April Digital Photography Reading List - Comparing digital cameras & buying guide for different type of digital photography

April Digital Photography Reading List

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Written by Kathryn D'Imperio

Wednesday, 29 March 2006

Adobe PhotoShop CS2 Digital Photography Software

Taking great pictures requires a fair blend of talent, skill, patience, persistence and a small degree of luck. Whether you pick it up right away as a natural or whether you require dozens of books, photography classes and hours of practice, taking excellent photographs depends on situational factors and camera settings as well.

So what happens if you’ve lined up the perfect shot, but forgot to set your flash or allow for enough natural lighting? Your shot may come out completely dark, shadowed or otherwise imperfect. In many cases, however, a good photographer also possesses a few computer skills so he or she can salvage great shots that merely missed out on some critical lighting.
By loading the photos onto the computer and editing them within an imaging program, photographers can truly expose the best aspects of a photo without sacrificing the quality and clarity. Many colleges and other universities (especially community colleges) offer workshops, seminars and classes specifically for these great software applications. If a month-long or semester-long class doesn’t fit your schedule or budget, consider checking out these great reads!

Adobe PhotoShop CS2
Martin Evening’s Adobe PhotoShop CS2 for Photographers received a four and a half star rating at Amazon.com. His book gives readers an extensive tour of the PhotoShop application and its intricacies.

Detailed examples, helpful diagrams and step-by-step instructions show readers how to:
• Automate Photoshop
• Create montages
• Make tonal corrections
• Sharpen images
• Simulate darkroom effects
• Use filters

Bruce Fraser’s Real World Camera RAW with Adobe PhotoShop CS2 is another inspiring and instructional resource to help you advance your PhotoShop skills. RAW formats allow the photographer to capture, store and access the image prior to in-camera processing. Best-selling author Fraser teaches readers about RAW and explains how to expose and shoot in RAW.

Katrin Eismann and Wayne Palmer’s book, Adobe PhotoShop Restoration and Retouching (3rd Edition) (Voices that Matter), examines countless techniques for processing photos in Adobe PhotoShop CS2.

This comprehensive guide shows photographers how to:
• Convert images to black and white or other formats
• Correct and transform faded or damaged photographs
• Correct extreme exposures
• Embellish upon casual snapshots and typical portraits
• Enhance glamour photography
• Improve color
• Improve contrast
• Improve tone
• Remove dust, scratches, red-eye, blemishes, etc.
• Restore antique or heirloom images
• Retouch portraits

Achieving five stars at Amazon.com, Deke McClelland’s Adobe PhotoShop CS2 One-on-One introduces a comfortable read with flowing, step-by-step instructions, which are perfect for beginners as well as advanced software users. This book examines PhotoShop CS2 in close detail, familiarizing readers with the great but sometimes overlooked features of PhotoShop.

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To best develop your talents and hone in on your skills, consider picking up a book with step-by-step exercises and instructions specific to the photo editing programs you use. Your photos will become more vibrant and your knowledge will allow you to explore limitless creativity.

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