Real World Nikon Capture Nx

Look, you have three book choices if you want to learn NX: (1)The Nikon manual, (2)the CD by Jason Odell, and (3) this book by Ben Long. What's wrong with using all three sources of information when learning a new piece of software? All will add to your knowledge base to some degree depending on how you learn. Long's book is fine and helps you accomplish your goal of becoming proficient at NX. It's color illustrated, available, and is one of three of your only choices. You will not be wasting your money. I currently use NX2 in conjunction with Photoshop CS3, a user of over 7 years. I find myself gravitating more to NX2 than CS3 and this book helped me in doing so.

It was slow but was recieved on time. Book binding came loose but book still great.

I bought Nikon Capture NX as soon as it was available, intrigued by descriptions and magazine reviews, and hoping to speed and enhance my RAW workflow. Unfortunately, the accelerating press of work, the need to get post processing done on a never-ending stream of images caused me to put off making the switch from the old Nikon Capture 4.x.x lest my fumbling and incompetence with new software slow or affect the quality of my work. Up front I'll say that his explanation of control points (U-Point Technology, as NIK puts it) was worth the price of admission. So yes, I'm fully satisfied that I've had my money's worth out of this book. Also, I'll say that his elementary explanations of curves, levels, and histograms was worthwhile; most users of imaging software already know the information on some level, but his blunt, unadorned explanations was refreshing, and I took something of value away from reading his perceptions on these subjects. However, unlike some other reviewers, I didn't find the book to be particularly well written, assembled, or edited. It had a rush-to-market feel to it throughout. There are references to "sidebars" that are not really sidebars; some may have been referred to but left out. At least I was unable to find a couple of them, flipping back and forth through the pages repeatedly and in vain. Also, I get tired of imaging software books written by and primarily for dedicated Mac users. PLEASE...don't get me wrong; I think Macs are wonderful. I have previously owned several. But despite the fact that artistic types and imaging professionals comprise a larger percentage of Mac users than the market as a whole it's a Windows world, like it or not. I would prefer to see Windows screen shots used and Windows keystrokes emphasized. It's niggling, but there it is. Bottom line: If you have or intend to purchase Nikon Capture NX but haven't used it yet, buy the book and spend an evening with it. If you've already adopted the software and made it a part of your daily or weekly workflow, you probably won't find the same value.

The book is well written, easy to understand following the authors instructions. One minus point: the book is poorly bound, after using it for one week it started to come apart.

I'm not sure what the other 2 reviewers were expecting from this book but I found it to be a great guide for my workflow. Mr. Long cuts through the clutter and gets to the brass tacks on how to use this program quickly and easily. Sure, as the other reviewer alluded to, he doesn't go as deep as the manual-but using this book in conjunction with the manual is a 1-2 punch. Anytime I want to learn more on any of the subjects he covers, I go to my manual. This isn't a replacement for the manual--it is a supplement to the manual. Learning the ideal use of Control Points (worth buying Capture NX alone for this feature!) and getting a real persepective on the software makes all the difference for me. The section on selection brushes cleared up a lot of confusion for me and opened up a whole new world for my photography. Thanks to Capture NX and this book I'm spending far less time in Photoshop and other programs and getting a finished, deliverable picture while keeping an archive of all of the steps along the way. [...]I can't wait to see Vincent Versace's new DVD set coming out as well. Buy this book, you won't regret it. Michael