The Wanokoto Labs web site converts any image into a super old-timey pic in one quick and simple step. You can either upload an image to the site from your computer or point it to an image URL online, then just click Convert. A few seconds later, you've got an ancient looking version of that image. Applied to print, the results (as you can see) look like a weathered newspaper, but browsing through the gallery on the site's front page shows impressive results with every image. Looks like you don't need Photoshop to age images digitally, and it's a lot quicker than tea and matches .

Windows only: Free application XnView Shell Extension adds several image tools to your right-click menu so you can preview, resize, edit, upload, and convert images in just a couple of clicks. Made by the same people who brought your previously mentioned XnView—the lightning fast image editor and viewer—XnView Shell Extension brings many of the same great tools of XnView to your right-click menu. If you do a lot of work with photos but don't want to fire up a full-fledged editor for some quick resizing or converting, this context menu add-on looks like a winner. XnView Shell Extension is freeware, Windows only.

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Previously mentioned Photoshop Express offers more web-based image management and editing features, like drag and drop upload (via an Adobe AIR app), tags to organise your photos, and slideshows put to music. [via]

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Photoshop funny-man Donnie Hoyle tackles displacement in the most recent tutorial of his "You Suck at Photoshop" series, explaining how to insert new layers on top of photos without making them look out of place. The video demonstrates the method by inserting a new name on top of a jersey and blending it in with both the shadows and texture of the cloth behind it. The method is simple enough and the results are impressive. Like all of Hoyle's guides, this one's borderline NSFW depending on whether or not you're wearing headphones.

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Windows only: Although the quality of camera phone pictures has increased over time, many camera phones still leave a lot to be desired. If you have a bunch of camera phone pictures you'd really like to keep but the quality seems a bit off, a run through the free Mobile Photo Enhancer might be your saving grace. With single and batch processing, Mobile Photo Enhancer has a host of tweaks to correct problems like low contrast, vignetting at the edges, poor sharpness and artifacts. While it won't make your photos of Mardi Gras revelry look like they were taken with a medium format camera, it will put a little sparkle back in your beads. The Mobile Photo Enhancer is a free download for Windows only.

Windows only: Freeware image editor Photoscape offers a large array of features packaged with a simple and intuitive user interface. View and organize your photos in Photoscape, correct red eye and white balance, crop, add text and frames, and more all from the basic editor. Photoscape also has a batch editor for quickly processing large volumes of pictures, a file renamer, RAW to JPEG processor, screen capture tool, image splitter for printing pictures across multiple sheets, and the ability to create animated GIFs.

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Windows/Mac/Linux: Freeware application Phantasmagoria adds effects to your digital photos through a slick, simple-to-use interface. The program provides an impressive range of effects and can upload the results to photo-sharing site Flickr or easily share your results over Twitter. You can snap and annotate screenshots, and take webcam photos and go straight to adding effects, similar to OS X's Photo Booth. Phantasmagoria is freeware, cross-platform, requires Java. Check out the sample page for a closer look at Phantasmagoria in action.

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The Digital Photography School blog has an instructive tutorial on using layers for those just getting their feet wet inside Photoshop, or other high-end image editors like the open-source GIMP. Those jumping in will learn how to make transparent layers, use masked layers to roll back effects, and duplicate layers for sharpening and other effects. Hit the link for a quick schooling, including links to related lessons, or offer up your own tutorials and advice in the comments.

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Whether you're a weekend photographer or seasoned professional, Wired's Charlie Sorrel says you should always use your digital camera's RAW setting—no excuses. Sorrel cites increased dynamic range, no in-camera processing of the image, and full reign to adjust the results using all of the pre-compressed, raw data available in the image (hence RAW). The downsides to RAW, on the other hand, include slower capture times, larger files, and lack of support on lower-end consumer cameras. (Then again, if you've got a Canon point-and-shoot, there's a good chance you can add RAW support and other high-end features by installing the easy-to-use Canon Hackers Development Kit.) Wired's recommendation is one thing, but we're curious what mode you regularly shoot in. So we want to know:

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If you take a lot of digital photos but are frustrated with the strange yellow glow or green hue to your results, weblog Of Zen and Computing's guide to adjusting the white balance of digital photos is for you. Taking you step-by-step through adjusting the colour temperature in Photoshop, the guide makes it easy to understand how to fix these imbalances and give your pictures the more natural look they deserve. We've covered this territory once in the past, but this post's screenshots and detailed instructions are worth another look if you're new to correcting colour.

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