Merrill,
Run a search on the Forum and you’ll find several threads discussing this topic. And I believe there was just one yesterday (Monday).
Ray
Speaking of actions, I managed to totally screw up the Lings actions in PSE, anybody know of a good way to remove and reinstall them?
Dick
Dick, there’s a the Readme.html file with uninstall instructions in the HTMLPalettes>Recipes>LUI>docs folder.
If you have other add-ons (such as Hidden Elements), things can get *interesting*…but I am happy to report I am now running both without any problems. I wouldn’t want to be without either of them now!
Patti
I may be in the minority but find actions to be grossly over-rated.
When I said I wouldn’t want to be without these add-ons, I am referring to the ability to use Layer Masks, Curves and the Channel Mixer, not necessarily Actions themselves. If I could just have those three things in Elements, I could live without the ability to add Actions.
I too like to do things myself in Elements, but there are some Actions that I use a lot that are not in Elements and they really save me time as well. Jamie’s Soft Focus (Snap Action) and HPE’s Drop Shadows are at the top of my list. This Drop Shadow places the shadow on a separate layer underneath the object, so I can tweak it with Transform to suit the light direction and perspective that I want. You can’t do that with Layer Styles. There are also a couple of Noise Reductions Actions that I really, really like. When you look at the steps they go through in the Undo History, you realize how much time it saves!
Just my opinion.
Patti
Patti- Didn’t mean to ruffle any feathers. I just always wonder at the reasons certain topics are brought up in the element’s forum. I guess I have just turned into a cynic.
Terri
Generally I agree with Terri (although I have just about every single action adapted for Elements available installed!). I tend to do drop shadows by hand although HPA3 versions do the same thing – just habit! There are a few I think I use on a regular basis – noise reduction and a couple of different soft focus actions. I use the tools extensively – curves, layer mask all the time, channel mixer from time to time. Selective color is interesting – very good for removing overly red tones fron people with pink noses…(another Katrin Eisemann tip!)
Its funny the things you can’t live without … mine are Layer Masks, Curves and Guides
Wendy
Patti,
Thanks for your help. I took a look at it and finally got things squared away the way I wanted them to be. Don’t know why but the exec file for snap actions quit working.
I’m happy now.
And, I don’t use them very often either, but I guess that I fall into that "gadget" category when it comes to Elements. Gotta have ’em whether used or not. 🙂
