The Digital Darkroom: Black and White Techniques Using Photoshop [Paperback]

George Schaub (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1999

It's the new system revolutionizing photography. So go digital--for better pictures, more flexibility, and a wide variety of photo possibilities. Even those with only the most minimal darkroom experience will get into the swing intuitively, grasping new and creative possibilities for controlling tone, contrast, and other aspects of black-and-white pictures. Step-by-step, this workshop approach explains how to change from conventional photography to the digital realm, using a wide variety of images that demonstrate both problem-solving techniques and imaginative ideas. * Compare digital and film photography, processing, imaging power, and software. * Set up a complete digital darkroom. * Know all the control systems' command chains--including how to change color photos to black-and-white, adjust images, and much more. Any photographer will feel like a real professional! 160 pages (6 in color), 125 b/w illus., 10 x 10.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Digital Darkroomtakes a conventional darkroom technician's approach to a favorite and powerful image editing tool, Adobe Photoshop. With opening discussions on the nature of film versus digital images, and how they relate to printing, this is an excellent book for photographers entering the digital realm, including new users of Photoshop with an eye for black and white printing.

The book begins with a section on setting up and configuring the computer, as well as calibrating the monitor and Photoshop. There is no CD-ROM with the book, so readers must have their own files for experimenting and learning.

Unlike most computer-centric books, this is an oversize softcover, each page a glossy print with excellent reproduction befitting a book on photography. The quality of the images and the examples is excellent, and the author writes in a clear, concise manner with easy-to-follow short tutorials that include before-and-after images.

There is something special about nudging a sheet of photographic paper in a bath of chemicals and watching the latent image emerge. A romantic notion, but there is no undo command, no history palette, and no adjustment layers. Exploring options in a darkroom is a time- and money-consuming task that often leads to wasted sheets and stained clothes. In The Digital Darkroom, the only thing missing is the smell of the chemicals. --Mike Caputo

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Sterling (June 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1883403510
• ISBN-13: 978-1883403515
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 9.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,859,350 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Digital Darkroom: Worthless, February 20, 2000

By 

Craig Steven Jepson (New Hampshire) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Digital Darkroom: Black and White Techniques Using Photoshop (Paperback)

I was completely disappointed in this work. It contains only a general discussion at the very most basic level. It has no techniques, no helpful illustrations, and no description relating the digital process to the chemical process. There was nothing in this book that I could use to improve my scans, to correct contrast, to pull the most out of poor negatives, or to fix problem shots.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book but not for beginners, January 7, 2001

By 

Dr. Jim Botsford (Brighton, MI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Digital Darkroom: Black and White Techniques Using Photoshop (Paperback)

I read some of the other reviews, mainly negative but bought this book anyway as it is one of the few books dealing with digital BW photography.

I found this book to be quite instructional. I agree that there is a lack of detailed instructions. However, I believe that training people how to use photoshop was not a goal of Mr. Schaub. One should have a good grasp of how to "fix" and manipulate photos in photoshop before using this book. A good photoshop book or class is in order before this text.

That said, I found the brief but concise directions for each technique very helpful when planning manipulation for my own BW photos. There are many examples shown with precise descriptions of what was done to achieve the noted results. Before and after photos are shown in each instance.

I give this book a big but conditional thumbs up. If your are serious about digital BW photography and have a working knowledge digital photography and photoshop in particular, this book is for you.

34 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I found this book really helpful -- but not for beginers, May 5, 2000

By 

guido (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Digital Darkroom: Black and White Techniques Using Photoshop (Paperback)

Despite the somewhat lowest common denominator intro, this book is not for Photoshop beginners. It lacks the step by step hand holding which beginners often feel they need (and the other reviewers seem to be looking for -- there are lots of other books on Photoshop to fill that niche). Instead, this book is about looking at your black and white negatives/scans and helping you envision what you can be done with your images. Photoshop gives the black & white printer much more power and control over the image then is available in a wet darkroom but it takes more then a skills tutorial to help you reach that point. I like that The Digital Darkroom suggests what can be done rather then marching you lock step through a fixed set of procedures. Your understanding of Photoshop and the quality of your images will be rewarded by the extra work and thought that this approach requires.