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Photoshop Elements 7: The Missing Manual

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Barbara Brundage

October 10, 2008
I have upgraded from Elements 4 to Elements 7 so wanted a manual to understand what was new / different. Unfortunately Scott Kelby's book wasn't available in time for Christmas so I bought this instead. It is a fairly weighty tome and seems to cover most subjects well. The main shortcoming for me is the quality of the picture printing. On a number of pictures it is difficult to see the detail, or the difference between the "before" & "after" shots, which for a photo editing manual is a major drawback.

If you want a decent manual on Elements 7 this is fine, but if like me you want to see in print what to expect on screen I would consider other options as well.

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Mac OS X Leopard: The Missing Manual

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: David Pogue

December 15, 2007
The book is excellent for a new mac user although a bit, just a bit, verbose for my taste.

You will find everything you need as a mac user and even more.

Hints are a revelation while historic notes provides useful background.

If I had to own just one mac osx book, that would be "The missing manual"

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Photoshop Elements 7 for Dummies (For Dummies (Computers))

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Barbara Obermeier, Ted Padova

November 14, 2008
The book is excellent for a new mac user although a bit, just a bit, verbose for my taste.

You will find everything you need as a mac user and even more.

Hints are a revelation while historic notes provides useful background.

If I had to own just one mac osx book, that would be "The missing manual"

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The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 Book for Digital Photographers (Voices That Matter)

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Scott Kelby

September 18, 2008
This book falls into the `essentials' category for Lightroom users. It is packed with good advice and tips which are time-saving and which encourage good practice in processing digital photographs. Kelby is quite open about sharing the techniques which he has evolved, probably after much trial and error, thus making life easier for all of us. The sections on working in tandem with Photoshop and on black & white conversion are particularly illuminating. The whole text is enhanced by Kelby's amusing style.
One word of caution: this book can be quite baffling for absolute beginners to Lightroom, as the initial chapter is perhaps not the best introduction to the subject. For example, how many people will ever use Lightroom with the ... Read More:

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The Adobe Photoshop CS4 Book for Digital Photographers (Voices That Matter)

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Scott Kelby

December 23, 2008
This book falls into the `essentials' category for Lightroom users. It is packed with good advice and tips which are time-saving and which encourage good practice in processing digital photographs. Kelby is quite open about sharing the techniques which he has evolved, probably after much trial and error, thus making life easier for all of us. The sections on working in tandem with Photoshop and on black & white conversion are particularly illuminating. The whole text is enhanced by Kelby's amusing style.
One word of caution: this book can be quite baffling for absolute beginners to Lightroom, as the initial chapter is perhaps not the best introduction to the subject. For example, how many people will ever use Lightroom with the ... Read More:

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The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 Book: The Complete Guide for Photographers

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Martin Evening

August 14, 2008
Martin Evening is an author who really gets down to business. His book is easy to read and follow. The only down side is that the font size is a little small but maybe this is nature telling me I need stronger glasses!

This is a very readable book that has a good natural flow. I have just been trying to follow a book on Photoshop by Scott Kelby and found his approach very disappointing and to be avoided by anyone with a humour above that of a five year old.

Martins book is altogether superior and highly recommended.

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Adobe Photoshop CS3 Book for Digital Photographers (Voices That Matter)

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Scott Kelby

July 27, 2007
The general content of the book is fine but just too much is the author trying to make you laugh and failing badly. I just could not force myself to read once Scott Kelby started trying to be funny. You may find his approach to your liking but for me it was a big disappointment. Did nobody at the publishers have the courage to tell Mr Kelby he was spoiling his good work with an irratating and maddening approach?

This is a great pity as it spoils a well researched and fact filled book. The illustrations are excellent and flow well with the written dialogue.

I have just purchased a book on Lightroom by Martin Evening, how refreshing to find an author who really gets down to business with his book.

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Adobe Photoshop CS4 for Photographers: A Professional Image Editor's Guide to the Creative use of Photoshop for the Macintosh and PC: A Professional Image ... Use of Photoshop for the Macintosh and PC

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Martin Evening

December 15, 2008
I have read Martin Evenings books on Photoshop since 5.5 and this one has more pages than the the CS3 book but seems to be even more staight to the point, concentrating a lot on work flow ethics. With the additional material on the DVD and 2 hours of tutorials its great value for money.
An excellent companion to this will be the new Realworld RAW CS4 BOOK BY Jeff Schewe which is coming out shortly.Les Fisher

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Linux Pocket Guide (Pocket Guide: Essential Commands)

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Daniel Barrett

February 18, 2004
So many books are thick, wordy, and conceal their nuggets of wisdom, but not this one. It's not big, so you won't find full details on (eg) all of the many Linux email clients - but they get a mention.
Works well for me (ex BSD 4.x sysop in the 1980s) as well as friends with no previous knowledge of operating systems. It's the examples that are such a help - most of the things we've needed to do are covered with a brief, relevant example. We use it with Ubuntu mainly - Debian distros are not identical to Fedora but we've not seen a problem - both are Linux and conform to the POSIX standard.
Reading it cover-to-cover is logical, informative, and highly recommended. Three times, and the info is starting to stick..... Then keep it handy ... Read More:

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Layers: The Complete Guide to Photoshop's Most Powerful Feature

Childrens Toy Shop > Books > Internet Applications
by: Matt Kloskowski

February 21, 2008
I have tried a few PS books and some are ok but you come away forgetting a lot because the basics haven't been absorbed. Layers are THE basic skill you need to do good work in PS. This book builds up your knowledge slowly so you understand layers not just how to do a particular "trick". Excellent.