Professionals in visual media face the "real world" every time their work goes to press. As authors Blatner and Fraser point out in the introduction, "In this new age of desktop prepress, there's simply no one you can ask [what values you should enter in the Color Settings and Proof Setup dialog boxes]." You need to be able to find the answers yourself to this and other critical Photoshop questions; the technology is changing too fast to rely on the guys at the end of the project to fix your errors. The authors want you to develop your "spidey sense" which is where, "in a crunch, you've gotta have an intuitive, almost instinctive feel for what's going on in Photoshop, so you can finesse it to your needs."
That's the philosophy behind the Real World series: finding the solutions to common problems and preparing your work so there're no unhappy surprises when you go to output, whether that's print, PDF, or Web/multimedia. First, this book goes over the essentials: the work environment (tools, palettes, preferences), working with images (resolution, mode, up- and downsampling), and the huge area of color management.
Once readers have those issues under their belts, they can work on techniques: tonal and color correction, selections and channels, using adjustment layers to have the perfect digital darkroom, and a variety of ways to sharpen an image (not just a blanket application of Unsharp Mask). Later sections cover spot colors and duotones (essential to every print designer's workflow), capturing images (effectively using your digital camera and scanner), and building a digital workflow using the new Camera Raw capabilities in CS and the improved file browser. And there are some great final chapters on compositing, retouching, typography, automation, outputting, and the Web.
Throughout the book there are tips and tricks that help you work more efficiently in Photoshop, for example, holding Shift while using the Move tool to take a selection from one image to another of the same pixel resolution allows you to pin-register that selection, landing it in the same location in the second image that is was in the first. This isn't a step-by-step lesson-style book. It's more the essential resource you'll read through when you first get it and always keep on hand when your "spidey sense" needs recharging. --Angelynn Grant
From Book News, Inc.
Packed with hands-on production techniques for tone and color correction, capturing images, color management, proofing, and other tasks in graphics production, this reference offers step-by-step instructions, tips, and shortcuts for using Photoshop on a daily basis. Early chapters cover basics of the Photoshop system and image and color essentials. Later chapters explore the most useful techniques for most images, then look at capturing images and building a digital workflow. Many color examples are included. Blatner lectures on desktop publishing and multimedia at conferences and workshops. Fraser is a contributing editor for Macworld magazine.Copyright © 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Book Description
Noodling around with Photoshop to create interesting composite artwork is all well and good. But if you rely on Photoshop to meet tough production challenges in a fast-paced professional environment, noodling won't cut it! You need results, and you need them now: This book delivers! In this copiously illustrated volume, best-selling authors David Blatner and Bruce Fraser offer scads of hands-on production techniques--as well as clear explanations of the concepts that drive them--so that you can get the best results possible on your own Photoshop CS projects. You'll learn about managing color, getting great scans, correcting tones and colors, and more. You also find complete coverage of all of Photoshop CS' newest features: an improved File Browser; nonsquare pixel support; cool, new Photomerge technology (which allows you to create seamless panoramas out of multiple images); and more. Throughout, the emphasis is on efficiency: the time-saving tips and professional shortcuts that will allow you to work faster, smarter, and more creatively with Photoshop CS.
About the Author
David Blatner is a Seattle-based graphic arts consultant specializing in electronic publishing. He has authored or co-authored several books, including the award-winning bestseller The QuarkXPress 4 Book, InDesign for QuarkXPress Users,and Real World Adobe Photoshop 7. Bruce Fraser has authored or co-authored several books, including Real World Color Management, and Real World Adobe Photoshop 7.
New Real World Adobe Photoshop CS FROM THE PUBLISHER
Noodling around with Photoshop to create interesting composite artwork is all well and good. But if you rely on Photoshop to meet tough production challenges in a fast-paced professional environment, noodling won't cut it! You need results, and you need them now: This book delivers! In this copiously illustrated volume, best-selling authors David Blatner and Bruce Fraser offer scads of hands-on production techniques--as well as clear explanations of the concepts that drive them--so that you can get the best results possible on your own Photoshop cs projects. You'll learn about managing color, getting great scans, correcting tones and colors, and more. You also find complete coverage of all of Photoshop cs' newest features: an improved File Browser; nonsquare pixel support; cool, new Photomerge technology (which allows you to create seamless panoramas out of multiple images); and more. Throughout, the emphasis is on efficiency: the time-saving tips and professional shortcuts that will allow you to work faster, smarter, and more creatively with Photoshop cs.
SYNOPSIS
Packed with hands-on production techniques for tone and color correction, capturing images, color management, proofing, and other tasks in graphics production, this reference offers step-by-step instructions, tips, and shortcuts for using Photoshop on a daily basis. Early chapters cover basics of the Photoshop system and image and color essentials. Later chapters explore the most useful techniques for most images, then look at capturing images and building a digital workflow. Many color examples are included. Blatner lectures on desktop publishing and multimedia at conferences and workshops. Fraser is a contributing editor for Macworld magazine. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
FROM THE CRITICS
Library Journal
Scores of devoted Photoshop users and recent converts have generated demand for more titles on the latest version of Photoshop CS (see also Computer Media, LJ 4/1/04). A basic, step-by-step guide, QuickSteps uses full-color examples, screen shots, short tips, and notes to illustrate features; "How to" lists summarize each chapter; and "Quick Steps" sidebars show how to accomplish common tasks. Appropriate for libraries serving new users, but supplement with more thorough guides. Artistry will accommodate intermediate to advanced photographers and digital artists, including an annotated table of contents as well as "Must Reads" and images where appropriate. Although the text encompasses a lot of information, the pages are cluttered, the font size is too small, and typos abound. The CD contains project images and extra image files, plus links to demo software. Only for large libraries. Digital Photographers lives up to its title, focusing on various techniques for modifying digital photos. Step-by-step instructions, full-color examples, and screen shots demonstrate techniques, from reducing red-eye to adding special effects; explanations tell why and when to use particular tools. Its CD contains a Photoshop CS trial version, project images, tutorials, video examples, and demo third-party plugins. For medium and larger libraries. As with Digital Photographers, Real World is full color but includes fewer examples and screen shots in favor of more text and explanation, attempting to give readers the background to understand how Photoshop works and when its various features are needed. It generally assumes a finished print project and discusses optimizing for print, although the final chapter addresses multimedia and the web. Particularly helpful are explanations of different techniques for achieving similar results and examples of when to use each, as well as tips from the authors' real-world experience. For medium and larger libraries. Studio Techniques also attempts to provide background on when and why to use techniques, though in a more step-by-step fashion. It emphasizes nontechnical language and explanations and employs full-color examples throughout, with a CD of practice images. Straightforward prose and a sense of humor recommend this for medium and larger libraries. Also full-color, One-on-One includes two hours of training video on CD-ROM that corresponds with the exercises and chapter lessons in the book; this helps replicate a classroom experience and provides multiple learning methods. Quizzes and "Extra Credit" exercises aid in self-study; step-by-step discussions and illustrations let readers see if they are completing lessons correctly. A useful beginning to intermediate teach-yourself guide for all libraries. For intermediate users, Special Edition provides two thorough guides for the price of one, showing how to use Photoshop and Illustrator CS together--a useful approach given Adobe's new focus on the CS products as a cohesive suite. Unfortunately, it is not full color, though a color insert is included. The CD contains images, bonus chapters, and demo plugins and tools. For medium and larger libraries. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Art & Photography
Book Info
