World Famous Comics: Photoshop Elements 6: The Missing Manual
Photoshop Elements 6: The Missing Manual
By: Barbara Brundage Publisher: Pogue Press Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Format: Illustrated Label: Pogue Press Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 586 Publication Date: October 20, 2007
Amazon.com: Photoshop Elements 6: The Missing Manual provides the best possible guidance to scrapbookers, photographers at every level, budding graphic artists--anyone who wants to get the most out of the latest Elements upgrade.
Author Barbara Brundage's Top 10 Elements Tips 1. Always back up your photos as soon as you get them out of your camera. You can use the Organizer's backup or disc-burning feature (File->Backup Catalog to CD, DVD or Hard Drive) for this, or you can use your computer's built-in disc-burning utility. For really important photos (wedding and baby pix, for example), it's not a bad idea to burn a disc and keep that someplace else, like your safe deposit box or with a friend or relative. Then, no matter what happens, you won't have to worry about losing your photos. 2. Never, ever work on your original photo. If you use the Organizer, good news: Elements already has your back. It creates version sets, which allow you to save different states of your image as you edit. You can create as many different versions of a photo as you like and go back to any one of them at any time. And if you're working with RAW files you can't alter your original (only the conversion settings). If you don't use the Organizer, make a copy of the picture (File->Duplicate) and work on that. This way you can always start over again if you get a better idea later on. 3. Sharing photos with the Organizer. There are all kinds of fun, creative ways to share your photos in Elements 6, and the Organizer makes it super easy to explore them all. Try a slideshow with music and commentary, or upload your photos to EasyShare or one of the other online services to create mugs, bags, and other cool gift items with your photos on them. 4. Don't scorn the auto buttons. If you've never tried these one-click fixes--Auto Levels or Auto Color, for example--give `em a try. Each version of Elements gets a little smarter and you may find that you like the results you get from one of these easy-to-use fixes. 5. Panoramas for everyone. You don't need to feel wistful anymore about the fact that your point and shoot camera's lens doesn't have a true wide-angle setting. Take a series of photos with, ideally, about a 30% overlap and Elements' Photomerge will automatically stitch them together into a panorama wider than you could have captured with the widest lens. (If you've tried Photomerge in previous editions of Elements, the Photomerge in Elements 6 is a whole new thing--totally automated and it does terrific blending to eliminate visible seams between images.) 6. Batch processing with RAW. If you shoot RAW format photos, now you can apply the same settings to multiple pictures at once. Just open all the RAW files you want to work on, and then click to select each of their thumbnail-sized photos. Elements will then apply any edits you've made to the current photo to all the pictures you've just selected. 7. Crop creatively. Unless you plan to print on standard photo paper, don't feel compelled to crop your photos to standard photo paper sizes and shapes. Use cropping to emphasize the best parts of your photo if you plan to use the image for the Web or to print at home. 8. Take credit, quickly. You can put copyright info on your photos by using the Watermark feature in the Process Multiple Files dialog box (File->Process Multiple Files), or you can create a custom brush: just type what you want (the copyright symbol is Alt+0169 in Windows, Option+G on a Mac), then select your type and go to Edit->Define Brush. Save your brush and from now on you've got a one-click copyright notice. 9. Black and white are beautiful. The Convert to Black and White feature in Elements does a great job, especially if you use the sliders to tweak your adjustments, but you can create even more dramatic black and white photos by using the Dodge and Burn tools to selectively enhance contrast after converting. 10. The very best way to learn Elements is to dive right in. Open a photo and try all sorts of different things. Nobody, even great Photoshop gurus, knows exactly what will happen to any given photo when you combine different filters and effects. Experiment, and you'll quickly see why Elements is so addicting. You can do all sorts of amazing things you never knew you could!
Product Description: With Photoshop Elements 6, the most popular photo-editing program on Earth just keeps getting better. It's perfect for scrapbooking, email-ready slideshows, Web galleries, you name it. But knowing what to do and when is tricky. That's why our Missing Manual is the bestselling book on the topic. This fully revised guide explains not only how the tools and commands work, but when to use them.
Photoshop Elements 6 is packed with new features. You get a new Quick Edit function, Windows Vista compatibility, improved RAW conversion, a handy Quick Selection Tool, and more. In fact, there's so much to the latest version that it can be quite confusing at times. Photoshop Elements 6: The Missing Manual carefully explains every feature the program has to offer by putting each one into a clear, easy-to-understand context --something no other book does!
Learn to import, organize, and fix photos quickly and easily.
Repair and restore old and damaged photos, and retouch any image.
Jazz up your pictures with dozens of filters, frames, and special effects.
Learn which tools the pros use -- you'll finally understand how layers work!
Create collages and photo layout pages for greeting cards and other projects.
Get downloadable practice images and try new tricks right away.
This guide progresses from simple to complex features, but if you're ready for the more sophisticated tools, you can easily jump around to learn specific techniques. As always, author Barbara Brundage lets you know which Elements features work well, which don't, and why -- all with a bit of wit and good humor.
Don't hesitate. Dive into Adobe's outstanding photo editor with Photoshop Elements 6: The Missing Manual right away.
Perfect choice! This book was a gift, but my father-in-law called to say how much he has enjoyed it. The book is very well organized and easy to understand.
One of the best Photoshop elements is so extensive that most books or guides don't begin to cover what's available or even how to use the features. This leaves the new user lost and bewilidered. This book is the best I have seen and is much better than Adobe's help.
Great buy for Elements 6 owners Though this book is a bit more detailed than I think it needs to be, it is a wonderful book if you want the ins and outs of operating Adobe Elements 6.0
The writers do a great job.
A need to have for elements 6 As the cover says'The missing manual'. This is exactally what it is. This book should be sold with the program. Without it I would be lost in this very extensive program. The book is very extensive and is easy to read without being condescending. This is truely a must have to totally enjoy this great program.
Solid reference, needs a little polish. The Missing Manual is a solid reference - it certainly meets my needs as a Photoshop beginner. I also purchased The Photoshop Elements 6 Book for Digital Photographers (Voices That Matter) which led to a four stars rating for this book.
Previous reviews pointed to two peculiar issues with the publication. First, that the cover, particularly the spine, did not seem secure. Yes, the cover on my book was also floating away from the spine. It looks like the publisher deliberatly chose this construction. I worry about the durability since the book requires a good deal of flipping between sections.
A second complaint was that the graphics in the book are not clear. Yes, some of the screen shots are muddy (washed out). Considering the topic of the book, you would expect better visual presentation.
When visually compared to the VTM book referenced above, this book falls well short. The content of the two books is widely different. VTM is really for the advanced photographer working in a Production environment.
General content and step-by-step instructions in the Missing Manual are excellent. I have been able to recreate the sample exercises - they cover every click of every step. It is possible to open to any chapter to brush-up or practice. Some of the smaller dialogue surrounding file formats and alternatives to the crop tool deserve more emphasis. You will need to read deeply to find these gems.
Again, the content is excellent. If the publisher had taken the time to improve the binding and the graphics this book could have been a solid 5 Stars. ~CTC
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