Disable fade on hover effect for Fullwidth Easy Slider with linked image

Hey –
I searched through the forums but couldn’t find this specific change request.
When using the Fullwidth Easy Slider as a header at the top of the page – I have the image set to open a lightbox. Is there a way to disable the white fade on hover for just the fullwidth slider?

Also – on my right column – near the bottom – I have a Post Slider above some other content. When the post changes the height sometimes changes as well and content below moves up or down. I was playing with the different image size selectors but none of them seemed to do the trick (unless I missed one). Any thoughts?

Lastly – this is a more a request that would make the theme super awesome – allow us to edit templates after they have been saved. I’m sure the logistics are horrifying but it would be quite handy.

Thanks for your help!
E