5 comments about How to Cheat in Photoshop CS3: The art of creating photorealistic montages (How to Cheat in).

1. This book reminds me of having cliff notes during high school. It takes you to the point without confusion. It covers a vast number of things that interest me in my photography business.



2. I knew from the title that this book had a lot of cool special effects, and it does. What I wasn't expecting was the very pragmatic tutorial on artistic communication: how to tell a story by the relative placement of objects/people in a picture, or the slant of the eyes, etc. And, yes, you can actually turn a people's eyes (or their entire heads!) with some neat, easy, amazing tricks. I just didn't know some of this stuff was even possible. Definitely not a book full of stuff you've seen already.



3. We checked MANY photoshop books out of the library and only bought two and this is one. Love it. It comes with a cd with all the pictures that they walk you through so you can practice the steps yourself. Awesome



4. They explanations are sometimes not easy to follow. Or it's me? You can try it yourself.



5. There are a lot of good ideas and concepts provided in this book for some very cool effects. However, please know that many of the effects/settings are very specific to the images they use in the examples. For example, the section on "chroming" any image they use an image of a computer monitor and use the levels adjustments to make it look chrome. If/when you apply the same sort of settings to any of your own photos you will not get any results even remotely close to what they got. Your results will vary greatly with your own photos so it will take quite a bit of tweaking and trial/error to replicate.

5 comments about On Photography.

1. Sontag's On Photography was published in 1977. It includes six named sections which each tackle a slightly different subject. The sections were published independently as magazine articles years before the monograph was assembled--and this is plainly evident (which is my main 'complaint' about the text). The book does not feel or read like a book. It reads like a collection of six disparate essays that have been lightly edited for packaging as a book. The sections work OK as essays, but they fail somewhat as a monograph. For example, Sontag makes numerous assertions about photography which are stated as fact but not supported by any documentary evidence. While this is acceptable in an essay, in a monograph of this sort one would expect more academic rigor. Finally, each essay was clearly intended as an atomic piece and their collection in the book results in a large amount of re-hash of basic ideas at the start of every new section, as well as a very choppy flow between sections.
   
   The book is dated (which is entirely understandable--but true none-the-less). Sontag makes a single fleeting reference to digital photography as a quirky alternate method of capturing images. The text's discussion on the pervasive nature of cameras assumes the pinnacle of technology to be the Kodak Brownie. While this was arguably once true, photography has been so changed by digital capture and truly pervasive cameras (think cell phones, etc.) that many of the ideas of the text are only partially developed by today's standards. Additionally, Sontag's insistence that photography is the accidental but obvious champion of the Surrealist takeover of the arts is also dated. Sontag's insistence on using 'big' words and complicates sentences to describe simple things is also somewhat irritating; the tone is unmistakably that of 1970s/1980s critical academia.
   
   Having said that, the book occupies a fairly unique niche in the history of thinking about photography. As other reviews have noted, the subject material is (ahem) well focused on the topic and delivers interesting insight into various aspects of photography. It is unfortunate that Sontag did not more-fully edit the source materials into a cohesive text and at least attempt to look forward to a time when technological changes in process and artistic developments in taste could perhaps be different than the norms of the late 1970s.



2. I loved this book! It is so refreshing to read an unpretentious art criticism book. Her views are simple but breathtaking. The fact that one is reading essays about photography, written by someone who is not inside the art world, makes a huge a difference. She is not trying to create the new "it" artisitc concept, she's just speaking as a photography lover and admirer.



3. First this book should not ne taken seriously, it's meant to be just being critical about photography thats all, secondly even though author is American she sounds like European middle age scholar minded critic. Third, she doesn't know about fine art photography in depth, she only criticises and about 20-30 very famous photographers she knows of, she didn't taken into account most (almost all) modern photographers. Most of the time she sounds like a 19. century European painter just lost his job because of rising of photography, but also wants to learn about new technique called photography with a great frustration and misses his old job a lot.. Sontags background about philosophy and sociology didn't help much for a healhty criticsm of photography..
   
   Good try for a criticism of fine art photography, I think every serious fine art photographer should read this book, because it teaches the way how the fine art photography could be criticised in a wrong way, and this book does a damn good job.



4. Susan Sontag is the ultimate critic and reading "On Photography" is only beneficial to any aspiring photographer. The book has much to say about photography, applicable beyond the subject itself.
   
   Worth reading!!!



5. I purcheased this book for my son who needed it for his photography class in college. He has found it easy to understand and very imformative.

5 comments about Creative Nature and Outdoor Photography.

