Equipment and Software Books

Very informative,I am a novice at photo printing, and understood this book. very easy to understand what the author is saying. I am looking forward to the " Third Edition" if author chooses to write one, thank you. Mr C. Simons

This book will help any digital photographer/printer to learn about printing phtographs.

This book is getting mighty long in the tooth. It addresses inkjet printers from long before they became so good and useful. The approach to CMS, or color management systems, is superficial, and does not even address tools available when the book was written. It completely skips color spaces and the understanding of light and color.
However, it does give a broad beginning approach to understanding color printing. If you are just beginning to learn, this book is a good introduction covering many of the topics you will need an introduction to. Once past the introductory phase of learning, this book is of little value, being to basic in its handling of subjects to really be useful.

I bought this book in the hope of becoming a better printer not a better comercial printer. This is definately not a how-to book, for do it yourself hobbyist like myself, but more of a reference manual for comercial printers.

For the price I got to say the book is very well illustrated and contains nearly 400 pages of photos and print. However, Most of the pages are not dedicated to specific instruction on how to print, but on equipment graphs and printer specifications. It seems as if the author is beating around the bush. Out of the eleven chapters in this book, I think only 2 of them are dedicated to instruction, while the rest is dedicated to reference.

For example take a look at a few of the Chapter headings "Navigating the Digital landscape", "Understanding Digital Printing", "Understanding and Managing Color", "Determining Print Permanence", "Selecting an Inkjet Printer", "Choosing your Consumables", "Using a Print Service, get the picture. This makes for interesting reading on a bad weather day, or when you are on a long trip to Honk Kong, but it sure wont make you a master printer.

As a matter of fact most of the instructional material deals with one or two examples that did not really enlighten me whatsoever, since I had found the same information on the web prior to purchasing this book.

The way I see it this book will make a great conversation item in my growing library of photographic books, but I don't see it as a working manual sitting on my desk or by my printer. Therefore, I am very dissapointed with and cannot recomend it for advanced amateurs like myself.

Only 25 pages (Chapter 8) out of almost 400 total actually talk about making a print. The technique the author uses is highly based around the trial and error method. A Master printer, in my mind, should be able to hit it on the first print not after experimentation and a lot of testing. If that is not enough to lose interest in this author, there are some serious mistakes in those 25 pages as well. For instance page 268, there is a reference to the Print Space Profile--Same As Source. Anyone who knows how to print, knows that Same As Source is used ONLY to print a Target. I didn't see any reference in the book to a Target. I don't think the author knows what a Target is. This Book is a big disappointment for me. Take out Chapter 8 and come up with a different title.

This book is ok, but there are better ones out there. It's a quality publication and advances where the owners manual stops. For someone already familiar with basic photography (use ASM always) then this book probably won't offer you very much. If you're lost when you use manual settings on the D40 this book helps a little, but you may walk away still not getting it. Gets 4 stars because he could have been more conceptual when discussing the art of manually using a camera.

The book does a MUCH better job of describing the settings then the manual. And that's why I bought it. It IS a bit of a technical read, which is VERY difficult for me to stay focused on, but this book was able to give me a little bit more info on my new camera as well as even offer up some photography basics. I especially recommend this book to folks who are fairly new to the digital photography scene.

I think this book should have been the manual for the camera, because it has nice pictures and it is pretty clear. However, i don't think it has any additional information, so I can't recommend it.

This book is filled with great pictures and details. Easy to find what you are working on at the moment.

I bought this with my D40 and it is much easier to read (and more user-friendly) than the manual that comes with the camera. It has great diagrams and examples, and the section on shooting in different situations is helpful.

This is an excellent book. If you have PS 6, get the updated version of the book (I have a much more comprehensive review of that book). In short, this book is well written, easy to read, and yet thoroughly covers the subject. There are two camps of PS users: artists and photographers. This book is for the photographers. Half the book is background and theory and here's how to do the things you do with photos. The other half is very comprehensive walkthroughs of how to do real work to photos. All of the examples are supplied on the CD, so you can start with the originals, and compare your result with his. This is my bible for PS. It's not a step by step book, though, so is better for Intermediate to Advanced users.

There are plenty of books that 'teach' Photoshop but this one successfully teaches from the point of view of the photographer wishing to manipulate images digitally. Covers retouching, color correction and more. Doesn't just teach the tools, but also how to apply them effectively.

The book is somewhat advanced, providing depth beyond what you might expect from a general Photoshop text.

