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X-Equals – XeL 2.0 – Product Details

XeL 2.0 is ready! And … all XeL Products have been updated! Get your copy today! Now … onto the details! We made some structural changes to the configuration of XeL, corrected some outstanding issues from the prior releases, added in new Tone presets for all film emulations and prepared the XeL system for future [...]

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The X-Equals – XeL Education Center

We’re psyched to launch the XeL Education Center! If you’re a new XeL Customer, or a prospective customer trying to get a feel for what XeL is, and how it differs from the abundance of free non-professional Presets out there, this is the place! Simply put, here’s the knowledge bomb on how to take your [...]

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Shoot it Retro – Using Manual Focus Lenses

As many of you all know, I am a film shooter. I absolutely love the feel of the old, mechanical cameras in my hands. Everything is manual, from exposure, focusing to advancing the frame. There is a certain magic in the old processes for me. However, as much as I love film, I love the [...]

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Emulating Film in Lightroom

Making Emulation Presets When we at X-equals release Lightroom presets, be it for sale or free, we strive to provide the highest quality presets with the greatest level of functionality possible. To this extent, I have created a step by step process to emulate the look of any given camera and film combination, allowing for [...]

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Improving Digital Photography with Film

Once upon a time if you wanted to take a photo, if had to be shot on film.  You would buy a roll, load you camera and take you pictures.  Afterwards you would take the roll to the photo lab to get developed and you would finally see your photos. The rise of digital photography [...]

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X-Equals Image Kit – Vol. 1

Throughout the last year or so we’ve had the pleasure of creating and sharing a series of extremely popular Lightroom Presets via the X-Equals Blog. As this category has grown, it’s become a bit of a challenge to find and download all the presets in an easy manner … until today. We’ve now taken all [...]

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Lightroom Preset – Holga

If you’ve never heard of a Holga, trust me when I tell you it’s one of my guilty pleasures. Being a digital photographer at heart, I still love to shoot a roll of 120 in my Holga. It’s not cheap shooting, developing, and printing images from this baby – but the unique look that comes [...]

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Lightroom Preset – Polaroid 669

Wayyyyyy back in February 2008, Polaroid announced it would cease production of all instant film. The New York Times recently published a piece on the legacy of the Polaroid – and it was with this that the reality of the situation took hold. And … unfortunately, our favorite Polaroid instant film of ALLLLL TIME – [...]

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Lightroom Preset – City Scapes

This month’s preset is inspired by the Chicago “L” Trains and the city-scape environments I like to shoot near the Halsted and West Lake Street line. I am always blown away by the edgy and oftentimes neglected parts of the line where many of these structures have stood for over 100 years. I’m constantly inspired [...]

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Lightroom Preset – Morning Blue

This little gem comes from a recent trip to I took to New York and the beautiful mornings I spent there shooting around the Madison Square Garden area in mid-town. I love the blue hue that casts over the shadows in the morning light. So I’m bringing this mood to you for use in your [...]

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