Customer Reviews

Secrets of the Digital Darkroom: The Complete Illustrated Guide to Getting the Best Results from your Digital Photographs

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I consider digital photography having 3 key components. The first is finding great scenes to photograph. Secondly is actually composing and exposing the photograph correctly. Lastly is digitally re-mastering the image to allow it to reveal all that the image is capable of. This book has answered all my PhotoShop questions regarding that third component and allowed me to exponentially raise the bar on my level of work and create professional quality results in minimal time. The book is very well instructed and very well rounded. If you need to quickly get "up to speed" with basic digital editing techniques and produce results that you previously commented "how did they do that?", this is the book for you. I rented it from the library but will be buying a personal copy for my own library.

This book contains all the technical information you require to manipulate your photographs in any way you desire. Obviously you need a computer and a photographic manipulation software tool, such as Photoshop or something similar. If reviewers have panned this book in the past I cannot understand where they are coming from. The book contains easy to follow exercises that help you to create the effect you are looking for and encourages you to use your own initiative to take things that step further. Anyone with a modicum of computer expertise can vastly improve their digital photogaphs. Not everyone wants to become involved in using filters, layers and masks, but to just be able to sharpen, adjust contrast and brightness of photographs and do some colour corrections makes owning this book well worthwhile. Believe me this book will help you to make a tremendous improvement to your photographs.

Given the strong reviews on Amazon for this title I was prepared to give it a wide berth. But after seeing a copy on a store shelf I was intrigued. As someone who knows a modest amount about digital photography and manipulation would I find it useless (as one reviewer suggests) or very useful? I'm pleased to say that I found it very useful indeed. The author (or authors, as the front page describes) knows his stuff but better still knows his audience. It is clear that he knows what aspiring digital photographers need in the way of help and encouragement and delivers it, whether by example or instruction. The text is never patronising and you get the feeling that he is your personal tutor. It is testament to the style that after reading through (and re-reading some favorite bits) I learned a considerable amount without knowing it. I've since learned that this part-US based British photographer has a number of other titles (not just photography but also digital lifestyles) and you can be sure I'll be seeking them out.

Have fun with your digital photography and read this book! Better still, buy it! Two readers were disappointed I can virtually guarantee that millions more won't!

I am not a Photoshop Guru, and yes, I agree with the other reviewer that if you own the manual that came with Photoshop you won't learn anything new here - BUT, I like the pretty pictures & the simplicity of the explanations is far easier than reading the manual!

I don't use Photoshop on a daily basis so the techniques are not burnt into my memory, but I use it regularly enough that this book provides CONSTANT reference for me. In my mind I know what I want to achieve, I flick through the book , find it & refresh.

It is great for times when you say "how do I do that again" or "how do I do xxx that I used to do in the darkroom" but I'm not sure if you use Photoshop every day if you'd need such a reference. I use this in conjunction with "Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks Photoshop CS2" which is very simple (great for beginners in Photoshop) for reference & reminder on specific techniques depending on what I'm trying to achieve.

This unpresuming book certainly won't blow you away with its' writing style. And in the unfortunate tradition of Photoshop books everywhere, it covers the same ground that many other books do (please! No more chapters on color correction!). Still, I find that I reach for this book first when I'm trying to remember how to do something like extract an object.

Let's face it, unlike the Kelby and Ames books, this one is really targeted for your friend with the point and shoot who wants to take their photography to a higher level by touching up their images. It's unlikely to really excite the pros on this board.

What I like about this book:

1) It's relatively concise. Most techniques demonstrated only take up two pages.
2) There is a very good chapter on image extraction (the reason I bought this book in the first place).
3) A good starting chapter if you've ever wanted to turn a photo into a painting.

What I don't like about this book:

1) Too much filler on techniques that have been covered in other books (see rant on color correction, above). Yes, I know everybody wants to write the complete text to using Photoshop. But I resent paying for a book where the first 1/3 is stuff that every other book covers.
2) Setting instructions are not nearly as complete as the Kelby and Ames books.
3) Target audience is below our level... this book has a tendency to talk down to it's reader. Read for example the differences in JPG and TIFF images. More filler. Sometimes I think publishers tell authors `we need a book 200 pages long'... even when the author only has 150 pages to teach you. The result is filler like this.

All in all, this book is worth the price IF you're just starting out with Photoshop or it covers a subject that you need an introduction to (painting images, for example).

Good, no nonsense content characterises this book. It may not be cutting edge but good solid content using industry standard tools shows how even the most ham-fisted of us can produce great photos. One to enjoy.

"Secrets of the Digital Darkroom" is modestly priced for what one gets from the author in this book. I got a copy at the Library and am so impressed that I am buying a copy for my bookshelf and one for a friend as well. The book is very well printed in full color, with beautiful color illustrations on every page. Is every detail of Adobe Photoshop covered? Of course not. How could a book of 191 pages do that?
Many details of digital photgraphic manipulation and management have become clear to me for the very first time after reading this book. I have been taking pictures since the '50s and graduated to my first digital camera 4 years ago so I am not a rank beginner.
There are many "Recipe books" around but this isn't one of those. Neither is it a "Reference" book with lists of every Command, action and key stroke lists. But, that said, the instructions do apply specifically to Adobe Photoshop but have helped me to clearly understand my own Adobe PS Elements Two software though not all of the techniques are available in both programs. I think the knowledge gained here will go far in aid of the entheusiast that uses other programs as well. This book is "Knowledge Base".
This book is very suitable for the beginner through the advanced amateur level. Subjects from color depth, resolution and balance to Curves, levels, Duo-tones, panoramic display, to hardware and much more, is well covered. It seems that not a single issue has been overlooked by the author, from the basics through very advanced techniques and concepts. Highly recommended for in depth knowledge of the process of digital photography in general from scanners, through digital manipulation techniques -basic through advanced - and finally printing. An excellent Table of Contents and index permits quick location of topics for in-depth reading. Well worth the money, in my opinion.

If you've got the Photoshop or Photoshop Elements manual, you have a clearer, more comprehensive, and easier to understand book than this. Save your money.

I bought this because it had sections on alternate techniques and were they poor! I learned nothing, and the book was pricey even if it had been useful. I could have written it and I'm certainly no expert on Photoshop. Seems like anyone can throw one out there these days and sucker us in.