This book includes information the other greats forget...like how to create actions. The beauty and eye appeal this book has is not just skin deep, but the wealth of information you are given is well worth the price of the book. In fact, for all the time spent using this book as a personal teaching tool for Photoshop 5.5, money is saved in production time from the lessons learned and time and dollars spent going away to seminars or classes is eliminated.

Do yourself a favor and buy this book. You'll be grateful you did, and so will your boss and your customers!

As digital photography becomes more widespread photoshop and similar programs will be used by new users, not only those working with design/layout/publishing but also photographers and artists. Photoshop is not one of the simplest programs to cope with, it has become large and complex, "Photoshop 5 & 5.5 Artistry" manages to go through many different techniques used in Photoshop work. As a former researcher in image processing I am not the usual reader, but I do find it very valuable and comprehensive. It may not be a book you read from cover to cover, you will probably return to it as a handbook searching for information about something you want to do with an image.

The book is thorough and deep, it contains a lot of information, and don't skip this book just because it concerns version 5.5 while photoshop v7 is out, the book is still valid in everything except the graphics of photoshops various dialogs and interfaces. The theory and methods of working are valid for any program.

Highly recommended.

I will keep to this review short and to the point. This book contains a staggering amount of information. An unbelieveable wealth of information on Photoshop. I became 100 times better, and 100 times faster at using photoshop after having read this book.

The amount of time one must spend working their way through this book is also quite staggering. It's quite a commitment of time. But worth it.

I just read two lessons, and between page 109-page 111, there are a few paragraphs on "Creating evenly spaced buttons for a web page". Every time I tried to drag the styles on to view inside ImageReady, the style is applied to the while view swallowing EVERY button in the view. I don't know whether the editors tested the instructions thoroughly.

This book was very useful to me! It takes you step by step with each lesson provided that explains everything, as if you were in a classroom. It doesn't take up much time, and its very easy to read and understand. If you are looking to learn photshop 5.5 from the VERY beginning, this is the book to start with!

This is THE book to learn Adobe Photoshop by. This book will not allow you to master the world's best, but most complicated graphic design program known to man, but you will have the best introduction to the program available. This book is so complete, yet simple to use, I can give it to my student's and say start here on page one and ask me if you have questions. They rarely have questions and when the are done they KNOW the program.

Don't expect to pass the ACE [Adobe Certified Expert] exam with this book alone, unless you are a seasoned Photoshop guru. I studied this book cover to cover and memorized all the lessons in the back of each chapter, and I only passed the ACE exam by a handful of questions [I got a 78%]. Don't get me wrong, this book is an OK addition to the library as a supplement to the Photoshop 5.5 manual, but it is not as effective at teaching the more useful techniques. I prefer the "Photoshop WOW! Book" style - densely packed with nothing but page after page of useful tips, tricks, how-to's, and techiniques of the masters. This is not that book.

This book provides a do-it-yourself training program for Adobe Photoshop. It provides step-by-step instructions that will help you explore and learn to use the main features of Photoshop. Each lesson begins with an overview of the skills you will learn, and an estimate of the time it will take to complete the lesson. Following that are the instructions that guide you towards completing the assigned tasks to the artwork contained on the accompanying CD-ROM. At the end of every chapter is a short list of review questions and answers.

I came to this book as a complete beginner- -the only graphics software I had used before was Microsoft Paint. I had an inkling that my supervisor would soon require me to begin using Photoshop, and I knew that I wouldn't be able to do so without training. I managed to get about a 2 month head start in using this book before I needed to use the software for work. Since I could manage to complete about a chapter a week in this book, that was barely enough to get by when the time came. With no background whatsoever in graphic arts, I had a tough time understanding the minimal explanations contained in this book of gradients, masks, and channels. The explanations of how to use these tools are very clear, but even after learning how to use them, I'm still quite hazy about what they are and why a designer would use them. For that reason, I wish this book had suggestions for further reading, to help graphic novices learn more about the general concepts behind the tools. Nevertheless, by carefully following the training program in this book, I was able to develop the skills necessary to do small photo editing tasks. More importantly, thanks to this book, I am now quite comfortable with the Photoshop interface and all its palettes, which seemed so formidable in the beginning.

Overall, the instructions and screen shots in the book were quite clear. Even though I was using the book for Photoshop version 5.5 with version 6.0 software, I was still able to follow along on almost every task (sometimes with the assistance of Photoshop Help, to find the new location of the required tools). The only major inaccuracy that I found was in the chapter 15 review questions, where the sequencing of questions and answers was completely disorganized.

