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Klaus Gölker
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GIMP 2.6 for Photographers: Image Editing with Open Source Software Paperback – February 7, 2011

by Klaus Goelker (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 36 ratings
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Image editing has become a crucial element in the photographic workflow. Image editing tools, most notably Photoshop, are usually sophisticated and deep applications, and are fairly expensive. The only open source tool in this market is the GIMP, which has developed into a powerful, multiplatform system running on Linux, Mac OS X, and Microsoft Windows.

GIMP 2.6 for Photographers is a beginner's guide to the only open source image editing tool that provides a low-cost alternative to expensive programs such as Photoshop. Topics include the basics of image editing and simple adjustments, as well as advanced techniques using layers and masks, stitching panoramic images, and preparing high-quality black and white images. The most important editing functions are presented in individual, easy-to-follow workshops.

GIMP 2.6 for Photographers has evolved from classroom materials that the author developed and taught in courses and workshops on image editing with the GIMP.

The upgrade to GIMP 2.8 that is discussed in the book can be found at rockynook.com for a preview and more details.

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  1. Print length
    384 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Rocky Nook
  4. Publication date
    February 7, 2011
  5. Dimensions
    8 x 0.81 x 10 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1933952490
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1933952499
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Klaus Goelker is an architect and photographer who lives and works in Munich, Germany. He also teaches courses on image editing at a local art school. He chose GIMP to teach this class because it was free and yet powerful enough to do serious photographic image editing.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Rocky Nook; 1st edition (February 7, 2011)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1933952490
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1933952499
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.45 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8 x 0.81 x 10 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 36 ratings

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  1. Klaus Gölker

    Klaus Gölker

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  2. Klaus Goelker

    Klaus Goelker

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    About the Author

    Klaus Martin Goelker is an experienced GIMP user and author of GIMP 2, GIMP 2.6 and GIMP 2.8 for Photographers, all three of which have been published in German and English, the book on GIMP 2.6 also in Polish. A long-time architect, he now focuses his energy on web design, design, arts, and photography. He teaches courses on the basics of web design and digital imaging using GIMP, Adobe Photoshop, and Photoshop Elements. Klaus lives in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Visit his homepage at www.lichtschreiber.de to see his point of view as an artist and photographer.

    About my Books

    The English version of GIMP 2.8 for Photographers is available since 2013. For readers of older editions of my book, I have created a downloadable document that explains the new features of GIMP 2.8. You can find the PDF file at

    http://www.rockynook.com/GIMP2.6-DVD/

    The readers of the Kindle Edition of my book on GIMP 2.6 will find there the download of the images used in the exercises of the book (ZIP file), and also the download of the mentioned free programs (also ZIP file).

    Readers of the Kindle Edition of my book on GIMP 2.8 can download the images and programs from

    http://www.rockynook.com/GIMP2.8-DVD/

    Just copy the appropriate link above and paste it into the address bar of your browser.

    Enjoy!

    Klaus Goelker

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
36 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book's content thorough and informative, with useful tips. They appreciate the clear illustrations and format. The book provides a good introduction to open software like Gimp.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

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ContentGimp supportPhoto qualityValue for moneyFunctionalitySoftwareVisual style
22 customers mention "Content"19 positive3 negative

Customers find the book's content thorough, clear, and concise. They say it contains many useful tips and is informative. The book is well-organized and easy to navigate, with a good introduction to using UFRaw.

"...tries to blend several themes through the book from basic principles of image manipulation through to the technical aspects of GIMP 2.6 itself...." Read more

"...who want an easy-to-use guide for clarification, assistance, and good ideas on how to use GIMP effectively in their work. Definitely five stars!" Read more

"...written, supported by lots of photos and other graphics, and is written in language that anyone familiar with photo processing will understand...." Read more

"...It also has a couple of raw programs on it and the book starts out with a good lesson on using ufraw...." Read more

6 customers mention "Gimp support"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book helpful for using GIMP. They say it's a great alternative to Photoshop and provides useful tips on how to use the program effectively.

"...GIMP is a truly amazing tool, with too many options and possibilities for this small book to cover in depth...." Read more

"...The GIMP Bible is superb and will definitely be my next purchase, but it is still too daunting, so that drove me to my last-choice option, to take..." Read more

"I'm a beginner with gimp and this book was helpful. Some lessons sort of leave you hanging to figure out some ot the details...." Read more

"...GIMP is a great replacement (alternative) for Photoshop CS, and this book makes it easy to make the switch." Read more

6 customers mention "Photo quality"6 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's photo quality. They find it well-written, with sample photos and other graphics to support the study material. The included CD offers sample photos to use as you follow the step-by-step instructions. The book has many color pictures to illustrate the author's points.

"...The book has many color pictures to illustrate the authors point and follows a series of tutorials...." Read more

"...With the included CD offering sample photos to use as you follow the step-by-step instructions, I've been able to fill in some of the gaps in my..." Read more

"...It is well written, supported by lots of photos and other graphics, and is written in language that anyone familiar with photo processing will..." Read more

"...The cd also includes a lot of sample photos to work with." Read more

5 customers mention "Value for money"5 positive0 negative

Customers find the book a good value for money.

