J. Greller

Sometimes the Finished Product isn't Perfect, it's Just Much Better

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Wed, 29 May 2024 20:46:00 +0000

Memories like this should be preserved. Today it is easier than ever to digitally do the work. The kids in the photo above were 7 years old and the picture was originally a Polaroid. (60 years old) The owner snapped a picture of it with her cell phone. Occasionally, a photo is in really poor condition, and the end result might not be perfect, but it's a lot better than the original.

Add eBook Design to My Resume!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Sat, 12 Dec 2020 01:12:00 +0000

This past week I completed a project with author Jeff Gottesfeld and illustrator Jonah Cohen. It's a free downloadable eBook. Jeff is an accomplished, award-winning author who graciously agreed to do a guest post on this blog:

All the way in March, the children's book publisher Candlewick Press (full disclosure: that company is publishing my next picture book, TWENTY-ONE STEPS: GUARDING THE TOMB OF THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER in March, 2021, with illustrations by the immensely talented Matt Tavares) brought out a free, downloadable picture book for kids, explaining the Covid-19 crisis to them. I was impressed by how quickly it must have come together, and the good that could be done with a PDF download.

And it got me thinking.

I have a pretty active Jewish life. Between my synagogue, family, and study, it was a big anchor for me. Then came COVID-19. And I realized that as much as my Jewish life was disrupted, it was worse for children in Jewish homes. So much of Jewish life is communal. The holidays, observances, festivals, events...it's always the more the merrier. The pandemic made the more the merrier the more the super-spreadering, or something. In any case, kids all over the world were stuck at home, including Jewish kids. They couldn't even mask up and go for a walk on their own. I figured it had to feel pretty joyless.

But the thing is, there is plenty of Jewish joy at home. It just has to be made. So I decided to see if I could enlist some talented Jewish friends and create a free, downloadable PDF book of our own. A coloring book, that would be positive and upbeat, whimsical and inspired. I talked to young artist Jonah Cohen, who went to high school with my de facto stepdaughter and is now at Rhode Island School of Design. Would you be interested, Jonah, in joining in a volunteer chesed project? He said yes. I talked to my old Teaneck NJ junior high school chum Julie Greller, who's my webmaster. Would be you interested, Julie, in joining a volunteer chesed project, and design this book? Julie said yes.

Of course, everything takes longer than expected. Jonah had school, I had my writing life, and Julie had her designing life. But longer doesn't mean never. And maybe it is a besherit that just as America and much of the world is mired in this December wave of COVID-19 that's got so many of us on lockdown again, and Hanukkah is starting on Thursday night, that When We Can't Go Out: Jewish Joy at Home is ready.

It's free to download here. Go and enjoy.

Restoration is not always about the photo!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Sun, 14 Jun 2020 20:02:00 +0000

Every now and then, I come across a client who would like a child's drawing restored. You can see that the original example was done on loose-leaf paper and is on the dark side. The restored drawing shows a clean white background minus the lines etc. It's not expensive to do, so drop me a line if you have a similar request and I will give you a quote.
jgrellerdigital7 (at) gmail (dot) com .

Giving Back is the Greatest Reward

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Mon, 11 Nov 2019 23:26:00 +0000

The majority of my design work has been done as a volunteer. Since retiring four years ago, I get the most pleasure from donating my skills to local organizations, like the Palisades Virtuosi, where I also sit on the Board of Directors. You've already seen a sample of my poster work in an earlier blog post in 2016. For the second year, I have been doing design work for The Teaneck International Film Festival, which will be taking place this weekend in Teaneck, N.J. Below is the updated schedule which I spent many hours designing and updating, as well as the ads which were placed in local newspapers. Oh, the updating. If you live in the NY-NJ-PA area, please join us this weekend. Sunday's 2 pm movie at Temple Emeth will be featuring a talkback with Academy Award Actress and Director Jodie Foster!

A Theatre Group Gets a Redesign

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Sun, 18 Aug 2019 21:15:00 +0000

I'm proud of the work I just finished for the Little Fig Stage. When you click on the name, you will notice that this minimalist site opens with a slide show on the home page. The owner said she liked the color purple, and on her previous site had used a special font for the name of the group.

I matched the font and paired the purple with black to create a classy, easy to navigate site.