I was a beginner digital photographer when I got this book. Taught me a lot and I still use it and what I learned every day. Glad I bought it.

I'm a photography major and was required to get this book for class. Though it has a high price tag, it's very useful and will probably last for the rest of your life as a guide to photography. It starts from the beginning, from how a camera works, to how to develop film, printing, color photography, and more. There are detailed pictures, charts and examples to help you understand certain concepts.

This is a genuinely well thought out book concerning digital photography. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good grasp on all of the concepts surrounding Digital Cameras and image post-processing.

It's a good book, I'm doing first year photography at uni and this is one of the text's. it's writen in a way that is really easy to read and it covers everything really quite well.

I'm teaching a beginning digital photography class and this book was the one being used by the college. I went with it. On first read, liked the book but as I tried to structure a methodical, logical class, I found the book to be frustrating. The book jumps from one topic to another, often with no thorough treatment of a subject. Topics are scattered through it. It often promises "we'll cover more on that later" without really covering it well later. The book can't be read by a beginner because terms are often used without being defined or taught. The book assumes you already know about photography. I found I could not assign much reading from the book until 1/2 way through the course when the students had finally been introduced to ISO, shutter speed, f/stops, depth of field, exposures, stops, white balance, etc.

The back 1/2 of the book focuses on Photoshop CS which was not the SW we used in the class. That part of the book was nearly useless for us.

For someone already familiar with photography, this book isn't bad at all. As a text for a class, I'd not recommend it.

I have learned an immense amount of useful information from this book. If the 'levels', 'curves', and 'adjustment layers' were ever scary words to you, then they won't be if you read through this book.

Many 'how-to' books and websites tend to exclude important comments such as "...ignore the fact that your image is covered with the selected texture." Comments like these are very reassuring and can make the difference in keeping some readers tuned in.

I'm still learning from this book, and plan on purchasing the new edition sometime soon!

This book is loaded with more information and tips than I could possibly mention here. It's interesting from cover to cover. Consider it a tool to further your education in the graphics, photo retouching field. Highly recommended!

I've read her other book on compositing and all I can say is I love her style of teaching! It's inspiring and not canned at all. She doesn't teach you to just dial in numbers, but instead she focuses on the concepts so that you can then decide what numbers you need by yourself!

I definately recommend this book for any photoshopper who is serious about making the most out of his/her software.

I was pleased to see this second edition of the classic guide to retouching your images digitally. As always, each task is presented clearly and simply, with everything you need to know to successfully fix your flawed photographs. Highly recommended.

Very detail lessons. Not for the Photoshop novice. A good working knowledge of Photoshop is needed. Excellent learning tool for those interested in all aspects of photo restoration and retouching.

Following the Arcade scene for a few years, I've been promising myself this book once I'm ready to sit down and start building my own MAME Arcade cabinet.

After getting the book and skimming through the pages, I was disappointed to find it's either information I've already discovered on my own by surfing the Internet, or the links to additional content or files are severely outdated and a number of external links no longer work. The copy of MAME they provide you is ver 0.7x (Latest incarnation of MAME is over .100)

Don't get me wrong, this book is great for those who haven't already done the research and want an all-in-one book on how to do it. For me however, I gained nothing from the book.

This is a good book.
My only thing is most of this is on the internet and may even be more updated if you find the right websites.

But it is helpful as for the beginner will help you plan things out in advance. Would be nice to have a few more illustrations like some sample wire diagrams of the controls etc.

But again..it has lots of reference websites listed in the book that can also assist.

My suggestion is -> don't build a Mame Cabinet if you don't have the internet...because you will need it.

Seems to have covered all the basis and the added cd is a nice touch.

This book is a lot more "Techie" than I expected. It involves taking apart and reconfiguring quite a few things to get what you need. Sure it shows where to buy the components if you wish, but then why not just buy the arcade game already made. It does show you how to build the case. I thought it would show how to take your X-Box or Playstation and build an arcade enclosure to get the arcade feel. That is not what this book is about. You take a computer and several components, plus a moniter to make an arcade game. It is very informative but not quite what I expected. It is not a 1 or 2 weekend project. Do a search for mame to see what I mean. Mame is very important to this project.

