Average customer rating:
- I'm no dummy....
- Something must be missing
- Very Disappointing
- Great for beginners
- Photoshop 7
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Photoshop 7 for Dummies
Barbara Obermeier , and
Deke McClelland
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons
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Binding: Paperback
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Adobe Photoshop 7.0 Classroom in a Book
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Illustrator CS for Dummies
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Photoshop 7 All-in-One Desk Reference for Dummies
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ASIN: 0764516515 |
Book Description
Adobe Photoshop is arguably the most comprehensive and popular photo editor around. Here are a couple of reasons why: When you work in Photoshop, you're not drawing from scratch; you're editing photos. Secondly, the program keeps you interested with a depth of capabilities that few pieces of software can match. Unlike other computer programs that have caught on like wildfire over the years, Photoshop is both powerful and absorbing.
Just because Photoshop is a pleasure to use doesn't mean that it's easy to master. Directed toward making you comfortable and productive with the program, Photoshop 7 For Dummies points out the features you need to know and shows you exactly how to use them – no pain; all gain. You'll discover ways to
- Work with the program window
- Switch between Photoshop and other programs
- Change the number of pixels in an image
- Define colors using the Color Palette
- Get ride of red eye
- Blur the edges of a selected area
- Apply filter effects
Photoshop guru and author Deke McClelland reveals his own techniques for quick and creative image editing, along with specific tips that Photoshop veterans can use to take advantage of the software's new features. Plan to get the hang of
- Producing high quality scans
- Adding background textures, bevels, and text effects
- Harnessing Photoshop's layering features and professional pre-press capabilities
- Applying different types of gradients
- Making a Web Photo Gallery
- Placing your image into PageMaker of InDesign
- Creating your own custom brush
Graphics abound in Photoshop 7 For Dummies, with 16 pages of glossy pictures to show off special issues related to color. You'll find commands for both PCs and Macs and lots of step-by-step instructions to guide your image-editing efforts for print or the Web – in no time!
Customer Reviews:
I'm no dummy...........2007-05-31
I've used Photoshop for years (very basic stuff)so i was happy to find out all the things i could have been doing. I consider myself pretty smart, so i was suprised at how easy the book is to read, without leaving me feeling like i should be back in 3rd grade...love the little jokes too
Something must be missing.......2007-05-15
I needed to learn how to make banners so, I got myself this book, although I did not expect much from it. My husband showed me first steps and with the book, I was able to learn how to use Photoshop in a week. While the book is full of helpful information might not be anything but a very basic beginner guide how to use colors and what pixels are, but if you actually want to make good looking product this book by itself will not be enough.
Very Disappointing.......2007-02-23
I bought this book hoping to learn how to use Photoshop's various functions and settings. I've looked up two so far - batch processing and screen auto resolution. Neither are in the book's index, which makes me wonder how much more is not explained.
Worse, it's too full of distracting cute you're forced to wade through. From the section, Resolving Resolution: "The Resolution value determines how tightly the pixels are packed when printed. It's kind of like the population density of one of those ridiculously large urban areas cropping up all over the modern world. Consider Lagos, Nigeria, which is a city of nearly ten million souls - more than London, Paris, or Shanghais. Lagos, in case you're curious, is the fastest-growing major metropolitan area in the world, with an annual population explosion of 5 percent. (If that doesn't sound so bad, consider that it would put Lagos at 33 million people in the year 2020, which would be more than Tokyo, the current topper.) The population density of Lagos is second only to Honk Kong, at roughly 150,000 people packed into each square mile (on average, that's 15 times as crowded as New York City.)" And it goes on and on.
When I want cultural geography lessons, I'll buy a cultural geography book. I don't have the time to wade through this kind of stuff in hopes I'll eventually stumble across what I'm looking for. Few of us do. I'm sure I'll get something from this book, but I wish I hadn't bought it. Save your money.
Great for beginners.......2006-11-25
I'm new to Photoshop but no novice to computers. I needed something that would give me the basics of PS just to get me up and running. This book is well suited for that purpose, but a little too basic for me at times. Of course I understand it's a Dummies book, and even programming books have to assume a low base line for it's audience, so all in all I can't hold that against the book. It does have plenty of goodies to offer, you just have to suffer through a little novice fluff if you're not one.
Conclusion is it's great for novice beginners and still good for non-novices that happend to be PS beginners. And actually, It may even be a decent reference for people beyond beginner stages, though it's not really indexed to be a reference like that.
Photoshop 7.......2006-11-10
Very informative, very helpful. This book has helped me to understand some of the more advanced features of photoshop in a simple language that anyone can understand. The book also has graphs, charts, and very detailed instructions.
Book Description
Adobe software has always been highly respected for creative design and development. Its programs allow you to produce amazing designs and creations with ease, and with the release of the Adobe Creative Suite 2, you can design a wide range of productions ranging from illustrations and Web sites to professional documents and photographic manipulations.
