already intensely involved in photography, I would probably recommend a bag. The reason for this is that you may want to take a step up as far as more lenses and accessories. Bags are also good for when you are traveling. The reason being that if you go somewhere, you can put all of your charges, and memory cards and such into one bag and not have to worry about keeping track of everything. Bags are the best thing for beginners looking to further their interest and immersion in photography. However, if you can I would also recommend that when you first start, you get a case.

The reason cases are good is that they keep your camera in great shape. There is no room for movement, and it is perfect for beginners. Even though camera cases are not that practical for those of us with multiple lenses, and those of us with many cards and filters and batteries, they make a great extra protection to have. For example, if I am going somewhere where I only need one lens, I take my case, because it holds my camera and keeps it safe and still fits around my neck. Cases are just simple and easy fixes to make sure that your camera remains safe, no matter where you are.

Which one to buy?

As far as bags go, I would recommend one with, at the very least, a main pocket and one side pocket. I would say that that is the minimum criteria for any bag. However, as you start growing in the size and number of lenses, you will want to get a bag with a little more space. I personally would recommend a backpack. They are easier to carry, and hold up very nicely. If you are a beginning photographer with one lens and a couple accessories there is no need for a huge backpack yet. You can last with a simple shoulder strap bag. However, for the amateur or pro photographers, it is almost vital to get a backpack, or something along those lines. There are plenty of shoulder strap bags that would work for pro photographers, and some of them even have more space than the backpacks. But, for me I like to have the weight of my whole camera bag on both shoulders, rather than just one.

For cases, I would recommend a neoprene camera case. The reason is that it prevents scratches without adding much weight to the camera. Also, I would recommend getting one with at least something that can attach to your camera. There is nothing worse than buying a case and losing it because you had to take it off your camera quickly and snap a picture. The good thing about having the case attached to your camera is that you do not lose it, and it usually helps the camera slide in easier.

REMEMBER, whether getting a camera case or a camera bag, or any of the other things that can be used to protect your camera, higher price does not mean better quality. Make sure you find something inside your price range, and I am sure that you can find something that is inexpensive and still works perfectly.

TRANS4M

Who?

Accessory Genie is proud to carry the Accessory Power line of products. Accessory Power, the manufacturer of the TRANS4M, is a Professional Quality Battery, Charger and Power Adapter manufacturer who brings the top of the line replacements to consumers at the lowest prices. With the latest and greatest technology from the Silicon Valley, Accessory Power continues to supply high quality products.

What?

The TRANS4M is an amazing device charger. It supplies AC, DC, AA and 9V charging capabilities for your smartphone and other devices. Whether you are at home, in the car, or on the move, the TRANS4M can charge your USB devices. It supplies a single USB device with 1.0 amp during a charge. However, if you are charging two devices at once, using the AC or DC chargers, then it only supplies .5 amp.

Why?

If you are a traveler, camper, college kid, business person, BlackBerry addict, Gamer, or anyone else that uses USB devices, this product is great. It can act as an emergency charger, and provide you with a boost of power when you need it most. It allows you to charge your devices anywhere. The wall and car charging capabilities make it useful, but the AA and 9V battery charging capabilities are what make it truly spectacular. According to Accessory Genie, one of the sellers of the TRANS4M, it is the last device charger you will ever need.

EXTRA EXTRA

When purchasing the TRANS4M you get the main three types of USB wires; MicroUSB, MiniUSB, and iPod/iPhone. It is not only a great product but at a great price. If you are a person who is on the go a lot, I would definitely recommend this product.

This is an article written by Jackson Kaplan. If you have any questions about other Devices please email me and I will gladly help you out. Jacksondkaplan@gmail.com

Tutorial! Part 2! Post production on the Battery Grip

Welcome to part two of my super exciting product photography tutorial!  Today I’ll cover some ways I edit my images once I shoot and upload them. My last tutorial covered set up and lighting the shot, which I got a pretty positive response to, thanks for that! Check out what flickr user kuwait zaizafoon made using the tutorial!

I’ll be teaching you post production using the same image of the battery grip from last week. The first thing I do after I open my image is to remove any dust or specs that I either forgot to try to take off before I shot, or that I didn’t notice while shooting. It’s a good habit to do that before you shoot so you save time in post, but I always like to jump right in. Plus, I have something to show you! Zoom in real close and grab your healing brush tool, whose icon is a bandage.

You’ll have to find a somewhat clean area that matches the same texture as where you’re going to clean up and then alt+click that area. I tend to use small brushes for things like this. Alt+click will set the area you are going to sample from. Then you just click on any white specs and Photoshop does it magic.

Perhaps you noticed that this grip is supposed to be black, but there is a reddish tint over the image. This comes from shooting on the wrong white balance. Auto white balance rarely works for me, and I’m too lazy to set a custom one because it’s a super easy fix in Photoshop and bad habits are hard to break. To make those blacks black all you have to do is create a hue/Saturation adjustment layer and drag the saturation down to zero. I use adjustment layers instead of actual image adjustment because they are non-destructive, which means you can edit them later with no harm to the actual pixels of the image. If your product has color in it, you’ll need to erase the Hue/Sat mask where that color is so that it comes through, as I did with the red sensor and gold pins on the grip. Now it’s starting to look a lot better.

If you look really close and at the right angle, you’ll be able to see that our image isn’t on pure white, it’s almost there but not quite. Another easy fix, add an adjustment layer of levels and push the white slider back a little until the white is pure. You can use the eyedropper tool to confirm. If your product starts to become washed out, just mask of the product so only the white is affected.

Last little adjustment is to make those dark areas just a tad darker so the whole pops. There is a bunch of ways of doing this; I tend to either use curves or selective color. We’ll use selective color here, make another adjustment layer for selective color and choose neutrals from the drop down. Then raise the blacks until you’re happy with it. I’d try not to go overboard with it though. It’ll hurt the overall look if the darks are too dark.

There are tons of sharpening techniques out there, and some of them are pretty in depth, but I try to keep it simple. Sharpening should always be the last thing you do because pixels change after the image gets resized. Resize the image to whatever you like and click Filter > Sharpen > Smart Sharpen. For an image around 800 pixels high I would use 100% for the amount and 0.3 for the radius.

And that’s it! If you use this tutorial and come out with something awesome send it my way! Thanks.
Oh, and if you'd like you purchase this awesome battery grip, you can use code SOCIAL10 for 10% off!