This book covered so much more than what I was expecting. If you have never built an arcade cabinet before then I would recommend this book if only to see how many different ways it can be done.

I like the book. but i wish to warn buyers about outdated parts. in the book and on the cd it lists many links. but many of the website have gone down and are dead. in the description for the book it says it gives details on making controls, but some cases it just gives links. some of are dead. but it does give good info on emulator, encoders and many other things that are hard to find on the web. but i think the man should have cut some parts short and added controle construction.

This book is great. All I expected and more. Price was more than reasonable.

This is a very thick book. But it is a wealth of information on digital photography. You can use it as a reference or read the entire book. Most books you get on photography are outdated, and have not got much information on Digital Photography. this an up to date one.

I found this book particularly annoying in part because it continually suggests the reader can learn MORE about a given topic of interest by buying another book by the author. It blows off Mac and I found it a waste of money.

This book is huge and covers most anything one can think of on this topic. I bought it for my husband who has recently acquired a digital camera. He hasn't begun to even scratch the surface but has already found it helpful and knows it will as he tries new things.

The book is filled with info, but it "focuses" on the digital SLR, rather than the point and shoot. There should have been a warning in the description. It's still useful.

This book outlined Photoshop Elements 3 very well. The writing was very understandable. If you want to do more with Elements 3, this book will definitely help.

Most of the reviews I've read were very positive. Unfortunately I did not find the book all that useful. It talks a lot about what Photoshop can do, but very little about how to do it. As far as a user's manual is concerned, it is still missing.

Since Adobe abandoned providing a written manual following Version 2, Brundage's book not only fills the missing manual need but also, provides an expanded guide with a wealth of helpful hints not found in most manuals. Adobe should use Brundage's style for any future manual they might provide, if they change their mind. Elements is too extensive and complicated an application to learn how to use it from the 'How-To' palette or Help button.
Brundage begins by showing the reader around Elements, and then covers the setup, use and features of the Organizer. Recognizing that some Elements users don't like to use the Organizer or its associated Photo Downloader, she provides details of how to eliminate these features of the application.
Moving on, the next sections cover the Tool Box, the art of Quick Fix, Selections, and Layers (the jack of the many trades in Elements). Other sections cover Retouching, RAW image adjustments, Filters and Artistic touches. The final segment of the book exposes the best procedures of Printing, Web authoring and Web Galleries and Slideshows. In addition, three appendices provide menu guides for the Organizer and the Editor menus and installation/troubleshooting this application. The author provides an insight in to how to stretch Elements towards the capabilities of its much more expensive parent, Photoshop.
I consider my self a knowledgeable Elements and Photoshop editing user but have to admit I picked up some interesting tricks going through this book. It should be a must for any serious user of Elements. (Reviewed by MiltK)

I'm quite computer literate and have learned to use many computer programs, some of them quite complicated, just by exploring the program. Photoshop Elements isn't like that. You will barely scratch the surface of this powerful program if you don't get this book.

Elements comes with very basic tutorials. If you want to unleash some of the power of this excellent software, you need to get this book. To really did deep, you'll probably need to do some digging yourself, but this book gets you started and shows you what direction to dig in.

I am not a total newcomer to photo programs so a book that goes beyond basics was what I was looking for. This book fills the bill. It is well written and fairly easy to understand. The book discusses most of the capabilities of Elements 3 and has great photos as examples for the text. I had a lot of fun applying the lessons to my photos. The only 'con' I have is that I would have liked greater explanation and detail for use of some of the features, for example historigram and gradients, but as a primer to a more advanced book it can't be beat.
Adefinite "buy".

I was anxiously awaiting this title to arrive in the mail, particularly because of its emphasis on "expert" techniques. Though I didn't find every page riveting, the book on the whole fulfilled my expectations.

If you have jumped into the world of serious amateur or semi-pro photography, you no doubt own an SLR camera. It is a must. After continuing to shoot JPG for awhile, you venture into the world of RAW files. This is a whole new world with incredible possibilities. What you quickly find is your hard drive quickly fills up with RAW files and you have a hard time knowing how work with those files in any sort of time-conscious workflow. You let them pile up into a perpetual of backlog.

Ken Milburn knows his stuff, and has developed a highly effective workflow for processing, organizing, presenting and publishing his photos. His experience shows through in each chapter as he opens up his entire process for everyone who reads this title to learn from. Though I found some of my own workflow techniques already matched his suggestions, I found numerous suggestions I hadn't previously known or considered that have helped improve my effectiveness. Efficient and effective workflow is the overriding theme of this title.