Adobe Creative Suite 2 All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies is your one-stop guide to creating great graphics with all the cool CS2 tools. Written in a thorough, fun way to show you the basics on how to use each of the programs, you’ll find out just how easy it is to start designing brilliant images and graphics. This guide gives you the tools you need to:
- Draw with InDesign
- Understand page layout and color
- Create colorful images with Illustrator C2
- Use the pen tool, type, and image placing
- Choose the correct Photoshop mode for your creation
- Create images on PhotoShop CS2 for print
- Paint and retouch images
- Create and secure PDF files with Acrobat 7.0
- Edit and extract text and graphics
- Build and publish a Web site with GoLive CS2
- Work with multimedia
Packed with easy-to-follow steps and guidance, you’ll be up to speed with all the features in no time. With these six great reference guides rolled into one, this is the ultimate book for becoming a CS2 pro!
Download Description
6 books in 1-your key to success with CS2! Your one-stop guide to creating great graphics with all the cool CS2 tools They all work together, and now you have one guide to help you work with each of them! First, you'll get the ""big picture"" tour of the suite. Then you'll be ready to create perfect pages with InDesign, illustrate them with Illustrator, add images you've edited with Photoshop, make PDFs with Acrobat, and design dynamite Web sites with GoLive. Discover how to * Use common menus, palettes, and plug-ins * Design Web pages and print publications * Create illustrations and add type * Retouch, enhance, and reshape photos * Save Photoshop images for print or the Web
Customer Reviews:
Great Book.......2007-03-15
I needed this. Before spending hundreds of dollars on software and classes to learn the software. Get this book! It really helps you learn what each Adobe product can do.
Not really for beginners.......2006-09-04
I was a bit disappointed with this book. I followed many of the instructions to the tee as best as I could understand the "language" and it was difficult to follow. Not to mention, you had best know where all the tools are before embarking on the lessons. I can see this becoming a great reference book as I become more developed with CS2, but for a beginner I would not recommend it.
Common sense introduction to the software.......2006-08-25
I bought this book to supplement the textbook I am using for a class in Adobe Illustrator. Personally I think this book should replace that confusing manual. Like mathematics textbooks, most software instructional materials make the same errors. They assume that the reader already has a foundational knowledge of the subject, they fail to describe techniques in a true step by step fashion, and they subtitute jargon for plain English.
This volume, like so many in the Dummies series, does a good job of assuming that the reader is a raw beginner and meeting him/her at that level, leading them through the basic knowledge of the skill or topic in a laid-back, understandable way.
This is especially helpful to those of us too old to have grown up with computers (I graduated high school in '84, just as the Apple 2E was coming out - what a machine! Dot Matrix term papers and endless games of "Pong")! Bravo to the authors and to the entire Dummies team. Highly recommended!
Mostly satisfied- despite dissapointing performance by Amazon........2006-06-06
First things first: This Ebook is not compatible with any handheld device. After many a wasted hour trying to get the ebook to work on a Palm, I called the publisher, who informed me that PDA features were blocked on this book. It took me several emails to finally get Amazon to acknowledge that the book was not "Handheld Compatible". Months later they still have not corrected the website, so I am left to assume they really don't care.
Part two: Why I did not demand a refund.
This is a reasonably informative book, with lots of good tips. The ebook format works well, and looks good on my Mac. Also, the ebook format is ideal for a computer manual, because you can jump back and forth between creative suite and the ebook, easily practicing what you learn.
This book has its shortcomings. There are some important topics that the book does not even mention. (like pathfinder and compound shapes in illustrator) Also sometimes the authors need to be a little more consistent in the names they use for tools and menus.
The book is good for discovering new things you did not know existed. I picked up many valuable hints I would not even have thought to look for. As a topic by topic reference however, the built in help that adobe supplies when you purchase creative suite is far superior to this book.
An Overall View of the Whole Package.......2005-10-19
This book is billed by the publisher as being '6 Books In 1.' At 768 pages, it's a big book. As you might expect, inside it is broken down into six books, one each on:
Adobe Creative Suite 2 Basics
InDesign CS2
Illustrator CS2
Photoshop CS2
Acrobat 7.0 (What happened to the CS2), and
GoLive CS2
As is common with the 'For Dummies' books, each of these independent books are in tutorial format. That is, they start with the installation and then do a series of 'do this', now 'do that,' commands. This is combined with a pretty good indexing system so that if you want to go back and look something up, you can. This makes the book useful as a reference later on.
Five of these books I'd say are entirely adequate. Book IV, on Photoshop, I'd say is a bit weak. That 'book' is about the same length as the other books in this volume. But the Photoshop software is so much bigger, so much more complex that I think you only get your toes wet in this volume.
My suggestion is that if you are going to use the whole Creative Suite 2 package that you get this book and then another one on Photoshop alone. And since I like the 'For Dummies' books, I'd probably get 'Photoshop CS2 All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies' to go along with this book.
Book Description
If you’re a photography hobbyist, would you like to brighten up that gloomy island vacation photo? Slim down without going on a diet? See whether white or green shutters look best on the house? Expunge the ex-boyfriend from family photos?
If you’re a pro or semi-pro photographer, would you like to make it snow in that ski resort photo? Replace the old logo in the glamour shot of the corporate headquarters with the new one? Grow hair in the CEO’s glaring bald spot? Freshen up the lettuce in that food shot?