1. The best, quick study, complete book on taking pictures in the outdoors, that I have seen to date.



2. I own a few Shaw, ( Nature Photography field guide) Mammoser,(The Photographer's guide to the Colorado Rockies)and (Digital Photography for Dummies) by David Busch who also has written specific guides for cameras. The three make up a complete library . Tharps book is like attending an advanced photo workshop, Concepts rather then specifics are taught . She really explains for example Light, how to use it .Chapter 10 on self evaluation is worth the price of the read. My only regret is not having a digital specific section.,



3. I bought this booking thinking that it can make me learn few important things but alas all it teaches me is how to spend more on filters and trying to understand the photographs taken by author, We are interested in finding our own creativity but not a borrowed one, this book is such a disappointment...



4. I was disapointed in this book. There's a lot of "pay attention to this or that" but not much actual help. If you have no clue what makes a good composition, maybe it will be helpful to you, but I thought it was pretty top level. "Light is important, texture is important, balance is important." Duh.



5. Learning about photography, this is a great first time /review of things you for got and thing you just didn't know how book.very helpful.

5 comments about Magic Lantern Guides: Pentax K10D (Magic Lantern Guides).

1. Recently purchased a Pentax K10D and the manual is vague on certain things. This book clears up some of the confusion and makes everything much clearer to understand. Loads of info, so it will take time, as it is a complex camera as well.



2. Great expansion to the manual. I found the book to be an added resource to explaining the many features the K10D has to offer.



3. The manual that come with the camera is, well, a detailed manual... It is helpful in clarifying what each and every button or option does, but doesn't help you make choices on what mode or option to use in various lighting conditions, etc. The Magic Lantern book does give you advice on how to use the various features, and what are reasonable choices given the type of shot, available light, is subject in motion, etc. It also gives an updated view of the camera, covering recent firmware upgrades (most notably v1.10), the manual doesn't even mention new features available. I'm a DSLR newbie, so this book continues to be a useful reference. As you use your camera, you'll run into situations like low light or flash photography where the book won't have all the answers, but that's understandable. At that point you're on your way to exploring photography with the K10D, a great tool, so the book achieved it's purpose!



4. This is an exellent book to have when you buy your new camera. It provides a little more depth than the camera guide that comes with your camera purchase. I would highly recommend any of the Majic Lantern Guides when trying to familiarize yourself with a new camera.



5. This camera is designed for photographers with a working knowledge of "film cameras" and manual exposure experience. If you don't understand how cameras work without the "auto" mode, this book explains everything you need to know about this Pentax model. This book also explains all the custom settings and camera functions in better detail better than the Pentax manual.

5 comments about Portrait Photographer's Handbook.

1. I saw the high ratings for this book and thought it would be great to add to my collection. While the pictures are vivid, the book is a disappointment. The focus seems to be primarily on digital photography. If you're using digital then this book might be good for you. I was hoping to have a book that offered insight into both. My focus is film. It always has been and always will be, as I love working in the darkroom. I enjoy to learn primarily from film based books because I have a chance to see what can be done without relying on viewing the image in the digital viewing area. I also get to see what work is done in the darkroom as opposed to PhotoShop. This book deals too much with both digital and PS editing techniques. As such, it's not a book that will go great on my shelf and I'll probably end up selling it in a garage sale someday. A waste of money as I am sure I won't get as much as I paid for it.
   
   If digital is your medium then this book might work for you. If you're looking for great film techniques you may want to look into another book. Or at least look at an older edition of this book.



2. Well, I bought this book based on glowing reviews. I should have checked it in the local bookstore first.
   
   Cons: The book is loaded with so many soft focused images and pretentious poses as if there are no other technique. There is no life in those images. Some of images clearly overprocessed in Photoshop with oversharpened eyes and blurred faces. So, if you are into soap opera looks and poses this is certainly a book for you.
   
   Pros: On the other side the author (and his contributors) does know his trade . Lighting, composition,color etc look very professional. It is just so boring



3. "Portrait Photographer's Handbook" by Bill Hurter is a valuable resource for anyone interested in portraiture. It starts off with a pretty useless discussion of camera format/size. It then launches into lenses, film and so on. All of this is fairly elementary but useful as a review. However, when Hurter gets into metering, lights and light modifiers, things get more interesting. Chapter 3 is devoted to posing (there could be more on this). Chapter 5 discusses portrait lighting. While this might be a review for some, I found tips and tricks that I really appreciated. The lighting diagrams were well drawn and the illustrative photos were very good. (It sure does help to have beautiful people to photograph!). Chapter 7 on outdoor lighting was useful to me (I don't do that much outdoors). Chapter 9 on corrective lighting and posing techniques was well done. Chapter 10 was on PhotoShop retouching techniques - very good basic stuff. See also "Skin" by Varis. In short an excellent book, clearly written, and beautifully illustrated by some of the top portraitists (is there such a word?) of our day. I would have liked a few Karsh portraits included, but that's just me. Recommended.



