Photoshop book/web site?

Bryan · May 27, 2004

The budget for the camera is a bit tight right now, but I need to learn more of the BASIC photshop techniques.

What Book or website would you recommend to a Photoshop newbie? I have started to learn some of the basic things, but stuff like creating a mask, makes me want to toss my mouse. I can follow a lot of the turtorials you great people post, but I struggle with things I would think are just basic Photoshop 101 skills.

Thanks for your input,

Bryan (just a geek with a new/old obsession)

cletus · May 27, 2004

Hey Bryan,

I found the Photoshop WOW books easy to follow. You might think about taking a look at those. Photoshop CS for Digital Photographers is another that people really seem to like. I can't remember how beginner friendly it is, but if you have questions you can always ask them here!

DavidTO · May 27, 2004

cletus wrote:

Hey Bryan,

I found the Photoshop WOW books easy to follow. You might think about taking a look at those. Photoshop CS for Digital Photographers is another that people really seem to like. I can't remember how beginner friendly it is, but if you have questions you can always ask them here!

Careful, there's two book with similar names. Adobe Photoshop CS for Digital Photographers and Photoshop CS for Digital Photographers. I have the former, written by Scott Kelby, and I love it. It doesn't so much explain how PS works, but how to use it. Want to remove freckles, sharpen an image, convert to B/W? All those are spelled out in easy step by step instructions. Learned a lot from that book. Still learning.

SavannahMan · May 27, 2004

Being both cheap and a firm believer in the internet, and the people who power it, I figured there might be a few tutorials out there at no cost. Ran a search and came up with these on the first two pages:
http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/design/graphics/tutorials/tutorial1.html

http://www.adobe.com/products/tips/photoshop.html

http://graphicssoft.about.com/library/course/bllps5out.htm

http://jheather.com/bloodtutorial/

http://www.absolutecross.com/tutorials/photoshop/

http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Way/9252/tutorial.htm

www.visualextreme.com/tutorial1.html

http://www.planetphotoshop.com/tutorials.html

http://www.teamphotoshop.com/photoshop/tutorials/ps_tut.php

http://www.sketchpad.net/photoshp.htm

http://www.good-tutorials.com/

http://graphicssoft.about.com/od/photoshoptutorials/

http://www.sitebuilder.ws/photoshop/pstutorials.htm

http://www.arraich.com/ps_links.htm

http://www.pslover.com/

http://www.cbtcafe.com/photoshop/

http://www.icehousedesigns.com/tutorials/photoshop/huge_photoshop_tutorial_list.php

http://myjanee.home.insightbb.com/tutorials.htm

A brief examination leads me to believe this is an awesome education source. Would a high dollar CD-Rom course or $50 book go far beyond this info?

ginger_55 · May 27, 2004

re book and author on photoshop
Bryan, everybody I have seen on these sites mention books, they mention that Scott Kelby is a great author. I have one of his, and he is pretty good.

Mine is for elements, I have about 5 books for elements 2, and I am using photoshop right now, I swore I would not buy any more books. Every time someone here says something I print it out. I am learning the language a bit just by doing that, following the assignments and asking questions. That has really helped me read the books.

I had those 5 books and could not figure out the first thing about layers or even how to start, now I can start, and go a bit further. I can also read a book and follow some of those instructions better.

Anyway, I am going to order, someone tell me if I shouldn't, but I plan to order Scott Kelby's The Photoshop Book for Digital Photographers. It is under 20.00 on half.com, and by doing a search I found it for that price, about 18.00, including shipping, at another place. I am going to order it, unless I hear that I shouldn't.

I like to have a book to put in my lap when I need it, not to read, just to follow it, and at 3 AM, don't want to search the web, etc. so I decided that if I could get the darn thing for under $20.00, it would help me with the stuff I am doing here and the pirated photoshop that I am using now. I am enjoying it, don't want to stop using it, smile.

Amazon has that book for 27.00 something, including shipping, but I have had good luck with half.com (e-bay really), and I might try the even cheaper place.

ginger

good luck

ginger_55 · May 27, 2004

Basic stuff is the worst and hardest to learn
but I struggle with things I would think are just basic Photoshop 101 skills.

____________

Ginger here, again, I just have to add that those basic Photoshop 101 skills are the things that give me the most trouble. Everyone, every book, makes some assumptions, they can't tell you everything, so they skip over the stuff everyone knows, the basic stuff.

The only way I have learned it is to ask here, when someone says something that is very basic, I have asked what they mean, I tell them I am an idiot, anything, I need that basic stuff.

I can do a lot right now. I suspect that I am creating a mask, however I have no idea what a mask is. Maybe we can have a Shenanigans assignment on that.

I am still going to order that book. But even those 5 books on Elements, they didn't have enough of the basics, they thought they did. And I would be going from book to book.

So I would just keep trying these assignments and wait for someone to say something about a mask or something, then ask that person what a "mask" is, etc.

That is what I am doing.

Anyone want to explain a mask to us???

That basic stuff and the vocabulary is the worst of the worst.

ginger

DavidTO · May 27, 2004

I'm sure that someone else could explain this better, but a mask is simply a layer that determines opacity. Black is transparent, and white is opaque, levels of grey being the partial transparencies in between.