If you are interested in using my services, please email me at jgrellerdigital7@gmail.com.

Clean Website Designs

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 20:45:00 +0000

I've been involved in website design, photo restoration and graphic design since I began my teaching career as a media specialist. Now that I am in the next chapter of my life, I am devoting all of my time to design work. If you don't wish to spend a load of money on designing your website, I'm sure I will be able to help you out. From minimalist to complex, I'm certain you will be happy with my work. Email me: jgreller@gmail.com

Let's talk about what you would like! Here's a sampling of my work for author Jeff Gottesfeld:

Customize Your Own Magazine Cover!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 18:21:00 +0000

We are able to design your custom magazine cover as simple or complicated as you like. Here is one which is a touch more than simple. Prices range fro $35.00-$150.00, based on the complexity and time needed to complete. Size is 8.5 x 11. Email us if you are interested: jgreller@gmail.com

Tintypes: Restored Photos Printed on Metal

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Sat, 03 Mar 2018 19:57:00 +0000

From 1860-1879, tintypes were used in photographic printing. An image was printed on a thin sheet of metal, and covered with a dark lacquer. Several years ago, a client asked me to restore about 25 tintypes. It was the first time I had actually seen them in person, and was excited to work with them. I have uploaded some of the finished works below. Do you have any photos which need to be restored? Memories like this should be remembered.

Our New Domain!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Fri, 26 May 2017 21:31:00 +0000

It's finally official. Our portfolio of work is now online, and the URL is easy to remember: jgreller.com

Vacation Photos Look Flat? Let Us Make Them Amazing!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Fri, 09 Dec 2016 01:23:00 +0000

So many people are using the cameras in their phones, and the quality has greatly improved over the years. BUT, that said, when the camera picks the ISO, shutter speed and aperture, the results are not always what one would like to see. Let's look at few examples of photos taken with an iPhone 6s. The after photos show what we can do at J. Greller to bring out the beauty of the original.

Notice that the ledge in the original was removed and the photo on the right looks more brilliant.

What a difference!

Dark shadow in the bottom right corner needed to be removed,
and the lovely architecture should've popped!

WOW.

Do you like these results? Would you like to make your photos more amazing? Drop us an email and see how much we charged this customer. You will be pleasantly surprised.

Want to Advertise Your Concert? Here's What I Can Do...

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Tue, 23 Aug 2016 16:52:00 +0000

A few of the things outside restoration that J. Greller Digital offers is program design, poster design and newsletter design. Below is a concert poster I designed for The Palisades Virtuosi, a trio of musicians from Bergen County, N.J.

Creating a Composite: One Plus One Equals One!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Wed, 17 Aug 2016 19:14:00 +0000

When a client comes in with an unusual request, it's always exciting. A couple wanted a photo of their son in the coliseum. They had a photo of him dressed up on Halloween, and a photo of the coliseum. Creating a composite takes time, and the results are awesome.

Do you have a special composite you would like to see? Simply click the CONTACT button at the top and drop us an email!

Ever Heard of Digital Plastic Surgery? No Pain, For Sure!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Mon, 01 Aug 2016 18:39:00 +0000

The photo at the left has lots of creases, but the client also wanted me to make the boy's ears smaller. Possible? Of course!

This is the finished photo. Want to make yourself thinner? Heavier? Remove a mole or a scar? All these things are possible today through "digital plastic surgery"!

Eyes Closed? Take a Look at How I Can Correct This Problem

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 21:57:00 +0000

How many times has this happened to you? Sometimes the flash is to blame and sometimes it just the result you don't want to see. Yes, this also can happen with an animal!

The correction procedure is exactly the same. Take a look below at the fixed images:

PRESTO!!

Colorizing a Black and White Photo

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 00:10:00 +0000

I'm sure you've seen movies and tv shows (I Love Lucy) which have been digitally colorized. Photographs can also be treated to the same magic.

Depending on the complexity of the original, pricing can vary. The photo at the left did not require that many colors, so the price was at the bottom of the scale. (See the pricing tab at the top of the page)

Scan it, Restore it!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Mon, 25 Jul 2016 22:08:00 +0000

The drawing at the left was done on construction paper in 1962. Years in storage and the paper began to easily break off along the edges.