You’ve come to the right place. With Photoshop CS2, you have the tools. With Photoshop CS2 For Dummies, you’ll have the know-how. In full color, with all kinds of examples, screen shots, step-by-step explanations, tips, and techniques, this guide takes you from the fundamentals to special power-user tricks! Cross-platform Mac-PC coverage includes:
- The basics of getting around in Photoshop, getting images into and out of Photoshop, choosing the right file formats, and setting your preferences
- Working with Adobe Bridge to organize and manage your images
- Working with tonality, including making easy Auto Repairs, making adjustments with Levels and Curves (and the eyedroppers), and using Shadow/Highlight and the toning tools, Burn and Dodge
- Making color look natural using the color adjustment commands
- Taking advantage of the RAW format for maximum flexibility, including using the Adjust, Detail, Lens, Curve, and Calibrate tabs and the Camera Raw buttons
- Fine-tuning your fixes, including making your selections with tools (four marquee tools, three lasso tools, and the Magic Wand tool)
- Masking for both layer visibility and for protecting parts of your images
- The most common problems in digital photos—red-eye, wrinkles, unwanted objects and people, and noise—and what to do about them
With Photoshop CS2, you can go beyond enhancing your images to create “art.” You have a very powerful painting engine, an extremely complex Brushes palette, and all kinds of painting tools. Photoshop CS2 For Dummies walks you though:
- Compositing (combining images into a piece of artwork) and working with layers, including choosing from the almost two dozen blending modes
- Selecting with Extract which is great for making tough selections, such as flyaway hair and various types of fringe
- Using Vanishing Point to “map” a pattern to angled surfaces
- Creating panoramas with Photomerge
- Creating precision edges with vector paths, including using shape layers and the Custom Shape tool, choosing from more than 300 ready-to-use shapes with the Custom Shape Picker, and using the Pen tool to create paths
- Where to find dozens, or even hundreds, of custom shapes already on your computer – absolutely free
- Dressing up images with layer styles, including using the Styles palette and creating custom layer styles
- Adding text messages and tweaking your text
- Using the extensive painting tools and the Brushes palette
- Using filters, including sharpening to focus the eye using blur filters or the Unsharp Mask and the new Smart Sharpen filter that give incredible control
- Getting fun effects with the Liquify filter
In a special Power Photoshop section, you’ll learn about streamlining your work, including creating a PDF for both onscreen presentation and for printing. You’ll discover how to spiff up your online images by working with Image Ready to slice, optimize, and otherwise juice up your images for the Web and how to create fancy rollover buttons and fun animations,
From basic cropping to complex techniques that can turn good photos into great ones, Photoshop CS2 For Dummies is your guide to exploring all the possibilities that await you in Photoshop CS2.
Download Description
"* An all-new full-color edition, updated for the latest software release and bargain-priced at under $30
* New author Peter Bauer-a highly regarded Photoshop pro-has rewritten the book from scratch in its entirety
* Cross-platform Mac-PC coverage includes program basics, working with camera RAW tools, organizing and managing image files, enhancing images, using channels and masks, painting and drawing, adding masks and special effects, creating Web photo galleries, and streamlining workflow"
Customer Reviews:
Photoshop cs2 for not so dummies.......2007-10-13
This is a very well written book. The author knows his material and how to help others use this program. I would recommend this book.
Not for Dummies.......2007-09-08
I'm sure this is an excellent resource for those who have used Photoshop already. It hits the ground running and assumes a much more significant base of pre-existing knowledge than the other "Dummies" books I've read.
My expectations for these Wiley books is that they write for neophytes, taking a step by step approach to understanding a topic without assuming any knowledge. That's what has made them so effective and so popular.
That is not the case with this book. I consider myself to be of adequate intelligence but I have never used Photoshop and I was counting on this book to introduce the admittedly very complex application in digestible bites. It really doesn't. It appears to assume the reader already has some knowledge of the program and, moreover, has already used it.
One example I'll cite is the book's treatment of the concept of layers, a central concept for how Photoshop works. It is assumed by the writer that the reader already knows what layers are and how the application uses them. It never presents a simple definition of layers. In fact, the author doesn't even mention them until far along in the text. And, at that stage, the concept just jumps at the reader without any introduction or explanation. I think I know what layers are and how they are used, but it really was a work of interpolation on my part rather than helpful explanation by the author.
Again, it's a fine work, but it's not "Photoshop for Dummies," it's really "Intermediate Photoshop."
Photoshop CS2 for Dummies.......2007-01-20
I purchased this book after using my local libraries` copy. It is full of information on the basic operational details and procedures of photoshop CS2. It is written in as plain an English as one could expect.
All the "secret" procedures to do various things are explained, things that would take decades of use if you were to try to figure them out without help.
It does not go into the aesthetics of photo editing at all. It only explains the basic procedures of how the various functions work, but it does this well.
It does nothing with the other graphic arts programs that come with CS2 such as In Design, Illustrator, and others. Photo editing is only a small part of the CS2 program.
If you want instruction on how to improve photos, this is not the book. If you want to learn the functions of how photo editing works within CS2, this book does a superb job in easily understood language.
Good product overview BUT.......2007-01-06
I purchased the subject book in order to edit photos only. The subject CS2 book provides a good overview of CS2 BUT it DOES NOT provide a step-by-step tutorial on how to use all the CS2 tools. I purchased "Photoshop CS2 In Easy Steps" manual ($10) to provide the "how to" part. Between the two publications, a good understanding of CS2 for photo processing was provided. It became clear that CS2 is so robust, and therefore complicated, that a CS2 course would be the next logical step.
