ShaolinTiger
08-02-2007, 04:34 PM
Photoshop CS2 RAW
Author(s): Mikkel Aaland
Publisher: O'Reilly (http://www.oreilly.com/)
Book Specifications: Paperback 205 pages
Category: Digital Workflow
User Level: Intermediate
Suggested Publisher Price: $34.99 USA / RM115 at MPH
ISBN: 0-596-00851-1
4781
Amazon.com: Photoshop CS2 RAW (http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FPhotoshop-CS2-RAW-Camera-Digital%2Fdp%2F0596008511&tag=quitsmokstopn-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325)
Info from Back:
"An important book dedicated to working with RAW in Photoshop, this comprehensive guide features a unique design that helps readers grasp the subject through visual instruction and prompts. The entire RAW process is explored, from shooting to using the Adobe plug-in converter and new Bridge navigation software."
Introduction
As I've explained elsewhere in the forum I shoot RAW, always RAW! I don't see the point in buying a wonderfully powerful SLR, with ultra sharp lenses and using the best technique when you just take the jpeg out of the camera and stick with that? May aswell use a PnS, they give much better results in jpeg without the need for any processing. Jpegs often come out of SLR cameras a little flat, lacking in contrast and saturation.
RAW gets the maximum possible detail and resolution out of your camera, convert the RAW to a jpeg and you have the best results possible.
The RAW file format is the uncompressed data file captured by a digital camera's electronic sensor. When your camera saves an image in RAW format, settings like white balance, sharpening, contrast and saturation are not applied to the image but are saved instead in a separate header. Because RAW files remain virtually untouched by in-camera processing, they are essentially the digital equivalent to exposed but undeveloped film.
I shoot both RAW+Jpeg(BASIC) incidentally for browsing purposes as browsing RAW files is rather slow on my old computer.
This makes RAW an increasingly popular format with amateur and professional digital photographers, because it affords greater flexibility and control during the editing process-if you know how to work with RAW files.
I have tried a few RAW converters (RawShooter, Nikon Capture and Photoshop) and I've found Photoshop the best for me, it's simple and effective and efficient and the rest of my workflow is in Photoshop anyway - so it suites me to also use Adobe Camera RAW to process the RAW files.
I didn't know if I was getting the most out of the RAW files though and sometimes didn't know the best ways to deal with certain situations.
This is where this book comes in, there is 3-4 books dealing with RAW processing in Photoshop and this is unanimously touted as the best, so I thought I'd check it out.
Contents
The contents as you can guess are pretty much limited to one topic, RAW! Everything to do with RAW, including some stuff on Bridge, Camera RAW and Photoshop.
It includes some neat stuff too like sharpening, noise reduction and effective B&W conversions from RAW files.
It's a very easy book to read surprisingly, I was expecting it to be very dry. I actually held back on reading it for a while, but once I started I finished the whole thing in less than 2 days.
Somehow it manages to be detailed without being over the top and it tells you every single permutation and explains every control in the RAW converter, this really enabled you to get the maximum quality from your RAW files.
Seriously if you are working with RAW in ACR, this is the book you need, it has everything you have been wondering about and some stuff you haven't thought of yet. It tells you exactly how to develop your RAW files using the histogram as a guide with the Shadow/Highlight warnings as a secondary guide. Very useful stuff.
Especially if you are having trouble with the rather bare Adobe instructions for the RAW converter.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Shooting & Importing RAW
Chapter 2: Using Adobe Bridge to Trash, Edit & Sort RAW Files
Chapter 3: Using Adobe Camera Raw
Chapter 4: Using Camera Raw Adjust & Curve Controls
Chapter 5: Advanced Tonal Control
Chapter 6: Sharpening RAW Smartly
Chapter 7: Reducing Noise, Correcting Chromatic Aberrations & Controlling Vignetting
Chapter 8: Better Black & White Images with RAW
Chapter 9: Archiving & Working with DNG
Chapter 10: Converting & Delivering RAW
Style and Detail
The style is very clean and neat and straight forward, there are lots of examples with big clear screen shots showing exact settings and detailing the exact work flow you should follow to maximise your RAW files.
The book is detailed without being overburdening and it covers everything you need to know about ACR in detail.
The writing style is fairly light, easy to read, not too much humour (like Scott Kelby and his witticisms) and definitely not too dry. The flow of the book is very natural and you can actually read it front to back without getting lost or overwhelmed.
It doesn't skim the highlights either, it really digs in and gives you the good stuff.
Of course with this kind of book I recommend you try each of the techniques as you read it at your computer with your own RAW files.
Conclusion
Photoshop CS2 RAW is one book of many that people should pick up if they are looking to take their knowledge to the next level. Photoshop is such an amazingly powerful tool with so many parts and features you can't expect to buy one book and learn everything. You have to start with something basic like The Photoshop CS2 Book for Digital Photographers (http://www.shutterasia.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2342) and then buy books for each area, like this one for RAW conversion.
If you are using ACR and RAW you should get this book!
Of course if you are a Jpeg shooter I recommend you sell your SLR and get a PnS :D
I give it a solid, easy to read and useful 9/10.
http://www.shutterasia.com/forum/../review_ranks/9.gif
keywords: photography, books, book review, photography books, cs2, raw, photoshop
This review is copyright 2007 by the author, ShaolinTiger, and Shutter Asia (http://www.shutterasia.com/forum/../), and may not be reproduced in any form in any media without the express permission of the author or Shutter Asia (http://www.shutterasia.com/forum/../).
