Linda Baldwin shows off her first attempt at masking a background with this new, highly-rated tool. "Built as a plug-in to Adobe Photoshop, Fluid Mask is the new next-generation cut-out tool. Behind the product is breakthrough technology that mimics the way the eye, optic-nerve and brain perform visual processing. It offers an intuitive, accurate and fast approach to cut outs." See what Linda did!

Mike Campos points to the new release from Nikon. Ron Wrucke suggests everyone would benefit from seeing the 4 short tutorials that demonstrate the power of Nikon's "control point technology." Simply put, you have the option to process selected areas differently in a non-destructive fashion. Join the discussion!

Yes, photographers actually do talk about something other than cameras and pixels. The UN's IPCC bureaucrats have issued a summary document that declares they're 90% certain mankind has really screwed things up, but for some strange reason, the full report that's still in the works (produced by real scientists, which, BTW, backtracks on earlier claims) must conform to the so-called summary, not the other way around. Is that legit? What do you think?

Mike Campos muses, "I went to the Epson Print Academy this weekend and Adobe did a demonstration on Lightroom. I liked what I saw when it comes to image cataloging, tagging, etc. I just wish they would have stopped at that and left the half-baked image processing off to be done in Photoshop." Join the discussion!

Jeff Peterman has a friend who is breeding fancy mice. She wants to photograph them, so she'd like advice on a macro setup. Jeff writes, "Obviously, I could easily recommend a dSLR and a macro lens (or some other lens with a close-up filter or extension tubes), plus a good external flash, but that would cost more than she wants to spend. So, I wondered if anyone can recommend some other, cheaper combination?" Click here to join the discussion!

When Fred Osterholtz asked for feedback concerning his "Crete Senese" photo, an interesting discussion ensues. Can you retain the spacious feeling he remembers while bringing out more detail? Several Photography Forum members offer suggestions and upload different versions of Fred's photo. Click here to view the discussion and the photos.

When Bill Gates attacks Apple's commercials, one can't help but wonder if he wouldn't prefer to change the subject. After all, the media's response to Vista's launch has been an endless stream of comparisons of Vista with the Mac and OS X. No doubt his challenge to hackers wasn't needed to spark interest in exploiting weaknesses in Vista's security, but when the big man, himself, issues that challenge, won't that add fuel to the fire? Hey, Bill, they're just commercials! Lighten up! Click here to post a comment in the Gadgets and Gear Forum!

Linda Baldwin shares a sad story: When a photo was taken of an orchid named after Laura Bush with the first lady present, the First Lady's flower ws surrounded by white phalaenopsis. Can anything be done in Photoshop to save the day? Click here to see what the members of the Photography Forum came up with for a solution!

Getting good, constructive feedback on your photography in real-time can be a valuable learning tool. Every Monday night at 10 p.m. ET (7 p.m. PT), Mark and other Photography Forum members get together to share thoughts on their photos. These are fun folks who share a real passion for photography. The only thing missing is you! Click here to see some recent photos that were up for discussion!