4. I waited a few months for the 3rd edition to come out, and now wish I hadn't, due to how it tries to put three books - an introduction to digital photography, a portrait handbook, and a book on Photoshop techniques - into 120 pages. Each of those subjects is far too in-depth to cover well in one book and, even as it is, it's poorly done.
   
   Chap. 1 - Equipment and Basic Techniques
   A good intro to lenses, depth of field, meters, umbrellas, etc.
   
   Chap 2 - Good Digital Working Techniques
   Here's where it starts to go off track, basically giving you a beginner's manual on digital photography, including info on formatting your cards and backing up your images.
   
   On top of that, the Shadows/Highlight tip on page 25 is flat-out wrong. First it has you create two copies of the layer, apply Shadows/Highlight, and then apply a layer mask, when in fact the Shadow/Highlight tool is designed so you don't have to use a copy or layer mask. And when it says to paint white on the faces "to conceal the underlying data," painting with white actually reveals it.
   
   The Camera Raw examples are also useless, as when it shows the resolution bumped from 2000x3000 to 4000x6000. Any beginner reading this is going to think that's the way to go and end up with a huge file that will only bog down their computer with useless resolution. It even says, "by converting the file from Adobe RGB 1998 to a wider-gamut color space (ProPhoto RGB), the file can be easily enlarged to 4000x6000 pixels." Color space and resolution have nothing to do with each other, and 99% of the people reading this book wouldn't want to do either of these adjustments.
   
   Chap 3 - Posing
   At last we get to portraits, and here there's good general guidelines covering the shoulder, eyes, mouth, and hands. But the stock photos illustrating the chapter don't help at all. For instance, it says to have a man fold his arms across his chest with the edge of his hand turned to the camera, but you're not given a clue how it looks. Instead, we get a half page photo of a pregnant woman lying upside down, wrapped in gauze. We're even told the title of the portrait: "Anticipating." But we don't learn a single thing from it.
   
   Chap 4 - Composition
   Briefly covers the rule of thirds and the golden mean, and tells you how "the S-shape composition is perhaps the most pleasing of all compositions," and the inverted L-shape is "ideal for seated subjects." Sounds great, but heck if I know what they look like `cause there's not a single example of either of them.
   
   Chapter 5 - Basic Portrait Lighting
   The text is fine, covering all the basics, including metering. Hurter also tells us how split lighting can be used to narrow a wide face, but there's not a single example in the whole book. In the same way, another section says "a round face may appear more flattering from a different angle." But again, it offers nothing in terms of what the angle might be or what it looks like.
   
   To top it off, only three photos in the whole book show the lighting equipment and set-up for how a photo was made, so you have to guess what is where and what it might look like. Monte Zucker's own "Portrait Handbook" has dozens of such examples.
   
   Chaps 6 - Lighting Variations, and Chap 7 - Outdoors Lighting
   These chapters are about window light and portable flash and are quite good on both subjects, covering scrims, fill-flash, etc. In fact, these two chapters are actually better than Douglas Allen Box's entire book on the subject, "Professional Secrets of Natural Light Portrait Photography."
   
   Chap 8 - Spontaneous Portraits
   This section is short, but good on interacting with your subjects.
   
   Chap 9 - Corrective Techniques
   This section covers how to correct twenty-one problems, from overweight subjects to large ears, but it crams it all in on just four pages, with no examples.
   
   Chap 10 - Retouching Techniques
   This waste of eight pages starts off with a full page of text about retouching in the old days. As for the rest of it, it's nuts to talk about linking layers and layer sets, which most people will never use and there isn't room here to cover well.
   
   Chap 11 - Fine Prints
   When buying a book on portraiture, you don't want to be reading what the unsharp mask tool does for the twentieth time. And you sure don't want to be reading about monitor calibration, color management, printer profiles, and color correction. Katrin Eismann's "Restoration and Retouching" and her new "Creative Digital Darkroom" cover all these much more clearly and comprehensively, so just get one of those and skip everything Photoshop in this book, just like the author should've.
   
   Review Summary
   If you're new to portrait photography, you'd be better off with Erin Manning's "Portrait and Candid Photography" in that it's much better illustrated in making each point, shows the actual equipment you'll be using, and covers the usual situations you'll encounter. If you're a bit further on and want to learn great technique, Monte Zucker's own "Portrait Handbook" is excellent in focusing on each area, with photos to match the text, and has dozens of photos showing the positioning of the lights, scrims, reflectors, and windows. And when he brings up digital issues, it's all useful in portrait work, as in how to actually read the histogram to ensure an accurate exposure.
   
