Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 Maximum Performance: Unleash the hiddenperformance of Elements Review & Ratings

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Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 Maximum Performance: Unleash the hidden performance of Elements Review

Photoshop Elements 7 is powerful photo editing software, but it can be very difficult for new users to unlock that power. The interface is not at all intuitive to those of us who are not well-versed in the somewhat arcane art and science of photo editing, and Adobe includes virtually no documentation with the box. Online help files can be difficult to locate and understand. Many of the shortcuts and functions that must be understood and navigated to effectively use Photoshop Elements 7 would unfortunately stay hidden from most casual users forever were it not for experts like author Mark Galer who are willing to share the expertise that they have gained from years of experience in photo editing.
I previously used Photoshop Elements 5, and have the excellent book which was written on that version by renowned photography writer Scott Kelby. The version 7 book by Mr. Galer is every bit the equal of Mr. Kelby's book, and in my opinion surpasses it in some respects. Mr. Galer's book is separated into three major sections that contain a total of 25 projects for the user to complete. While doing the projects you will learn the ins and outs of the software. The book also comes with a DVD that contains not only all of the photographs needed to complete the projects, but also includes video demonstration of the techniques using the Elements 7 software, along with preloaded action buttons that can be inported into the program. These actions are essentially recorded macros of certain editing and enhancing techniques. These can be freely used on your own photos.
After a week of doing the projects in the book I can honestly say that I've gotten more performance out of the software than I did in a couple of years of using Elements 5 with the Kelby (and I do plan on getting the new Kelby Elements 7 book as soon as it's available). The DVD videos are just like being able to sit at the desk of an expert user while he demonstrates the techniques that he uses. I can't wait to get home from work each day just so I can sit down at the computer and learn some more. You will be happy with this book. It will unlock many of the secrets of Elements 7 and you will take your images to a new level.
Here is a link to one of the video tutorials included on the DVD. This one is in low res while the ones on the DVD are much higher resolution.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GaRkOBAEmo

Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 Maximum Performance: Unleash the hidden performance of Elements Overview

Unleash the hidden potential for professional image editing in Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 with this essential book and DVD guide.

Using step-by-step instructions and movie tutorials, Mark Galer leads you through the less well-known and most powerful post-production editing techniques Adobe Photoshop Elements has to offer. Cunning tricks and clever workarounds in this book show you how to create inspiring, professional-looking images and perform tasks you only thought possible in the full Adobe Photoshop package.

Whether you're an imaging professional or a photography enthusiast, this book and DVD will help you get the maximum performance from your software. Learn how to:

* Create striking effects with no commercial lighting or studio equipment

* Extend the dynamic range of your digital camera by merging multiple exposures

* Optimize, enhance and montage images with stunning results

The DVD provides extensive support to the book with movie tutorials for all projects, high resolution images, multilayered files of completed projects, a stock library and a keyboard shortcut guide.

* Save money by unleashing the hidden potential of Elements 7 for professional image editing rather than upgrading to the full Photoshop software

* Practical, step-by-step projects show you how to solve real-world problems and create stunning images using clever workarounds and powerful, little-known techniques

* Full DVD support with more than 5 hours of tutorials, image files, a stock library and keyboard shortcut guide--worth the cover price alone!


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Save 34% Off: From Camera to Computer: How to Make Fine PhotographsThrough Examples, Tips, and Techniques Review & Ratings

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From Camera to Computer: How to Make Fine Photographs Through Examples, Tips, and Techniques Review