A reference book, thats all.......2006-10-21
Luckily, I checked this book out of the library rather than buying it. I say "luckily" because this book isn't worth the money. Here's why...
On the front of the book it says:
Now in FULL COLOR! Loaded with the latest Photoshop tips and techniques"
On the back of the book it says this:
"Wait till you see what you can do with Photoshop CS2"
Photoshop CS2 for Dummies is not about HOW to do it, but about WHAT you can do with it. The cover of this book should have stated that it is a reference book out of fairness, rather than burying that fact in the prelude. Besides, aren't reference books suitable for people who already know what they are doing and have experience using the program?
This book didn't come with a CD or a website to go to for graphics and lessons. Words alone do nothing when you have to get your hands dirty. Would a pilots school be useful to you if you just sat in the classroom all day listening to the teacher on theory but not actually applying it by flying?
The first part (chapters 1-3) was way too basic, if not annoying. If you don't know how to use the mouse or what a menu is, what is color, what is cropping, etc. then you need to go back to Computer 101. 84 pages of material more appropriate for a Windows dummies book, not a Photoshop book.
Part II (chapters 5-9) was not much better. Written in the same "manual-like" style, it lacked techniques and how-to. Its sad when you are reading a computer software book and don't even lift the mouse or use the program while reading.
Part V consists of Chapters 18 to 20. Three chapters of tips and tricks. Total number of pages? Fourteen. Yep, you read that right. Fourteen out of 400 pages. Here's the first paragraph of Chapter 18:
"I have literally thousands of Photoshop tips and tricks to share with you but space here allows for only ten."
What a cop out. Wasn't that what the subtitle of this book was all about? Latest tips and techniques? Further, the tips are very poorly represented and outdated. There are websites that offer more detail and blow by blow description as you apply each step of the tip. Instead, this book shows only the end effect - worthless when there are many steps in between to enforce that the user is doing things right and getting the right results.
Noticed that I didnt discuss Parts III to IV? It was a waste of time.
Reference manuals are suitable for experienced users, not for beginners or people looking to learn from scratch. The best way to learn a creative tool like Photoshop is to experiment and try as everything is a transformation from one rendering to another.
Book Description
Do you want to rearm Venus de Milo, shave Uncle Harry’s beard, or turn gray skies to blue? Have at it with PhotoshopElements 3 For Dummies, your guide to enhancing the effect, fixing the flaws, or adding artistic effects to your photos. You’ll discover how to:
- Import and organize your photos
- Create, rearrange, blend and manipulate layers to create a composite image
- Save photos using the correct file format— TIFF (Tagged Image File Format, PDF (Portable Document Format), or BMP (for PC users)
- Save for the Web with JPEG and GIF
- Take advantage of the terrific Help Great Help system, including a How To palette with step-by-step tutorials for image editing and features
- Create a slide show, a picture package, or a Web photo gallery
PhotoshopElements 3 For Dummies was written by Dele McClelland, award-winning author of more than 75 titles, including Photoshop for Dummies and Photoshop CS Bible, and Galen Fott, writer and reviewer for Macworld and PC Magazine. It includes 16 pages of full-color examples that demonstrate capabilities and show you “before” and “after” photos. You’ll get step-by-step specifics on techniques that can transform your photos, including:
- Selecting the area you want to work with using the lasso, marquee, or magic wand tools or the selection brush
- Using the healing brush to remove imperfections such as blemishes and the new red eye removal tool to remove that demonic glow
- Adjusting color with a variety of tools and techniques
- Applying filters such as Blur, Gaussian Blur, Colored Pencil, Diffuse Glow, Glass, Glowing Edges and many more
- Color correcting quickly with fast color-corrections
- Using the layer styles in the Styles and Effects palette to let your imagination go wild with painting, drawing, applying drop shadows and bevels, adding text, and more
- Using the brush, pencil, eraser, shape and cookie cutter tools
- Working with the type tools, including formatting options, warping type into unusual shapes, and creating outline type
- Making the most of the effects, including frame, image effects, text effects, and textures
- Using Photomerge to create panoramic pictures
PhotoshopElements 3 For Dummies doesn’t just give you instructions—it gives you ideas. You’ll be inspired to capitalize on the capabilities and explore different techniques to enhance and share your photos.
Customer Reviews:
A Dummy on Photoshop for Dummies.......2007-05-12
I have six books for Photoshop Elements 3. This one is the best of the lot. Written so I can understand it. Unlike the others, this one does not assume that I am already an expert on the program. If I knew what the others assume I know, I wouldn't need their books.
Let's hear it for the Dummies.
Buy the book to learn more........2007-05-08
I've had Photoshop Elements for some time but was only scratching the surface on what it could do. This easy to read book has shown many, many functions to me that has made the money spent on the software much more of a value to me. I've jumped around chapters to focus on what was most important to me. Don't feel you need to sit and read cover to cover - start with what you want to learn. At times a boring subject the authors fit in humor.
This book is for me, I am a Dummy :-).......2006-03-19
Okay... Altho i am getting better, I still am not very savvy on the computer. Because of this book my friends think I am a photo guru!!! This book is soooo easy to understand and the example pictures are a big help. I am having so much fun!!! I highly recommend this book for beginners.