   In the end, this book tries to cover too much and so ends up giving too little. If it'd focused on what it's supposed to be - an introduction to portraiture - instead of using up a full quarter of the book on digital issues, you'd actually have something.



5. Superb studio images. Goes into good detail without being too technical and covers a wide range of info for the portrait photographer from lighting to film and camera types to posing and more. Well done resource.

5 comments about Canon PowerShot Digital Field Guide.

1. I love this book because it explains the nuts and bolts of the Powershot series cameras. It has great explanations and sample photos to illustrate each of the techniques. I reference this book all the time and take pictures using the tips learned. This was a smart purchase. I highly recommend this book.



2. All the other Digital Field Guides I've gotten have been great, but I think they tried to cover too many different cameras in one book. The menues tend to be different in many of the cameras but the direction paragraphs aren't labeled which cameras they are for unless there is a special paragraph for one particular camera. I didn't find it any help at all.



3. This Product has been very helpful leaning to use my new camera, alot of good tips. Recommend. Jeff Leyshon



4. I was looking for something better than the vague user guide, and ending up with a book that tries to describe how a number of Canon digital cameras work, as opposed to one that really explains how one camera model works. Not much help for working with my G9.



5. It's not a bad book and because it didn't cost a lot was worth getting. But it covers too many diverse cameras.

5 comments about China: People Place Culture History.

1. I visited China earlier this year on business, so I was intrigued when I came across this book. When I opened it, I was not disappointed. This book celebrates China and its variety of culture, art, landscapes and rich history with beautiful photography and educational text.
   
   The beginning section of the book draws you in with page after page of beautiful photographs of different landscapes in China, sprinkled with verses from Chinese poetry (translated to English, of course). It makes the reader aware of the varied landscapes (snow to desert, mountains to plans, forest to fields) that make up the vast country of China. Truly a treasury of photos!
   
   The next section explains Chinese history, complete with a timeline. The information is provided in titled short paragraphs and articles so it is easy for the reader to get a glimpse of the history and read quick pieces for more detail. Small articles include items such as "The Grand Canal" and "The Boxer Uprising". All are sprinkled with old photographs and pictures of paintings and artifacts.
   
   The most delightful section of the book is "A Day in the Life" which is a collection of stories about daily life of particular people in different areas of China. There's the life of a student in Shaanxi, a Chinese herbalist, a Buddist Monk, a Cricket Seller, and a farmer, just to name a few. The photos and text provide a window into the lives of the people of China to let the reader see life from their eyes.
   
   There is also a section on Chinese Culture, which includes articles on philosphy and religion, painting, literature and Chinese opera.
   
   The last segment of the book is entitled "Architecture" and contains pieces on various types of building styles, both old and new. From modern buildings such as the 88-story Jin Mao Tower in Shanghai to an old Buddist Monastery in Hebei, this chapter contains a wealth of information and beautiful photography. The Jin Mao Tower is truly stunning inside (I wish I had gone to see it while I was there!). The Couple's Garden is typical of the gardens in Suzhou that I visited while there. One of the most beautiful places shown in called the "Temple of Heaven" with colorful painted decor and detailed stonework.
   
   I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone wanting to learn about China and its culture. It is not only informative, but makes a beautiful "coffee table book"!



2. Stunningly beautiful photos ... well-organized chapters ... plenty of information on many aspects of Chinese culture. I gave this book to my 11-year-old nephew for Christmas, so he will begin to appreciate that China is very much more than a supplier for Wal-Mart!



3. Taoism is the heart of Chinese culture. This is what makes Chinese different from Westerners. One cannot understand Chinese culture and Chinese elite without understanding Taoism. ---By the author of Warren Buffett and Tao Te Ching: A Modern Investor and an Age-Old Philosophy



4. I will summarize the reactions and comments from 3 different generations with different experiences.
   1. Our parents' generation who live in China but visit US occasionally - This book has a different perspective about China. It is not how we view it, but it also strikes a cord with us because it combined something old and something new, or in another word, a new perspective on both new and old things.
   2. Our generation who lived in China until college years and then lived in the US afterwards - Great introductory book of China. It is simple and it is mostly from a Westerner's perspective in terms of how the history, architecture and cultures are described - a very good one indeed. It is certainly missing a lot of information, especially about the culture and the ways of life in the northern part of China where tradionationally held a stronger influence in the country. But we also agree that this book is an effective introduction.
   3. The kids who are born in the US and managed a visit or two to China - Curious. Tell me more. Is that really how you lived, Mom and Dad?
   