Author(s): Mikkel Aaland
Publisher: O'Reilly (http://www.oreilly.com/)
Book Specifications: Paperback 205 pages
Category: Digital Workflow
User Level: Intermediate
Suggested Publisher Price: $34.99 USA / RM115 at MPH
ISBN: 0-596-00851-1
4781
Amazon.com: Photoshop CS2 RAW (http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FPhotoshop-CS2-RAW-Camera-Digital%2Fdp%2F0596008511&tag=quitsmokstopn-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325)
Info from Back:
"An important book dedicated to working with RAW in Photoshop, this comprehensive guide features a unique design that helps readers grasp the subject through visual instruction and prompts. The entire RAW process is explored, from shooting to using the Adobe plug-in converter and new Bridge navigation software."
Introduction
As I've explained elsewhere in the forum I shoot RAW, always RAW! I don't see the point in buying a wonderfully powerful SLR, with ultra sharp lenses and using the best technique when you just take the jpeg out of the camera and stick with that? May aswell use a PnS, they give much better results in jpeg without the need for any processing. Jpegs often come out of SLR cameras a little flat, lacking in contrast and saturation.
RAW gets the maximum possible detail and resolution out of your camera, convert the RAW to a jpeg and you have the best results possible.
The RAW file format is the uncompressed data file captured by a digital camera's electronic sensor. When your camera saves an image in RAW format, settings like white balance, sharpening, contrast and saturation are not applied to the image but are saved instead in a separate header. Because RAW files remain virtually untouched by in-camera processing, they are essentially the digital equivalent to exposed but undeveloped film.
I shoot both RAW+Jpeg(BASIC) incidentally for browsing purposes as browsing RAW files is rather slow on my old computer.
This makes RAW an increasingly popular format with amateur and professional digital photographers, because it affords greater flexibility and control during the editing process-if you know how to work with RAW files.
I have tried a few RAW converters (RawShooter, Nikon Capture and Photoshop) and I've found Photoshop the best for me, it's simple and effective and efficient and the rest of my workflow is in Photoshop anyway - so it suites me to also use Adobe Camera RAW to process the RAW files.
I didn't know if I was getting the most out of the RAW files though and sometimes didn't know the best ways to deal with certain situations.
This is where this book comes in, there is 3-4 books dealing with RAW processing in Photoshop and this is unanimously touted as the best, so I thought I'd check it out.
Contents
The contents as you can guess are pretty much limited to one topic, RAW! Everything to do with RAW, including some stuff on Bridge, Camera RAW and Photoshop.
It includes some neat stuff too like sharpening, noise reduction and effective B&W conversions from RAW files.
It's a very easy book to read surprisingly, I was expecting it to be very dry. I actually held back on reading it for a while, but once I started I finished the whole thing in less than 2 days.
Somehow it manages to be detailed without being over the top and it tells you every single permutation and explains every control in the RAW converter, this really enabled you to get the maximum quality from your RAW files.
Seriously if you are working with RAW in ACR, this is the book you need, it has everything you have been wondering about and some stuff you haven't thought of yet. It tells you exactly how to develop your RAW files using the histogram as a guide with the Shadow/Highlight warnings as a secondary guide. Very useful stuff.
Especially if you are having trouble with the rather bare Adobe instructions for the RAW converter.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Shooting & Importing RAW
Chapter 2: Using Adobe Bridge to Trash, Edit & Sort RAW Files
Chapter 3: Using Adobe Camera Raw
Chapter 4: Using Camera Raw Adjust & Curve Controls
Chapter 5: Advanced Tonal Control
Chapter 6: Sharpening RAW Smartly
Chapter 7: Reducing Noise, Correcting Chromatic Aberrations & Controlling Vignetting
Chapter 8: Better Black & White Images with RAW
Chapter 9: Archiving & Working with DNG
Chapter 10: Converting & Delivering RAW
Style and Detail
The style is very clean and neat and straight forward, there are lots of examples with big clear screen shots showing exact settings and detailing the exact work flow you should follow to maximise your RAW files.
The book is detailed without being overburdening and it covers everything you need to know about ACR in detail.
The writing style is fairly light, easy to read, not too much humour (like Scott Kelby and his witticisms) and definitely not too dry. The flow of the book is very natural and you can actually read it front to back without getting lost or overwhelmed.
It doesn't skim the highlights either, it really digs in and gives you the good stuff.
Of course with this kind of book I recommend you try each of the techniques as you read it at your computer with your own RAW files.
Conclusion
Photoshop CS2 RAW is one book of many that people should pick up if they are looking to take their knowledge to the next level. Photoshop is such an amazingly powerful tool with so many parts and features you can't expect to buy one book and learn everything. You have to start with something basic like The Photoshop CS2 Book for Digital Photographers (http://www.shutterasia.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2342) and then buy books for each area, like this one for RAW conversion.
If you are using ACR and RAW you should get this book!
Of course if you are a Jpeg shooter I recommend you sell your SLR and get a PnS :D
I give it a solid, easy to read and useful 9/10.
http://www.shutterasia.com/forum/../review_ranks/9.gif
keywords: photography, books, book review, photography books, cs2, raw, photoshop
This review is copyright 2007 by the author, ShaolinTiger, and Shutter Asia (http://www.shutterasia.com/forum/../), and may not be reproduced in any form in any media without the express permission of the author or Shutter Asia (http://www.shutterasia.com/forum/../).