"Examples: The Making of Forty Photographs" by Ansel Adams is one of the great books of photography. In it the noted landscape artist described the decisions he made from idea to print in creating some of his greatest photographs. "From Camera to Computer" may be the equivalent for the digital age. In it, Barr describes many of his own decisions in creating fine art prints from selecting a subject to printing the image and even whether to include it in a portfolio.
Most chapters are almost free standing essays that take a single image and follow the author's processes from capture to print. A few of the essays are slightly different as in his description of uses for the Lensbaby and his recommendations for photographing on a European vacation. The book concludes with a description of Photoshop tools that the author acknowledges is not a complete guide but rather an indication of the tools that he uses to create his style of image.
Each chapter starts with a listing of the major points covered. After discussing a subject, the author highlights a teaching point, and the chapter usually ends with the author's thoughts on the image.
This book is not appropriate for beginners. It assumes one knows how to use a camera and image processing software proficiently. Instead it deals with the kind of higher level problems that photographers intent on creating art are concerned with. For example the author recommends working the subject and taking a range of images to insure one will have something with which to work back at the computer. He describes how moving the camera even a few inches can capture a different image. His processing of images in Photoshop is beyond just general tonal and color control. He applies tools like curves and dodging for local adjustments on an almost minute scale to create the finest possible images. Along the way, stitching, focus blending, high dynamic range and similar topics are discussed.
Although some of author's images are of landscapes, much of the work presented seems to concentrate on form rather than content, like close-up photographs of rusty machinery. Although images that seem like abstractions are not my favorites, I still found many useful lessons in his descriptions of creating these images.
Images used for illustration may be downloaded from a website if the reader wishes to follow along with the text.
Reading the essays is like having a conversation about an image with an articulate top notch photographer. The tools he uses are not as important as his overall approach. I noticed that while I was reading the book, I began to work the images that I was processing far more than usual, thanks to Barr's urging not to accept anything less than the best. On the other hand, I must confess a little feeling of inferiority as a photographer, for it was clear that while I considered myself a competent photographer, my approach to images was not on Barr's level. Perhaps as I read the essays again, slowly, I can become more like him.

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Save 32% Off: Nash Editions: Photography and the Art of DigitalPrinting Review & Ratings

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Nash Editions: Photography and the Art of Digital Printing Review

Most of the time when you view photography, you think about the image and composition, not the process of how the image is put on paper. In Nash Editions: Photography and the Art of Digital Printing by Nash Editions, you'll think more about the printing process than usual. And there's some really stunning photography, to boot!
Contents:
Introduction - Graham Nash
The History of Nash Editions - R. Mac Holbert
The Four Stages of Photography - Richard Benson
A History of Permanence in Traditional and Digital Color Photography: The Role of Nash Editions - Henry Wilhelm
Selected Bibliography
Acknowledgements
Index
This book consists of four essays centered around the process of image creation on paper. Nash Editions focuses on the creation of high-end digital image printing, and as such has learned a lot about the process and history of how photos are transferred to paper. From the chemical-heavy techniques of the early days of photography to the digital printing processes of today, you'll gain insights into issues such as color fidelity and permanence. I now know why all those pictures of the sixties faded out so badly... The more visually stunning part of the book consists of the large number of images throughout the book. From black-and-white landscapes to portraits to abstract compilations, each page turn gives the reader another treat to ponder and enjoy. Very beautiful compositions... If this were a hardbound book, it'd be a classic "coffee-table" book. As a paperback, it doesn't have quite the same outward impact as other books similar to this. But it definitely holds its own in terms of content.
This is a book that any serious photographer would enjoy owning...

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Into Your Digital Darkroom Step by Step Review & Ratings

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Into Your Digital Darkroom Step by Step Review

I was struck by the title of this book. Yet the title is quite apt.
In traditional film work, a lot of the magic takes place in the dark room where cropping, dodging and other techniques can be used to create the effects needed. In digital photography these effects are created in the computer by directly manipulating the digital image. ==This book is a introductory level, step by step guide to fixing common problems found in digital photographs. The terminology used in digital photography is filed with terms unfamiliar to the beginning user. Here various effects are clearly illustrated, one by one to show what each does under controlled circumstances.

Into Your Digital Darkroom Step by Step Overview

Everything photographers need to become comfortable with the latest advancements in digital imaging is provided in this guide. The most prominent photo-editing software is discussed, including Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Photoshop Elements, JASC Paint Shop Pro, Corel Photo-Paint, Corel Painter, and Picture Man, with a look at the differences between Macs and PCs and requirements for memory and processor speed. Outlining five distinct states of digital photographic manipulation, from input and image sizing to output and printing, photographers learn the keys to producing professional-quality results from digital photographs with the latest in digital imaging software.