The drawing now looks brand new. This is considered a minor job because of limited damage to the drawing. Scan anything on paper and you will receive a price quote. Easy turn-around time on this one!

Red Eye Removal is FREE with Any Job!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Mon, 25 Jul 2016 21:12:00 +0000

I'm sure you've had this happen to you. You take a photo and one or more of the people's eyes are red. This occurs when the flash is too close to the camera lens.

Any photo job which is submitted (needing more than red eye removal) will have the red eye removed for FREE. No coupon or code is necessary.

Eyeglasses and Reflections: Easy or Hard Fix?

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Sun, 24 Jul 2016 22:34:00 +0000

How many of you have taken a photo of someone with glasses and gotten a reflection? The time involved (and cost) depends on how much needs to be done to correct the problem.

This took a fair amount of time to correct. If someone's eyes are completely blown out by the flash, simply supplying a few other photos of the person would allow the eyes to be "placed" in the photo to be corrected. Digital magic!

Do you have an old photo you wish to be restored? Simply email a scanned copy to jgreller@gmail.com . We will let you know about how much it will cost to correct it. Please read the FAQs page for instructions.

When Major Photo Restoration is Necessary

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Sat, 23 Jul 2016 23:10:00 +0000

Until digital photography and Photoshop® came along, it was much more difficult to repair seriously damaged photos. The time that was necessary to fix the photo on the left digitally was extensive, involving the reconstruction of the boy's face, the ripped corners, folds and contrast/brightness. But when you look at the finished product, there is a photo which is ready to be framed. Memories like this should be preserved.

Taking Someone Out of the Background

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 17:41:00 +0000

Ever take the perfect picture and there is something or someone in the background you don't want to see? That's what happened here. The cost of a job like this depends on how difficult the removal or that person or thing is. This job was considered minor.

Amazing, right?

Moderate Restoration: Replacing a Missing Background

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 17:34:00 +0000

Sometimes you will find a photo which is ripped and/or missing part of the background. The photo at the left is also has a line going right through the subject on the right. This is considered a moderate job because of the time that it took to fix it. (The line crossed the facial features)

Contrast was added, rips fixed, background added and the line through the subject on the right was corrected. By the way, this photo was taken in 1953!

It's Those Minor Touches That Count...

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Thu, 21 Jul 2016 21:36:00 +0000

Imagine that you dug up an old photo of your parents but it was showing its age. The photo to the left is what I considered to be a minor restoration job. With spots on the photo and across the man's hair, face and jacket, the photo needed to be brightened and cropped.

The finished product as requested by the client: tighter shot of the parents, spots gone and a brighter photo. By the way, that IS NOT Tom Cruise, though he does look like him.

TOMORROW: Moderate Restoration

Subtle Retouching Done Digtally

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Wed, 20 Jul 2016 20:15:00 +0000

There are many examples on the web of bad Photoshop®. People who look too good to be true; people who don't have a wrinkle on their face. We all know that everyone has some wrinkles or imperfections, so my posts for the next few days will show how very subtle retouching (I call it digital plastic surgery) can make a photo look much better. To the left is an example of too much airbrushing.

No wrinkles at ALL??? Overkill.

Take a look at the photo at the left. The lines on this man's cheeks were caused by glasses with a heavy prescription. I did some minor retouching to create the photo below it, which is now minus the lines. My cost to do this? Only $20.00. All the work I do is based on an hourly fee, so your job might not cost $20.00. If you e-mail your scanned photo to jgreller (at) gmail (dot) com, I will give you an idea what the cost would be. Please make sure that your image is scanned at 600 dpi in TIFF format. Tomorrow: correction for large ears.

Welcome to the Second Chapter of My Life!

noreply@blogger.com (J.Greller) — Wed, 20 Jul 2016 01:24:00 +0000

Hello and welcome to J. Greller. Those of you who have followed my blog, "A Media Specialist's Guide to the Internet" know that at the end of June 2016, I retired from teaching. I will still be posting on that blog, but wanted to introduce all of you to J. Greller, where I will be retouching and restoring old photos, as well as designing newsletters, business cards and websites. The photo to the left is from 1924 and was restored with a sepia tone. The ripped edges were digitally corrected as well as the brightness.

I will be posting samples of my work and hope that if you are in need of my services you will drop me an email.