Photoshop Elements 3 For Dummies.......2005-10-17
I do a lot of scrapbooking and was quite disappointed when I purchased Photoshop Elements because I could not seem to get around in the program. Now that I have the Dummies book I'm navigating the program with the greatest of ease. The book has talked me through step by step in easy to understand language. My pictures are looking much better and I'm able to print the sizes I want and recently I've started creating accessories for my pages. So I highly recommend this book.
Photoshop Elements 3 for Dummies like me.......2005-09-28
I never know how much of a "Dummy" I am until I try to fiddle with a computer program. The Dummies series have always come to my rescue. I enjoy the lively banter-style format which makes me feel like I am getting personalized assistance. With no arguments! Even if I never figure out my software, at least I will have enjoyed the experience! The book covers the subject, but with no consideration to related programs (ie., XP, wherein I believe my problems lie...) XP for Dummies, coming right up!
Average customer rating:
- Photoshop 6 for Dummies
- Dry, Dry, and still more Dry
- It should be subtitled (for computer experts only)
- Not Appropriately Targeted
- Author Stars In Another Medium; not this one
|
Photoshop 6 for Dummies
Deke McClelland
Manufacturer: Hungry Minds
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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Similar Items:
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Adobe Photoshop 6.0 Classroom in a Book
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Deke McClelland's Look & Learn Photoshop 6
-
Photoshop 6 for Windows Bible
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Adobe Photoshop 6.0 for Photographers-
-
Illustrator 9 for Dummies
ASIN: 0764507044 |
Book Description
The latest, greatest update to the bestseller, providing the quick and easy way to get up to speed with the latest release of Adobe Photoshop. This is the book that hundreds of thousands of Photoshop users have turned to again and again for easy-to-understand, practical advice. In best-selling author and premier Photoshop guru Deke McClelland reveals his own techniques for quick and creative image editing, along with specific tips that Photoshop veterans can use to take advantage of the software's new features. In this book, Photoshop pros can discover tricks they can try out right away, while Photoshop novices can find ready-to-use instructions so that they can become productive quickly.
Customer Reviews:
Photoshop 6 for Dummies.......2003-10-06
Although this book can be quite useful for basics, it is too laden down with useless titbits. Also, a lot of important stuff is hidden between these, so it can be very easy to become frustrated. The book is presented well, slightly too much light humour but it does at least presume that you (like I did) have no experience. Practice will make you a much better photoshop user than reading this book, but combining this with thousands of F1 searches will set you well on your way.
Dry, Dry, and still more Dry.......2003-06-30
I'd rather eat the pages of this book for lunch and swallow them without a glass of water than read any further from this bone-dry book. I found the humor in the book more iritating than helpful, and the expanse of long drawn-out paragraphs with very few visual aids proved this to be the worst Photoshop book I've laid my hands on.
I strongly reccomend the Photoshop WOW! series, as well as Down and Dirty Tricks.... great for beginners who would appreciate tons of full-color visual tutorials and examples. Glass of drinking water optional :)
It should be subtitled (for computer experts only).......2003-05-19
I have been a pen & brush graphics artist all of my life. Now that I have retired, I decided to try computer image manipulation. I bought this book in the hopes of learning to recolor, flip, distort, or whatever via my computer (I just got my first one in 2000)and have found it maddening to use. The authors gloss over information vital to a basic understanding of Photoshop and then blithely show highly advanced image techniques that cannot be duplicated without the underlying knowledge. It pretends to being step-by-step, but ignores crucial steps. For example, a complex collage is created using a number of disparate images: how did they select only that portion of the original? How did they make the surrounding parts of the image transparent so the background shows through? This are the most basic maneuvers, but a couple of months with the book left me unenlightened. I have since found another book that delivers on the premise of this one, Photoshop 6 In An Instant by Toot & Woolridge, and am now happily photoshopping away -- this despite the fact that Photoshop 6 for Dummies was more ... and has many pages of color illustration, in contrast to Photoshop 6 In An Instant's reliance on B&W even to show color manipulation!
Not Appropriately Targeted.......2002-10-26
This book purports to be about "photoshop 6 for dummies," but it really isn't much help for real dummies. If you assume that most photoshop beginners, dummies if you will, are most interested in working with their own photographs, this book is of limited utility. It's terrific in discussing graphics and technical points; none of which has anything to do with working with photographs that may have red eye, have faded, need touching up in a variety of ways or even more basic information, like how a "dummy" should take advantage of Photoshop's organizational features. It's not that this is a bad book--indeed, the reverse is true. It's just not much help for the group its supposedly targeted.
barry anderson
Author Stars In Another Medium; not this one.......2002-07-02
I do not care for this Dummies' approach to Photoshop at all. It is very non-visual and it is laced heavily throughout with attempts at humor, all of which should have been editied out of the book. However, I've discovered that this author's, McClelland's, strength is not here but in the videotape series he does for Adobe, some of which can be seen online at Adobe's main site. I've taken some of his tutorials there and they are excellent and extremely visual. My guess is that he got locked into this Dummies' book format, which may have worked for another topic, but does not work for learning the most visual graphics program in the computer world. Bypass this product and investigate this author in other, visual media he uses for teaching you Photoshop instead.