Though much of the books training focuses on post production, namely in Adobe Bridge and Photoshop, a couple of chapters at the beginning get you optimizing and improving your in camera approach as well. Past the workflow theme, there is plenty of time spent on giving your photos the "wow factor" you have always wanted. What I enjoyed most was the improved techniques taught in the "non-destructive" phase of digitally developing your photos.

I recommend this book to anyone who is shooting a high volume of photos, particularly those that may be working their way into portrait photography for hire. Adding the habits and knowledge gained from this title will make you a much better professional as well as the ability to output top notch photos.

With a plethora of digital cameras appearing in the marketplace, purchases of these cameras has exceeded even the most ambitious sales predictions. Everyone and his grandmother now has a digital camera. A lot of these models are of the point and shoot variety. They're small, lightweight, actually take great pictures, and have many features for the cost. There are lots of publications out there: magazines, how-to books, manuals, videos, and websites which help newbie photographers along the path to good quality photographs. If you're looking for something like that, may I pass along a suggestion from the Ken Milburn, the author of this title under review? Before reading this book try Deke McClelland's Adobe Photoshop CS2: One on One (O'Reilly). You will then be "up to speed" and more able to handle the various terms and maneuvers in Digital Photography: Expert Techniques.

Along with all the less expensive point and shoot cameras, digital SLRs (single lens reflex) have also grown up. Most of these cameras will be purchased by serious amateurs, or "enthusiasts," and professionals. DSLRs have interchangeable lenses, more megapixels, and larger, more noise-free sensors. In other words they're more suited to professional and "prosumer" photography.

DSLRs also are capable of producing high quality RAW files which are, in large part, what this book is all about. It's also about workflow rather than procedures. If you're interested in what it takes to make true professional quality images in the most efficient and cost-effective way this book is for you.

The first thing I loved about Digital Photography: Expert Techniques is its organization, and the chapter outlines at the beginning. Here the author tells us what's in store for each chapter from start to finish. I also appreciate the way Ken Milburn writes. It's almost conversational, like having a good buddy who happens to know almost everything there is to know about what goes into a professional digital photograph, and being a professional photographer.

He starts us off with an overview around which the rest of the book is structured. There is a quick guide in the form of suggestions (some are common sense, others are anecdotal) like getting your camera ready, computer equipment and its configuration, image downloading, backing up originals, presentation for client approval, winnowing, preliminary editing, and the final output. He includes logical common sense tips about equipment, settings, and more. He even provides a comprehensive list of what's available -- suggesting hard drives, backups, monitors, and DVD writers. Efficiency is always the byword in workflow, and Ken Milburn leads the way.

Milburn teaches us how to connect to DNG (digital negative), a nonproprietary RAW format which anyone can use. He suggests that it may become a universal format which means that even if the RAW file format in your software becomes obsolete you will still retain your RAW files through DNG. Safety. Efficiency. Smart.

Since the author has been a professional photographer for decades he has learned through experience and study about being prepared in the field for both seen and unforeseen circumstances. He passes along sage advise and counseling in his chapter BE PREPARED.

One of the great features which has separated Adobe Photoshop CS2 from the rest of the pack is Adobe Bridge. It is a browser, but so much more. Ken Milburn gives the reader an excellent primer on how this feature works and its many advantages. He shows how simple it is, and at the same time it is scriptable, customizable, has variable thumbnail sizing, and has multiple browser windows which can be opened at the same time.

Want to create and use panel layouts to sort as you wish? How about creating a meta data template including all your camera info like settings, history, status, and even IPTC (International Press Telecommunications Council) info? He shows you how to do all this, and more.

Once we get into Camera Raw, Ken Milburn shows us how to streamline the process. Once it's set up you're ready to rip. For you Photoshop Elements 4 users he shows the differences between Camera Raw in Elements 4 and CS2. He also tells us the why and how of it all so we understand why all this is a good thing. Take for instance the aforementioned DNG files. The author implores the reader to strongly consider filing using DNG and lots of backup. It's possible that either through technical improvements, marketing considerations, mergers, or even dissolution of a manufacturer that a proprietary RAW format could become obsolete. It is certainly something to consider.