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Save 24% Off: The Adobe Photoshop CS4 Dictionary: The A to Z desktop reference of Photoshop Review & Ratings

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The Adobe Photoshop CS4 Dictionary: The A to Z desktop reference of Photoshop Review

As a beginning digital media student, learning how to use Photoshop can be a very time consuming endeavor. Learning how to use it effectively is another thing. One can spend hours, if not days, trying to figure out how to flesh out their ideas onto the screen through photoshop. One may find that process time-consuming if not counter-productive to their workflow if they don't know the program like the back of their hand. This book, however does not help you with that. This is a reference guide and as such, does not hold your hand through your journey with familiarizing photoshop.
Philip Andrews authors a reference guide for Adobe Photoshop CS4 commands. This book caters to the beginning/semi-intermediate end-user as the book describes in short but succinct detail almost every Photoshop option available (There might be more hidden, who knows.)
The problem with this book lies in its format. Like a dictionary, you can only learn more about the command only if you've encountered it and want to use it, but have no knowledge on the actual tool or command itself.
The publisher however does make it clear that it's a reference tool, not a step-by-step guide to get better at the program (although there is a tiny section at the back of the book that tries to help out).

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Photoshop Elements 8 for Windows: The Missing Manual Review & Ratings

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Photoshop Elements 8 for Windows: The Missing Manual Review

Like earlier versions of Photoshop Elements (PSE), Photoshop Elements 8 is both powerful and complex. While it has some automated functions, users hoping to harness its full power are going to need some help. Barbara Brundage offers this help in a detailed guide that explores the higher functions of PSE, while respecting the challenges many readers may have in grasping complex technology.
Brundage offers both conceptual overviews and tutorials of PSE 8's interface and functions. She effectively breaks down the the concepts of file management, basic editing, image manipulation and sharing of the results of these digital editing techniques. Particularly useful are the two appendices, which provide a summary of ALL of the (many many!)menu items in the two main components of PSE (its editor and the organizer).
Minor deficiencies are present in this book. While it certainly provides sound advice on avoiding Adobe's deliberate efforts to guide consumers to a purchase of the "Plus" version of the online extension to PSE 8, it doesn't mention the wide scope of Adobe's data collection of user activities associated with this (in both the free and "Plus" online adjuncts). Advice to consumers to read the EULA if they have concerns about how Adobe will collect their data would have been a welcome addition. Also, the book correctly states that PSE 8 can be installed with earlier versions of PSE. While this is true (and you won't be forced to uninstall any earlier version), it doesn't mention that PSE 8 will force you to choose which single version of PSE you'll want to keep using. Finally, the book says that "the help files that ship with Elements are sometimes incomplete". More correctly, in PSE they are absent. The Help menu in PSE 8 launches a browser and takes you online, where all the help content is located. You can download a 27 MB .pdf help file (which users without persistent connectivity should consider).
These are small shortcomings that do not detract seriously from the overall worth of this book, which is valuable tool with great utility for serious amateur (or frugal professional) photographers or digital artists expanding their craft.

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Save 31% Off: Digital Capture and Workflow for ProfessionalPhotographers Review & Ratings

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Digital Capture and Workflow for Professional Photographers Review

I give this book 3 stars, but that doesn't mean it's not worth buying. The author provides a straightforward process workflow for setting up your digital camera, exposing and capturing your shots, uploading and post processing your digital files, and preparing them for output to an album.
The problem with this book, however, is that it follows the guidelines of most Amerhest books. It's only 150 pages, and in many places the author could have added more information. I want to read more about how he sets up his filing system in Adobe Bridge (which is the file organizer he explains how to use.) I also wanted to know why he uses Bridge over say iView Media Pro? And it's interesting that he doesn't mention two of the big digital imaging applications on the market today: Adobe Lightroom and Apple's Aperature, both which handle RAW images faster and more efficiently than Adobe Bridge. If Bridge is all you have, then this might be a useful book.
The best chapters in this book are about setting up Photoshop actions for processing wedding photos. He explains about a dozen actions that should be a part of every wedding photographer's arsenal. He also explains how to use Adobe Camera Raw, mainly because he correctly encourages his readers that it's better to shoot in RAW mode than in JPEG.
I think Lee would have been better writing a three-part series about digital capture and workflow, simply because the process is so very important to how a photographer makes his or her money. If she lacks a good, solid workflow, she can start out making a $100-200/hour but end up making a lot less in the post-production process.
So yes, this book is worth reading if you're looking for answers to build your workflow, but it will leave you wanting to know more.

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