This allows you to blend two exposures, color corrections, etc.

Here's an example of using a mask, very down and dirty, where the bottom layer is desaturated, and I painted the mask to create a transparency on my daughter to reveal the desaturated image below.

GREAPER · May 27, 2004

Not to be a brown nosing butt kisser (smooooch) but read every post by this man...

http://www.dgrin.com/search.php?searchid=11026

I learn something from every thing he posts.

digismile · May 27, 2004

Mystery person still a mystery ...

GREAPER wrote:

Not to be a brown nosing butt kisser (smooooch) but read every post by this man.

http://www.dgrin.com/search.php?searchid=11026

I learn something from every thing he posts.

Hey Greaper,
I don't know if it's just me, but the link above doesn't find anything

Brad

GREAPER · May 27, 2004

hmmm.

It worked for me both in my post and in your quote.

GREAPER · May 27, 2004

GREAPER wrote:

hmmm.

It worked for me both in my post and in your quote.

It also worked on my other comp using a different browser where it was not cached

SavannahMan · May 27, 2004

GREAPER wrote:

hmmm.

It worked for me both in my post and in your quote.

I get this:

digismile · May 27, 2004

Masks

ginger_55 wrote:

but I struggle with things I would think are just basic Photoshop 101 skills.

____________

I can do a lot right now. I suspect that I am creating a mask, however I have no idea what a mask is. Maybe we can have a Shenanigans assignment on that.

I am still going to order that book. But even those 5 books on Elements, they didn't have enough of the basics, they thought they did. And I would be going from book to book.

So I would just keep trying these assignments and wait for someone to say something about a mask or something, then ask that person what a "mask" is, etc.

That is what I am doing.

Anyone want to explain a mask to us???

That basic stuff and the vocabulary is the worst of the worst.

ginger

Hi Ginger,
DavidTO shows agood visual example. I think I would explain it a little more simply. Here's my thoughts...

I like to think of masks just like the ones we wear at holloween. Masks cover somethings up and let somethings show through (hopefully your eyes:D ). Most simply, photoshop masks can be used to let something from the layers below show or not show. White means let everything come through, black means don't let anything through, and any shade of gray in between lets a little or a lot through.

But masks can do more than show or not show something. It allows use to apply our Photoshop effects such as toning, curves, blending, etc. to a very specific part of our picture. Masks give you much more control over what get changed and by how much.

Try this as an easy example of creating a mask and seeing how it applies:

1. Open any photo
2. Make any kind of selection using the tool of your choice (eg. the lasso)
3. Now go Layer->Adjustment Layer->Levels (or anything you'd like) and make some changes.
4. Click OK.

You will now notice that the adjustment you just made was ONLY done to the selected area. You will also notice the little white and black thumbnail on the right of the adjustment layer (the same shape as your selection). This is your mask. A mask is basically a special selection. It can be modified, blurred, erased, turned off, turned back on, etc.

Here's an example of where you might use a mask. You have a great picture of someone but unfortunately, their teeth are a terrible yellow. You use your favorite selection tool to select their teeth, you add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer, make a few changes to the color (decrease the saturation and increase the lightness), and voila, you've whitened just their teeth!

I think you'll get the idea of masks. They simply help you focus your photoshop changes to specific parts of a photo.

Hope this is a simple enough answer without too much jargon.

Brad

GREAPER · May 27, 2004

SavannahMan wrote:

I get this:

Well, odd is that is that it works for me, I was refering to Andy.

His tutorials and explanations are one of the best learning tools I have come across.

Plus his images are great to look at.

wxwax · May 28, 2004

SavannahMan wrote:

I get this:

Me too.

wxwax · May 28, 2004

digismile wrote:

Try this as an easy example of creating a mask and seeing how it applies:

1. Open any photo
2. Make any kind of selection using the tool of your choice (eg. the lasso)
3. Now go Layer->Adjustment Layer->Levels (or anything you'd like) and make some changes.
4. Click OK.

Excellent, Brad!

wxwax · May 28, 2004

Oh, and Bryan, one more vote for any how-to book written by Scott Kelby. Every step is illustrated, conversational, easy to follow. And terrific information.

Shakey · May 28, 2004

Gulp! I am in for some learning , I just bought Barry Haynes, Photoshop7 Artistry.

Be forewarned I will probably saturate DGRIN with my lame attempts.

Tim

snapapple · June 13, 2004

Doesn't work for me either
Hey Greaper,
I'm interested too. Who is this guy?
snappy

snapapple · June 13, 2004

Of course -- Andy!
I read and re-read all his comments. That's why I joined this site. To learn from some really experienced people. Thanks.

PerezDesignGroup · June 21, 2004

Lynda.com
I learned a great deal from www.lynda.com. They provide actual Quicktime movies with spoken language. The price is a little steep but consider the following...

At $25/mth, it's almost the same cost as a book
Most people buy books and never read them
Watching a movie in real time is easier than turning pages
The small tips rock
You can jump straight to the sections that interest you most.

Just my 2 cents.

Photoshop book/web site?

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