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10/03/2013 01:47:18 PM · #1 |
With my Photoshop CS6 on the way, I'm looking for a thorough book to help hold my hand through learning the basics (in addition to online tutorials).
Wondering what everyone would recommend. Obviously the usual suspects Kelby and Evening are at the top of the list. Also looking at some more specific books dealing with layers and masks (and compositing)
- Kloskowski: Layers- Complete Guide to...
- Eismann: Photoshop Masking & Compositing.
Suggestions and recommendations? |
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10/03/2013 02:04:34 PM · #2 |
Long ago when I got CS2, I bought a bunch of books to learn the program. They were each hundreds and hundreds of pages long. And I never really read them.
I learned off of blogs and YouTube videos. I found the quick hits of 5-15 minute videos where much easier to absorb than the hours of bouncing between the written page and the computer screen.
One of the biggest troubles I had learning Ps was realizing that there were many different ways to do the same thing. My mind kept insisting that there must be a difference in functionality between one way of tweeking color and another. Ps never removes an old way of doing things. When a new way of making a change comes along, the old way is kept so old dogs are not forced to learn new tricks. As a result there are dozens of ways of making the same change, and learning all of them is something of a duplication of effort, but you still have to learn them all to figure out which ones are which.
I found book learning was frustrating because it took you through ALL the ways to make a single change. Video and magazine learning ( I used to really like Photshop Magazine) show one way of editing. It may be a path you know with a few varients, or it may be a whole new route, but at least you are going from start to finish without trying to learn the whole map at once.
Before you buy one on line, check out what your local library has (or at least you local big bookstore), each author has a different approach, and one may actually work for you.
Message edited by author 2013-10-03 14:27:03. |
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10/03/2013 02:24:03 PM · #3 |
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10/03/2013 05:29:25 PM · #4 |
Originally posted by BrennanOB:
Ps never removes an old way of doing things. When a new way of making a change comes along, the old way is kept so old dogs are not forced to learn new tricks. As a result there are dozens of ways of making the same change, and learning all of them is something of a duplication of effort, but you still have to learn them all to figure out which ones are which.
Before you buy one on line, check out what your local library has (or at least you local big bookstore), each author has a different approach, and one may actually work for you. |
I strongly support the above suggestion -- the "build-on" approach Brennan mentions means that even a book intended for an older version will cover probably 95% of what you need to know, and the latest features you can learn from tutorials, videos, and asking here ...
I did a quick search of the Berkeley and Oakland Public library catalogs and found several titles which could be helpful in your situation. |
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10/03/2013 05:31:55 PM · #5 |
| I suggest asking here. It'll save you money, and give us something to do. :) |
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10/03/2013 05:37:19 PM · #6 |
Originally posted by Cory:
I suggest asking here. It'll save you money, and give us something to do. :) |
Additionally, anyone else who chooses to follow the thread(s) can learn from your questions as well.
And it will give Cory something to do ... ;-) |
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10/03/2013 06:12:59 PM · #7 |
I appreciate the feedback guys. My concern with posting here is that for some unique, or focussed question that may work. But if I say, how do I make a selection. It'd be impossible for someone here to explain that without writing a book.
I suspect what I will do is, look up the basic on YouTube, and then if I am stuck with something, or feel like there should be a quicker way, then I will ask questions here and bug you all! |
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10/03/2013 07:02:08 PM · #8 |
| Participating in some of those sorts of threads has taught me different ways of (for example ) making a selection. I picked up using individual color channels to make alpha channels for tricky selections like fur or hair, on exactly that sort of discussion here. |
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10/03/2013 07:05:43 PM · #9 |
BTW: While you're getting used to the idea of layers, and you're doing selections, be sure to also get used to using those selections to create layer masks right away as well.
That was probably my biggest PS oversight / weakness for years. The beauty of using layer masks is the fact that you never lose layer data as you would with erasing/cutting instead of simply masking.
Message edited by author 2013-10-03 19:06:10. |
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10/03/2013 07:11:22 PM · #10 |
Originally posted by Garry:
I appreciate the feedback guys. My concern with posting here is that for some unique, or focussed question that may work. But if I say, how do I make a selection. It'd be impossible for someone here to explain that without writing a book. |
That's easy, I know four methods I can describe fairly easily:
1. use one of the "marquee" tools to create a selection. Once you click and start to drag using the polygon or oval tool holding the Shift key constrains the shape to equal H x W proportions (e.g. square, circle), and pressing the ALT (or Option) key uses the starting point as the center, rather than using the upper-left corner. Holding the Shift key alone also lets you add to an existing selection. However, holding the ALT key down before starting to drag will subtract from an existing selection (deselect), and holding the Shift key while you do this will deselect everything except what you drag over. Below the polygon selection tool are options for more free-form and irregular polygon tools; they work much the same way. FWIW the display of an active selection on the screen is officially known as the "Marching Ants."
2. go to the Channels palette and create a new channel: use any drawing/painting tools to create either a selection or mask (you have the option when you create the channel. Use this when you want to create a selection or mask of an irregularly shaped object (like a person).
3. use the "Magic Wand" tool to create a selection based on color similarity (setable parameter); menu Select > Similar repeats the action on the whole picture using the same option setting. Menu Select > Save Selection will create a new channel which you can tweak with painting tools as described above.
4. You can use the Pen tool(s) to create a path (uses Bezier Curves, like Illustrator or CorelDraw) which you can save and later convert to a selection. Good for making irregular shapes with smooth curves, but tricky to learn/use unless you have experience with an illustration program which creates files in vector format; a feature rarely used for photo editing.
Once you have an active selection you can modify it in various (mostly) self-explanatory ways.
Remember that many PS functions are covered in the numerous Tutorials and How-To articles already posted here ΓΆ€” look under the Learn menu ΓΆ€” and you may be able to find an existing thread on your question with a careful lucky search of the forums ... :-)
Don't be intimidated ΓΆ€” knowing Layers, Selections/Masks/Channels, Curves, and the Clone tool should take care of maybe 80-90% of your editing needs.
ETA; A fifth method I thought not so easy to describe is what Brennan posted ΓΆ€” using a color channel itself to define the selection.
Message edited by author 2013-10-03 19:13:18. |
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