   So overall, it is a wonderful book to read and many great photos to look at.
   As much as it feels complete, it is only a simple slice of China and you can only take one slice at a time.



5. Well scrubbed look at current life but a well done historical look still, a great read and beautiful to look at. Just don't ask too many questions about political freedoms.

5 comments about Photography (9th Edition).

1. This book is pretty comprehensive. I am using it for a basic photography class. It covers a lot of subjects, but none in great detail. The newer versions actually covers a bit of digital photography as well.



2. This was a required text for my Photography 101 class and well worth the price ($20 less here than at the college book store). This book covers all the basics of photography tog et you started and the information is clearly illustrated by accompanying photos. This will be one I'll definitely be keeping as a reference.



3. textbook needed for photography class. Its new and arrived on time. One can also be satisfied with the older edition of the book- especially for a beginner.



4. This is the book! If you are studying for the CPP test this is the one. It is comprehensive to a fault. The explanations of photo concepts are complete and easy to understand. The only problem is that the book is so big that it is falling apart. Wish me luck on the test!



5. Book is very informational. It is printed on heavy gloss paper stock, every page is full of pictures and illistations. Printed in USA.

2 comments about Photographing Your Family: And All the Kids and Friends and Animals Who Wander Through Too (NG Photography Field Guides).

1. I picked this book up after seeing the author and book profiled on CBS Sunday Morning. I would like to return it as it falls short of really teaching one how to photograph their family. I love photography... and I love my family, but I'm no better off now as a photographer having bought this book. Unfortunately, I can't recommend the book and I'm a big fan of this photographer.



2. You know how you used to take lousy photos with your old film cameras, but then the digital revolution came along and you finally bought an expensive, feature-laden 10MP digital SLR and you suddenly find yourself... still taking lousy photos?
   
   Yes, because it doesn't matter what kind of camera you have. You still need to learn a few hints and tips to use it properly. A photographer with good skills could get amazing images out of a pin-hole camera.
   
   The wonderfully clear and simple new National Geographic book, Photographing Your Family, provides just about everything you need to know about taking great pictures of your kids, spouse, friends, pets, and whoever else you point your camera at. Award-winning photographer Joel Sartore offers his guidance and tips on subjects ranging from light to composition to printing. More importantly, on every page of the book he features examples of his own images. There is no better way to learn photography than to study the work of others. Sartore's accompanying text is easy to understand for a beginner, but detailed enough for those who might need a refresher. My 9-year-old son even enjoyed looking through it, and picked up a few techniques he can use right away.
   
   So, stop taking lousy photos. Instead, take the time to learn a few things so you can start having fun with your camera. Photographing Your Family is the best book I've seen for helping the average person capture those special family moments that belong in a photo album. Highly recommended!

2 comments about Vegas Pro 8 Editing Workshop.

1. This book is a treasure trove of info. It is one of those indispensible manuals that gives so much needed info, counsel, and absolutely clear examples. This is a MUST BUY for anyone learning Vegas or video/audio editing. Excellent job. A DVD with samples, examples, and software is included. The answer you are looking for is in this book. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.



2. I've been wanting a Vegas reference book that starts where the meagre Sony documentation leaves off. So when I saw the Amazon blurbs for this book that said, "a complete handbook for new and advanced user", "exhaustive, richly detailed resource that no Vegas user should be without" and "This comprehensive guide delivers the nuts and bolts of the essential tasks" I immediately bought it.
   
   After looking through it for several days I'm returning it. Contrary to the specific praise I quoted above, this is not a comprehensive reference book, it's more like a compilation of the author's favorite Vegas applications.
   
   There are 90 pages on Vegas audio, many pages in two separate places talking about making video look more like film, a whole chapter talking about third party plug-ins and another chapter on using multiple cameras. But there are less than 20 pages talking about the dozens of video fx plug-ins that come with Vegas, something much more fundamental to my being able to really use this program than any of the above.
   
   And even when the author spends time on a subject I found it incomplete for someone without prior knowledge of the subject. A perfect example is his treatment of color correction in Vegas, something I am very interested in. He presents about a dozen examples of the videoscopes and other color monitors available in the program but never explains how to read them or how to use the information they represent.
   
   If your interests coincide with the author's you will probably find this a rewarding manual, but if you're looking for a book that explains this software in depth and in breadth you will just have to join me in hoping that somewhere someone is writing the Missing Manual for Sony Vegas.