Photoshop CS3 Restoration & Retouching
On April 10th, Mark Fitzgerald, a local in the Portland area presented his new book “Photoshop CS3 Restoration & Retouching” to the local members of PMPA (Portland Metropolitan Photographers Association). The presentation consisted of him at a table with his computer explaining to all the ins and outs of what the book consists of. I don’t claim to have read many Photoshop books, but because I’ve been in the photo industry for quite some time, I’ve seen my fair share and this one is the best reference tool I am yet to run across. Hear is my take…
I have been a Photoshop user for a couple of years, but tend to only edit the obvious such as exposure, color balance, maybe the contrast and/or sharpness and then I’m done. It wasn’t until recently that I have been using various layers to enhance my images and im finding that I still lack confidence with the abundance of tools and options CS3 has to offer. I relate these inadequacies to sporadic practice. Like anything, practice makes perfect, and if you don’t use it… you loose it. Since Photoshop isn’t my full time job, I find that I forget minor details more often than not. This is where “The Photoshop Bible,” comes in as an amazing resource. First of all the table of contents is written very well. Being able to look up a specific tool or scenario, fast (portraiture, architecture) is vital to a 500 page book of information. This book is relatively new to me and I have already used it several times as reference and I’m happy I did. Each time I have used the book, I start by scanning the index, after finding the page and reading into it I always find additional information that helps me perform the task more effectively. I also find that his dialogue makes for an easy read that’s comprehendible the first time read.
I would recommend this book to anyone serious about Photoshop, who doesn’t have the time to continually practice and learn the new tricks because Mark makes it easy! It’s easy to find what your looking for and it’s easy to read, understand and perform what the author says! If your interested in checking out this book or buying a copy you can check it out at Advance Camera (the cost is $40).
Mark showing off his Adobe Certified skills…