There are some clients out there who need their photos quickly. Wedding and sports photographers can attest to this. The author shows us that Camera RAW defaults to "smart" Auto adjustments for Exposure, Shadows, Brightness, and Contrast. So there's a good chance of getting a publishable image right out of the camera. Sweet! Milburn demonstrates how to open and adjust multiple RAW files quickly when the files have the same exposure, brightness, range, contrast, and color balance. He introduces us to HDR (High Dynamic Range), and High Key images.

Layers have been around for quite some time, and here we are shown a system for non destructive editing. There's a great chart listing in three columns Layer Name, Purpose, and Advice. It's like a quick check on WWKD (What Would Ken Do) for using Adjustment Layers. Even for those of us who might be new to Layers he gives us a quick rundown of Layers and Features in Adobe Photoshop CS2.

Ken Milburn's friend, Doug Sahlin, came up with an interesting idea which the author includes in Digital Photography: Expert Techniques. It's called the Magic Workflow Layers Action. It allows us to include the layers in the workflow for almost every image automatically, ensuring the photographer will follow a properly layered workflow for most basic steps. You can either get this in the book or download it from the sites provided. This alone could shorten the learning curve in learning layers workflow.

All of the general repair tools are reviewed but the author goes way beyond the characteristics of the tools and into the world of commercial photography and how these tools can work for the professional photographer. This includes Glamor Tips, Architectural Tips, Still Life, lighting from behind, and more.

Are you into montages or collages? Ken Milburn can help, and does he ever. We've all tried to string together various shots in an effort to create a panorama of a scene too vast for one shot, but with varying degrees of success. The author talks about exposure, tripods, and framing. There are several example photos showing what a professional panorama looks like. I've made all the mistakes he mentions, and then some. Thanks, Ken, for straightening me out.

In his chapter "Creating the Wow Factor" we get into the details of the various tools and how, using layers, the photographer can enhance just about any aspect of lighting, colors (or black & white), and even using what he terms a "fictitious imaging tool," liquefaction, which can remove unwanted pounds from a model, or add bulk to anyone or anything. He has many suggestions and techniques using Lighting Effects which are especially dramatic when used inside of layers. We learn how to make homemade backgrounds as well as Knockouts. If you like the look of hand coloring or tinting Ken shows us how to do it effectively and easily.

Milburn's experience as a pro for many years becomes a windfall for us readers as, in the last chapter, "Presenting Your Work to the World," he talks about some of the many ways to become recognized, and even paid, as a photographer. He starts by showing us how to get the prints we need by calibrating the printers and even LCD monitors. There are tips to show your images on the web, making portfolios, binders, contact sheets, and much more. And let's not forget the all-important Copyright protection using watermarks.

While our author is certainly a huge fan and user of Adobe Photoshop CS2, he is by no means married exclusively to that software. He lists alternatives and even talks about the differences and some advantages of software like Capture One Pro, Raw Shooter, Aperture (which can be used with Photoshop CS2), iView Media Pro, and Adobe Lightroom. All of these programs have their high points and are not to be dismissed as second only to Adobe Photoshop CS2.

If you've ever wondered what it takes to be a pro in the photo biz, Digital Photography: Expert Techniques will give you a good idea of the dedication, knowledge, and work it takes to do it right. One has only to look at Ken Milburns pictures to see why this book makes so much sense. His photos are pristine. He seems to be able to connect with the very vibrations of the colors, shadows, and details which are all part of an image, but are often times skirted over by photographers, if only for the lack of knowledge it takes to recognize these things and bring them "up" in the image. His techniques, to be sure, are always pointed toward one thing, and one thing only. Making the best image possible with the least amount of effort and expense. And here it all is, in this wonderful and smartly instructive book.

MyMac.com Rating: 5 out of 5

Are you a photographer who is serious about producing the highest quality photographs in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible? If you are, then this book is for you. Author Ken Milburn, has done an outstanding job of writing a 2nd edition of a book that focuses on digital SLR cameras that have higher megapixels of noninterpolated resolution, interchangeable lenses, and larger, more noise-free sensors.

Milburn, begins by putting the organization of the entire book in perspective. Then, the author covers how to set your camera to be prepared for shots. Next, he discusses the Bridge in relation to Photoshop and to the myriad ways that it helps to keep your workflow organized. He also gets into more depth about streamlining your processing while in Camera Raw. The author then continues by describing in detail, how layers can be used to isolate destructive operations, so that they can be carried out without affecting anything else you've done to the image. Then, he shows you how to use adjustment layers, which are completely nondestructive, to make overall image adjustments. Next, the author discusses making and using selections, masks, and other means of making adjustments that pertain only to portions of the image. He also covers all types of image repair, including retouching. The author continues by discussing the making of one image from multiple images using techniques of both collage and montage. Then, he presents the next stage of progressively more destructive editing: special effects. Next, the author covers specialized image processing. Finally, the author shows you how to prepare your image for output and then how to use that output to show off your talents in an efficient and cost-effective way.