Book Description
Whether you're a hobbyist or a pro, look what you can do with Elements 4!
Photoshop Elements is all grown up - a powerful program that's easy to use and gives professional results. This book's step-by-step instructions and full-color examples help you take creative control of Photoshop Elements' tools. From sharpening and improving contrast to creating greeting cards, calendars, and photo albums in Windows, here's how to tweak, improve, print, and share great pictures.
Discover how to
- Create sharp and colorful images for printing
- Combine multiple images into creative collages
- Correct color, contrast, and clarity
- Share photos as PDF slideshows
- Build a Web photo gallery
- Organize and find photos fast
Download Description
Whether you're a hobbyist or a pro, look what you can do with Elements 4! Photoshop Elements is all grown up - a powerful program that's easy to use and gives professional results. This book's step-by-step instructions and full-color examples help you take creative control of Photoshop Elements' tools. From sharpening and improving contrast to creating greeting cards, calendars, and photo albums in Windows, here's how to tweak, improve, print, and share great pictures. Discover how to Create sharp and colorful images for printing Combine multiple images into creative collages Correct color, contrast, and clarity Share photos as PDF slideshows Build a Web photo gallery Organize and find photos fast
Customer Reviews:
Excellent Reference.......2007-02-16
I have not purchased a "Dummies" book for years and was pleasantly surprised to find color photographs among the improvements in this series.
Dummies NOT ANY LONGER!.......2007-02-09
Great companion book to your Photoshop Elements. Between the two books I feel I have all I need to know.
Simple explanations makes it definitely dummy-friendly. Easy index makes it simple to look up whatever you have in mind at the moment.
Not a bad PSE intro; Mac users, take note.......2007-01-14
This is a decent enough intro to Photoshop Elements 4. It doesn't cover a great deal more information than what's in the manual, but things are presented in more detail, with more examples, so it's useful. The color illustrations are helpful.
If you use a Mac: this book is written strictly for the Windows version, so you have to ignore a small amount of Windows-specific material, but most of the functions and menus are identical in both versions.
Oddly, in the intro, the authors say Elements 4 is NOT available for the Mac. That's funny, because I've had my Mac version for almost a year, and this book was published in 2006, though obviously written earlier. The authors then helpfully suggest you buy a Windows PC in order to run Elements! Dream on ...
Mastering Photoshop Basics.......2006-07-26
My husband and I are taking a beginning Photoshop class at the local adult school. Instead of a more extensive and difficult text we chose to supplement the class with Photoshop Elements 4 For Dummies. It moves in more logical sequence than the class and enabled us to begin editing our photos immediately. It also allowed us to focus on class instruction without taking notes.
Photoshop Elements 4 For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)).......2006-06-30
Good reference for ideas of how to do almost anything in Photoshop.
Book Description
- Covers the main features of Photoshop-the industry standard software package for image creation, correction, and enhancement
- Explores the essentials: menu bar, tool palette, modifying images, retouching images, painting and drawing, creating type, adding special effects, creating and managing layers, preparing images for the Web, and much more
- Updated to cover all the new features in both the Mac and Windows versions of the latest Photoshop release
- A ready reference that helps Photoshop novices become productive quickly and introduces experienced Photoshop users to the latest Photoshop tricks and techniques
- Authored by Deke McClelland, a member of the Photoshop Hall of Fame, who has published more than sixty books on computer graphics and electronic publishing
Customer Reviews:
Huh?.......2004-01-24
According to the authors the RAW file format is mainly for use in transferring graphics between Apple and PC computers and loses a great deal of detail. In other words they wrote a book about Photoshop CS but they know little if anything about the subject.
Great revision to this classic book.......2003-11-06
Whether you be new Photoshop user or experienced, you'll find great information in this good book.
Book Description
* Published in conjunction with the next version of Paint Shop Pro software, this easy-to-use reference shows how to edit photos and create high-quality, professional-looking graphics
* Covers how to capture images from a variety of different media-paper, camera, and screen
* More advanced topics include retouching, adjusting colors, creating artistic effects, adding layers of text and shapes, masking layers, and creating Web images
* A sixteen-page color insert features before-and-after image edits and graphics highlighting the visual effects that people can achieve
Download Description
* Published in conjunction with the next version of Paint Shop Pro software, this easy-to-use reference shows how to edit photos and create high-quality, professional-looking graphics
* Covers how to capture images from a variety of different media-paper, camera, and screen
* More advanced topics include retouching, adjusting colors, creating artistic effects, adding layers of text and shapes, masking layers, and creating Web images
* A sixteen-page color insert features before-and-after image edits and graphics highlighting the visual effects that people can achieve
Customer Reviews:
Read this first.......2005-09-23
Being slightly famillar with a older versiion of Paint Shop I felt I still needed the basic instructions that Dummies gives.
