iPhoto '08: The Missing Manual (Paperback)

by David Pogue (Author), Derrick Story (Author)
Key Phrases: web gallery, simple border, summer fun, Photo Library, Player Pro, Ken Burns (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Apple has taken iPhoto 08 to a whole new level. Now, in addition to handling upwards of 250,000 images, the program lets you easily categorize and navigate through those photos with a feature called "Events". Plus, new editing tools let you copy and paste adjustments between photos. Books and calendars have been improved, too, as has the program's ability to publish pictures on the Web.

Apple makes it all sound easy: drag this, click that, and you're done. But you can still get lost, especially if you're a newcomer. iPhoto '08: The Missing Manual explains how to take advantage of all these powerful tools and new features without confusion or frustration. Bestselling authors David Pogue and Derrick Story give you a witty, objective, and clear-cut explanation of how things work, with plenty of undocumented tips and tricks for mastering the new iPhoto.

Four sections help you import, organize, edit, share, and even take your photos:

• Digital Photography: The Missing Manual offers a course in picture-taking and digital cameras -- how to buy and use your digital camera, how to compose brilliant photos in various situations (sports, portraits, nighttime shots, even kid photography), and how to get the most out of batteries and memory cards.



• iPhoto Basics covers the fundamentals of getting your photos into iPhoto, organizing and filing them, searching and editing them.



• Meet Your Public teaches you all about slideshows, making or ordering prints, creating books, calendars and greeting cards, and sharing photos on web sites or by email.



• iPhoto Stunts explains how to turn photos into screen savers or desktop pictures, using plug-ins, managing Photo Libraries, and even getting photos to and from camera phones and Palm organizers.

You also learn how to build a personal web site built with iWeb, and much more in this comprehensive guide. It's the top-selling iPhoto book for good reason.



About the Author
David Pogue, Yale '85, is the personal-technology columnist for the New York Times. With nearly 3 million books in print, he is also one of the world's bestselling how-to authors, having written or co-written seven books in the "for Dummies" series (including Macs, Magic, Opera, and Classical Music). Pogue is also the creator and primary author of the Missing Manual series of thorough, witty computer books including Mac OS X, Windows XP, iPod, Microsoft Office, iPhoto, iMovie and many others. His Web page is www.davidpogue.com, and his email address is [e-mail].

Derrick Story is the managing editor of O'Reilly's Digital Media website. His experience includes more than 20 years as a photojournalist, a stint as the managing editor for Web Review, and a speaker for CMP, IDG, and O'Reilly conferences. He is the author of Digital Photography Hacks and Digital Photography Pocket Guide, 3rd Ed. Derrick likes to keep his shooting skills sharp by running his photography business, Story Photography. You can listen to his photo podcasts and read his tips at The Digital Story.

Product Details

• Paperback: 424 pages
• Publisher: Pogue Press (February 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596516185
• ISBN-13: 978-0596516185
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #38,705 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #4 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Apple > iPhoto
  #46 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Programming > Algorithms > Digital Image Processing
  #51 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Hardware > Macs

• This item is part of The O'Reilly Missing Manuals Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The latest update to the ever-useful iPhoto manual, February 15, 2008

By	calvinnme "Texan refugee" (Fredericksburg, Va) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)

During the early years of digital cameras, just making the camera-to-computer connection was a nightmare. You had to mess with serial or USB cables, install device drivers, and use proprietary software to transfer, open, and convert camera images into a standard file format. Apple's answer to this was iPhoto. iPhoto 08 doesn't represent a big overhaul, but there were enough changes that it really did warrant a new edition of the program and thus of this very helpful book.

This book serves as the iPhoto manual that should have come with the software. It explores each iPhoto feature in depth, offers shortcuts and workarounds, and discusses features that the online help doesn't mention. The book also provides a quick introduction to professional photography. It discusses the artistic factors such as composition, lighting, and manual exposure and how to apply them using the myriad features packed into the modern digital camera.

This book is divided into four parts, each containing several chapters:

Part 1, Digital Cameras: The Missing Manual, is a course in photography and digital cameras. The first three chapters cover both the basics and the secrets that the pros use to take consistently good photographs. The basics of selecting the proper digital camera are mentioned along with proper usage. Hardware is also discussed. This section of the book creates a bridge between everyday snapshots and the kinds of shots seen in magazines and newspapers.
Chapter 1. Welcome to Digital Photography
Chapter 2. Composing Brilliant Photos
Chapter 3. Beyond the Simple Snapshot

Part 2, iPhoto Basics, shows how to use your Mac to gather, organize, and tweak all these photos so you can share them with the rest of the world. This is the core of this book--compiling, organizing, and adjusting your pictures using iPhoto, and then transforming this random collection of digital photos into a professional-looking slideshow, set of prints, movie, Web page, poster, email, desktop picture set, or bound book.
Chapter 4. Camera Meets Mac
Chapter 5. The Digital Shoebox
Chapter 6. Five Ways to Flag and Find Photos
Chapter 7. Editing Your Shots

Part 3, Meet Your Public, covers the presentation methods you have available via iPhoto. There is basically a chapter per presentation method.This includes taking your static images and turning them into a Quicktime movie complete with musical accompaniment.
Chapter 8. The iPhoto Slideshow
Chapter 9. Making Prints
Chapter 10. Email, Web Galleries, and Network Sharing
Chapter 11. Books, Calendars, and Cards
Chapter 12. iPhoto Goes to the Movies
Chapter 13. iDVD Slideshows

Part 4, iPhoto Stunts, covers miscellaneous and additional iPhoto features, that didn't really fit anywhere else, like turning your photos into a screen saver, using AppleScript to automate photo-related chores, and harnessing iPhoto's partnership with Automator. The final chapter is a lesson in iPhoto file management, which is much less of a chore now that iPhoto can manage 250K photos per library.
Chapter 14. Screen Savers, AppleScript, and Automator
Chapter 15. iPhoto File Management

At the end of the book, Appendix A offers troubleshooting guidance, Appendix B goes through iPhoto's menus one by one, and Appendix C lists some Web sites pertaining to digital photography.

The book is well-illustrated with plenty of screen shots of the application, step-by-step instructions, and full color before and after shots to show you what you should accomplish by following the book's instructions. In part one, descriptions and advice on actual hardware are accompanied by photos of digital cameras and their attachments along with tables that relate memory card capacity with number of photos. A very professionally done effort and highly recommended.

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 2 Thumbs up - Without a question, February 23, 2008

By	MDG (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews

This book is great! The purpose of iphoto is to catalog your photos, and keep them organized. This isn't a photoshop type program, but - Using Photoshop myself, it is a wonderful tool for organization and sharing your edited photos. There is SO MUCH functionality built into this program that you would never know existed. This book shows you absolutely everything you would want to know about the architecture of the program and its' use.

There is a SHORT reference if you are in the market for a new camera. It tells you what to look for you so you don't over-spend, or buy something that doesn't suit your needs. It is a brief section, but very informative. There is also a short section on how to take better pictures. The author is using the philosophy that it is hard to produce good results with a poor starting photo (without compromising quality).

The book is, without a doubt, one of the most well written informational manuals I have ever read. I liked the book so much, that I now have purchased the "Missing Manual for MAC OS X Leopard" by the same author.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent-should accompany the program!, February 26, 2008

By	Jane E. Russell (Clarksville, TN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Apple really needs to collaborate with Mr. Pogue and put this book in every software application! I was at a loss converting from one system to a Mac but this book has truly made it so much easier for me. I have finally been able to stay off the phone with Apple and work on my photos! Thanks Mr. Pogue! Once again you have come through for me!