Adobe Photoshop 7.0: Studio Techniques [With CDROM]

I'm a beginner at Photoshop 7 and this was definitely NOT the book to start with. Because one review said that it covered the basics, I thought it would be okay, but I just don't have the experience with the program yet to benefit from what is no doubt an excellent book.

I really just want to tack on another very positive assessment to the others posted here. Mr. Wilmore is a very good technical writer and a Photoshop master. I've been using the program since v3.0 and, while we all know it as the Cadillac of digital imaging programs, it has a very steep learning curve indeed. I have lots of PS books, many of them follow the step 1, then step 2, recipe. This is definitely not that kind of book, and doesn't employ that approach to learning.As others have already stated, the section on color correction is hands-down the best I've seen - even with the new auto-color correction in PS v7.0, his explanation is not only worth reading -- with what you learn you can sometimes do better manually.This is one great book for a fantastic program.

I highly recommend this book to help you really understand Photoshop. Ben Willmore's Photoshop 7 Studio Techniques is a book required by my latest Photoshop class. With a previous professor I was using Classroom in a Book. What a difference everything makes! First thing, you open the book and it is filled with lovely color pictures. Imagine that? Sounds silly, but maybe, gasp, all computer graphics books should be in color? After all, we don't live in Pleasantville. Second, the book is easy to read. When you read a chapter you don't want to be bogged down reading a page for half an hour. The book informs you well, with a flow that makes you feel as though Ben is right there in a chair next to you. Third, the book doesn't make you follow directions without letting you know the how and why of it all. This book actually teaches you how things work, without the pocket-protector. Anybody with the most basic understanding of their computer should easily learn from this text.Fourth, all computer books should be accompanied by a cd-rom. There is also a web site mentioned in the book that the author runs that is well worth a bookmark.I actually wanted a Classroom in a Book for an Illustrator class, because I was used to the format, and now I only wish that Ben Willmore wrote books for that program as well. All textbooks should be this informative and easy to read. Worth every penny.

Mr. Willmore started off on the right foot with me in the intro when he states that he would include at the end of each chapter a "technobabble decoder ring," which serves to demystify the terminology thrown around in most software guides. Coming from a web design background, I was mostly interested in how I could use Photoshop to do website layouts - material which is covered in only two or three chapters at the end of the book. Before actually reading the book, I was a little disappointed at first that internet design was given such little attention. Then I started reading through the chapters.As I continued through the pages, I was delighted to see that ninety percent of the book covered material that would prove to be invaluable in learning to master the program, both for offline and online designs. With humor and insight, Mr. Willmore takes the mystery out of blending modes, curves, layer masks and channels - tools that, as he puts it, "separates the amateur from the professional."I wish Mr. Willmore would write books covering other programs like Paint Shop Pro, which badly needs a guide as in depth as this one is for Photoshop 7. Needless to say, this is a MUST-HAVE for any aspiring or established Photoshopper.

I come from a strong photographic background and have been using Photoshop since version 4.0 for preparation of web and print material. I only wish I had this book 4 years ago instead of wasting my money and time on a dozen fluffy Photoshop books. If you only buy one Photoshop book, this is the one to get.Willmore has a gift for explaining the most complex subjects in a way that is very easy to understand. He holds your hand through many excercises but doesn't fall into the trap that most writers do by telling you step by step, you will learn Photoshop much more thoroughly with Wilmore's method.Thinking of taking a college Photoshop class? Buy this book, work through all the chapters and you probably will end knowing more than than most teachers, this book is that good. If you want to really learn Photoshop and not just follow steps 1 - 10 like most books do (and end up just knowing how to follow steps) this is the book to get.The section on color management and color correction is worth the price of the book alone!