I was not disappointed. I am also using "Paint Shop Pro 9 Photographers Guide" and with the two I am becoming well on my way to a Pro at Paint Shop Pro
Good general purpose aide........2005-08-31
This book is a great entry level aide to understanding the workings of Paint Shop. However, it is an all inclusive aide so anyone who is looking to use Paint Shop merely for the purposes of photo editing will not find much of use inside this help. But, it can open your eyes to what is possible with Paint Shop and get your foot in the door to anything new.
as good as Photoshop for many tasks.......2005-08-07
Well Paint Shop Pro 9 is not the latest Photoshop. But Kay reveals that Paint Shop can do many of the common tasks available in Photoshop. Common image editing, like resizing images, tweaking the colour maps and so on, are just as easy in Paint Shop. As you might expect, there is a layer model of images, that lets you have overlay planes and manipulate objects in each. [You may already be familiar with the idea from Photoshop.]
A reasonable question then is why choose Paint Shop? If your graphics needs are not complex, and Paint Shop is cheaper, perhaps that's the way you should go.
And of course, as befits this series of books, the narrative is very informal, to put you at ease.
Book Description
- Get a quick handle on the new features of QuarkXPress 6, including Mac OS X and Windows XP compatibility, enhanced undo functionality, full-resolution previews, and new ways to manage complex projects
- Written by designers for designers, covering all the major tools for layout, text editing, special effects, Web page development, and printing in simple, easy-to-understand language
- Enables both beginning and intermediate designers to start using the program quickly
- From two highly qualified authors: Barbara Assadi, former manager of Quark, Inc.’s Editorial Services department, and Galen Gruman, a desktop publishing pioneer and former executive editor of Macworld
Download Description
- Get a quick handle on the new features of QuarkXPress 6, including Mac OS X and Windows XP compatibility, enhanced undo functionality, full-resolution previews, and new ways to manage complex projects
- Written by designers for designers, covering all the major tools for layout, text editing, special effects, Web page development, and printing in simple, easy-to-understand language
- Enables both beginning and intermediate designers to start using the program quickly
- From two highly qualified authors: Barbara Assadi, former manager of Quark, Inc.’s Editorial Services department, and Galen Gruman, a desktop publishing pioneer and former executive editor of Macworld
Customer Reviews:
Useless.......2007-06-08
Master Pages...one of the most useful bits of QuarkXpress.
Does this book explain how to create them? NO!
Very disappointing.
Helpful book on how to use a powerful tool.......2003-12-22
I work as a copy editor at a newspaper, so I needed a book which would help me get started real quick! I played around a bit with Quark years ago, but I really needed it fleshed out for my understanding. This book explains all the basic tools in Quark, and gives some good technical tips. I just wished it could have also given some advice on decent layout design. I keep this one at my desk!
Book Description
Meet AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT® and find out where to draw the line
Tour AutoCAD's new features, make CAD standards rule, and find the friendlier xref
Once upon a time, architectural drawings were created with - gasp -pencils, paper, and T-squares. Then came AutoCAD, with all its capabilities and complications. While this book won't turn back the clock, it will make it easy to explore AutoCAD 2004's new interface, conform with CAD standards, get the lowdown on 3D, and discover all the amazing things you and AutoCAD can do.
The Dummies Way
- Explanations in plain English
- "Get in, get out" information
- Icons and other navigational aids
- Tear-out cheat sheet
- Top ten lists
- A dash of humor and fun
Customer Reviews:
This book was a fustrating waste of my time and money.......2007-03-02
As an absolute beginner I naturally purchased this 'for Dummies' book in the assumption that I would be guided through Autocad in the simplest form possible.
But alas no, this book immediatly immersed me in confusion and fustration. With no precise step by step guides or no simple tutorial exercises, the author Mark Middelton has no business teaching to beginners.
He then has the audacity to give himself a five star review on this review page, and whine about any criticism of his book.
I suggest he reads Cheryl R Schrocks 'Exercise Workbook for Beginning Autocad' to experience a true professional teacher in action.
AutoCad Review.......2006-11-03
This is a great book for beginners of AutoCad. It takes you step by step through the the most basic operations to the more complex ones. Great book.
The "For Dummies" editors need to learn how to write!!!.......2006-04-19
In my pursuit to learn AutoCAD as quickly as I can, I have purchased the three main tutorial books for AutoCAD 2004.
While AutoCAD 2004 for Dummies by Mark Middlebrook is the most basic of the three (Duh... it's for dummies) it still covers much of the important material in a manner that a complete newbie could probably understand a specific instruction or chapter.
The way Mr. Middlebrook approaches AutoCAD though is pretty tough to comprehend. That is, he spends the entire book discussing various commands and how to approach a drawing, but never walks you through a project.
I found David Frey's book AutoCAD 2004 and AutoCAD LT 2004 a much better instructional book and while only slightly more techie he manages to walk you through a project that lets you truly understand what he's trying to teach you.
My biggest gripe with AutoCAD 2004 for Dummies is the incredible amount of typos! Gawd! I am a high school teacher and this guy would fail an essay that I assign at the high school level. What in the world is he doing writing a book if he can't spell or proofread? Either he or his editor should go back to English class. I see that Mr. Middlebrook himself has weighed in on this. Just so he knows, I'm looking at the fourth printing (I think... The information page says 10 9 8 7 6 5 4. Does that mean it's on the third or fourth printing? I'm not a librarian!) I only mention this because he says he's only found 5 mistakes. I've found at least a dozen pretty obvious ones, and a many, many minor ones.