This most excellent book is more about workflow than it is about procedures in a specific program. Perhaps more importantly, this book contains most of the information you'll ever need as a professional digital photographer.

This is a well written book that it's hard to put into a cubby. That's because one man's expert technique is another man's beginner's technique.

Milburn's style is to follow a workflow approach, starting even before capture and moving through the use of Bridge, Adobe Camera Raw and the main Photoshop program. Milburn emphasizes the importance of non-destructive adjustments and in the main program proceeds first with both overall and targeted adjustments which are made by adding layers which do not change the underlying photo. He recommends that only when these are completed should adjustments that effect the underlying image be made, and then only on image layers that have been created especially for this purpose. (Strangely, in creating this special layer, he recommends converting the background layer to Layer 0, selecting all the layers and then using Cmd/Ctrl-Opt/Alt-E. Most experts do not recommend changing the background layer, but rather just selecting the top layer in the layer stack and using Cmd/Ctrl-Opt/Alt-Shift-E.)

By the way if this last discussion of creating a new layer was incomprehensible to you, you are probably not one of the experts that Milburn is aiming at.

And of course there's the rub. In some chapters the instruction is quite suitable for beginning Photoshop users and in other chapters one would have to quite familiar with Photoshop to get something out of the discussion. Moreover sometimes this happens in the same chapter. For example, in the chapter on Camera Raw he gives elementary instructions on using the sliders on the adjust tab which would be quite suitable for a beginner, but not necessary for anyone with a familiarity with Camera Raw. Later in the same chapter, he discusses creating high-key and low-key images which I would consider closer to expert needs. Moreover, he sometimes leaves out what I felt was essential information. For example in the Camera Raw chapter he discusses the fact that there is a sharpening facility in Camera Raw, but doesn't mention that fact that it can be set to apply only to the preview without actually being applied to the image later opened in the main Photoshop program.

Some chapters are clearly aimed at more advanced Photoshop users and quite good. For example, the chapter on repairing the details was full of information that an expert user may never have encountered before or never appreciated the importance of.

Occasionally, I found that the author made reference to a particular chapter or a website that was inaccurate, but not fatal since the material was covered somewhere in the book.

Where does all of this leave one? Certainly, to get the most from this book, you will need to be experienced with Photoshop and Camera Raw. Many experts would then prefer to look for advanced information in more targeted books. But others who don't mind having their memory refreshed about things they already know will probably pick up several useful techniques from this book. I certainly did.

Reading many of the other review already posted, I couldn't help but chuckle at some of the 'complaints' regarding this book:

- there is too much emphasis on DIGITAL and not PHOTOGRAPHY

- there is too much emphasis on using Photoshop

- pictures chosen aren't of the best quality

Folks, the title of this book headlines the words DIGITAL and TECHNIQUES. This isn't a book that is meant to teach you how to become a better photographer or headlines a collection of great photographs, rather it is a book that is meant to teach you how to take digital images and turn them into BETTER pieces of work for whatever purpose you see fit.

Printed on very heavy stock paper, this is a guide that is full of color and has plenty of screenshots to help any user find their way through digital enhancement with Photoshop (or any other image editing software that utilizes the same words for the techniques that are presented here).

Packed with nearly 400 pages of material, this book presents topics in a clean, concise manner, spread over the following 12 chapters:

01. Basics
02. Advanced tricks
03. Using Bridge
04. Streamlining Camera Raw
05. Nondestructive Layering
06. Nondestructive Overall Adjustments
07. Making Targeted Adjustments
08. Repairs
09. Collage and Montage
10. Adding 'Wow' to your images
11. Special Purpose Processing
12. Saving for the web

I find Ken Milburn's book to be an excellent resource for all digital photography afficiandos that want to get the most out of their images and learn how Photoshop can fix or repair nearly any problem that can be found and viewed on a computer.

If you are a graphic designer or work with digital images on a daily basis, you owe it to yourself to pick up this great book that will most certainly add to your skillset... no question!!

***** RECOMMENDED