The single most grievous mistake is on pages 100 and 101, Chapter 5, table 5-1. It is supposed to be a table of various tools you can use to draw objects. Other than the first one, each icon is incorrectly matched with a description! For example, he shows the "copy" tool icon, but then calls it a SPLine and gives the description for a SPLine. I count eight errors in that table alone. If you are truly a newbie to AutoCAD then you might never get it sorted out. This mistake alone merits not purchasing the book or asking of your money back because it's an example of how a "typo" can be critically damaging. No, I am not an English teacher, nor am I overly zealotous toward proofreading. However, I do have only a certain tolerance for typos and when they interfere with my learning the subject, then its time to move on to another resource.
While I have learned things from this book, it is clearly the least useful of the three I have bought. The two Sybex books by Frey and Omura have much more thought and effort put into them and are extremely comprehensive. I'd pick the Frey book first though.
I do not doubt for a second Mr. Middlebrook's knowledge or experience with AutoCAD. He clearly knows his stuff. I just wish he, and his editor, would learn to proofread. That, or hire me to proofread for you! I'm as literate as your editor, computer savvy, and experienced. Look me up.
The Dummies series could really learn from the mistakes made here. I'm done with the Dummies series. There are much better resources out there, at least on the topics that I'm interested in. They've lost my purchases. Good luck though!
This is a great book.......2004-08-03
AutoCAD is one of the most complex and powerful programs I have ever seen. It's necessary to understand some potentially intimidating concepts, like paper space, xrefs and plotting procedures. After reading previous reviews of this book, I suspect the reviewers may have been disillusioned when they didn't understand everything about the program after reading part of the book.
I know a good deal about this program and I was glad to get a list and read some commentary about what was new and what was unchanged from the last release. For an experienced user, keeping up with the changes is what it's all about.
Middlebrook is clearly very knowledgeable, but remembers what it's like to be a beginner and is able to write from the point of view of someone who is poking the buttons in this program for the first time. There are often several ways to do things with AutoCAD and it was great to see tips about the easiest way for a novice to do them. In addition to the "how to" there is commentary which illuminates the "why" behind the commands, techniques and concepts. You can't get that from the online help. As someone who has tried to explain this program to people myself, I think this is exactly what's needed.
He also writes from a non-AutoDesk point of view. I got the feeling that I was getting good information rather than the company line as well as some tips that I wouldn't expect to find in the program manuals and online help, like how to save a file so that other people who are using AutoCAD R14 can use it.
It's very readable, which is a rare thing considering the technical subject. There is a sense of humor and it is a pleasure to read.
The bottom line is that it's a great way to get up to speed with the changes if you already have experience with AutoCAD, and if I were learning this program for the first time I would definitely want to have this book in order to make sense out of the program.
...to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous criticism!.......2004-07-17
Are we looking at the same book?! At the risk of sounding like the defensive, whiny author (again!), I humbly submit:
A reader from Mc Lean, VA writes: "I picked up the manual that came with AutoCAD. The manual that came with the software was better than this book!" That's strange, since AutoCAD 2004 doesn't come with a printed manual.
wizard621 from Denver, CO writes: "There are so many typos, grammatical errors and mismatches between the examples and the software...." That's strange, too, since I recently went through the book in order to correct errors in preparation for a new printing. I found exactly five misspellings, no grammatical errors, and a handful of places where the description didn't match the software.
sbruce28 from Sandston, Virginia writes: "Doesn't anyone proof read [sic] anymore?" Yes, I do, the copy editor does, and the proofreader does. This kind of criticism is suspect when it comes from someone who doesn't realize that the verb is spelled "proofread" and who spells "AutoCAD" two different ways, both incorrect, in the same sentence.
I will agree that this book expects readers to be somewhat familiar with a few basic drafting concepts - such as scale, the representation of three-dimensional objects on two-dimensional sheets of paper, and how real-world objects are shown on (printed) technical drawings. If you don't understand or aren't willing to learn a little bit about how technical drawings are presented in your industry, then you probably aren't ready to use a CAD program.
In fact, several parts of the book review basic drafting concepts and connect them to corresponding AutoCAD concepts and practices. For example, Chapter 3 explains how drawing scale (a fundamental drafting concept) relates to drawing scale factor (an essential CAD concept). And Chapter 12 describes how many AutoCAD drafters represent printed lineweights (drafting) with object colors on the screen (CAD).
Books:
- Photoshop Artistry: For Photographers Using Photoshop CS2 and Beyond (Voices That Matter)
- Plot & Structure: (Techniques And Exercises For Crafting A Plot That Grips Readers From Start To Finish) (Write Great Fiction)
- Pocket Guide to Digital Prepress (Pocket Guide)
- Probability and Statistics (3rd Edition)
- Publication Design Workbook: A Real-World Guide to Designing Magazines, Newspapers, and Newsletters
- Real World Color Management, Second Edition
- Satellite Communications
- Shakespeare and Co.: Christopher Marlowe, Thomas Dekker, Ben Jonson, Thomas Middleton, John Fletcher and the Other Players in His Story
- Shotokan's Secret: The Hidden Truth Behind Karate's Fighting Origins
- Sounds Like Teen Spirit: Stolen Melodies, Ripped-Off Riffs, and the Secret History of Rock and Roll
Books Index
Books Home
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![Corel Paint Shop Pro 9 [Old Version]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B0002W2UMW.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