"...Photoshop is definitely not. This book is well worth the price." Read more

"...I think is was worth the money and has a cd included that saves you from hunting down a lot of the plug-ins...." Read more

"I picked this book as a Kindle ebook for nine bucks. Well worth the investment if you like to tinker with photos...." Read more

"...This is the only book of the three that is worth the money...." Read more

4 customers mention "Functionality"4 positive0 negative

Customers find the book's functionality good. They appreciate the working examples and image files included on the DVD. The book provides a useful introduction to UFraw.

"...The worked examples are very good, and having all the image files available on the DVD is excellent, but personally I would have preferred the..." Read more

"...It installs itself easily and seems to run well with no problems on my Windows 7 operating systems; however, I believe there are multiple operating..." Read more

"...I am studying this even though I use Gimp 2.8. It is doing the job very well...." Read more

"A very useful book with a great introduction to UFraw" Read more

3 customers mention "Software"3 positive0 negative

Customers like the software. They say it's free, open-source, and useful for processing RAW images.

"...Gimp is a very intuitive and complex photo suite. It is an Open-Source Software which is a good thing, because that simply means, it is free for the..." Read more

"...you in getting to know the ins and outs of this great Free, Libre, Open software." Read more

"...Lots of tips on how to use a fairly difficult program. Also, lots of useful software to allow you to process RAW images...." Read more

3 customers mention "Visual style"3 positive0 negative

Customers like the visual style of the book. They mention the illustrations are clear, the text is well-written, and the format and style are good. The presentation is clear and covers some basics in ways that they find useful.

"...of quiet time each time I opened a chapter, I have found the format and style very good...." Read more

"...Text is well-written and well laid out, illustrations are clear and chosen to be truly instructive...." Read more

"...It is well written, supported by lots of photos and other graphics, and is written in language that anyone familiar with photo processing will..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • uktravailer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good book for novice photo processing
    Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    I am relatively new to image processing, having only spent time mainly using Google's Picasa software as it has evolved over the last 3 or 4 years. That tool is fairly basic though, and I recently learned that GIMP was a suitable free alternative to the "industry standard" Adobe PhotoShop.
    So, after searching through Amazon I opted to give this book a try. And I am glad I did!

    I will admit that I found the book difficult to start with, but I put that down to not focusing my efforts initially. After coming back to it and dedicating a few hours of quiet time each time I opened a chapter, I have found the format and style very good. The author tries to blend several themes through the book from basic principles of image manipulation through to the technical aspects of GIMP 2.6 itself.

    The book has many color pictures to illustrate the authors point and follows a series of tutorials. There is a good index to allow you to refer back to the relevant sections too.

    Although at the time I write this the current version of GIMP is version 2.8 I made a point of using all the version 2.6 software provided by the author on the accompanying DVD. I figured that using a prior version would be no problem and would allow me to learn the tools before deciding whether or not to start on GIMP 2.8.

    GIMP is a truly amazing tool, with too many options and possibilities for this small book to cover in depth. What the author does though is successfully allow the reader to pick up some significant tools techniques and learn how to use them to get a successful result.
    Having this basic grounding in the use of GIMP enables the reader to then expand their knowledge from other resources such as specialist web sites etc.

    The worked examples are very good, and having all the image files available on the DVD is excellent, but personally I would have preferred the tutorials to have been laid out in a more step wise fashion rather than the prose style used throughout the book, just a personal thing I guess!

    Overall a great book for those starting out with GIMP!
    One person found this helpful
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  • my dog's servant
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great guide
    Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2011
    Verified Purchase
    I've always been a "dive in and ask questions later" learner with new software. But I know nothing about color theory, graphics, photos, or computer graphics, and that ignorance made the "dive in" approach to learning GIMP very frustrating. I could see how the parts worked, but I didn't understand what they did or why or how to fit them together so I could do what I wanted, and the online help, while great, still assumed I knew more than I do. The GIMP Bible is superb and will definitely be my next purchase, but it is still too daunting, so that drove me to my last-choice option, to take a chance on ordering a book online.

    I opted for Klaus Goelker's GIMP 2.6 for Photographers, and I am REALLY glad I did. With the included CD offering sample photos to use as you follow the step-by-step instructions, I've been able to fill in some of the gaps in my base knowledge while learning how to get started with GIMP. The presentation is clear and covers some of the basics in ways that I found very helpful. Text is well-written and well laid out, illustrations are clear and chosen to be truly instructive. Each step leads logically to the next, and along the way Goelker offers some hints and outside resources that are also proving helpful. And with each step, the excellent help for GIMP on-line is finally beginning to make sense, too.

    I highly recommend this book to both beginning GIMP users, photographers or not, and to intermediate users who want an easy-to-use guide for clarification, assistance, and good ideas on how to use GIMP effectively in their work. Definitely five stars!
    11 people found this helpful
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  • riverguy
    4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for ending much of the confusion about GIMP
    Reviewed in the United States on April 17, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    What with the end of XP, many people are switching to Linux for a better alternative operating system for their computers. I've heard quite a few tell me they would, except that Linux won't run Photoshop and they tried GIMP and thought it to be to steep of a learning curve. This book takes a whole lot of the pain out of the change to GIMP. My wife and I both do a lot of photo manipulation work and we have both switched and now prefer GIMP. The hardest part of the transition is to learn the few different names for various processes and the locations of various options within their menus. For example, to save a photo in JPG, instead of "save," you select "export." This is because a simple "save" saves the graphic in GIMP's native format instead of in JPG. Not a big deal.

    Another thing I discovered (In Ubuntu Forums) and that is not covered in this book because it was not avaialble at the time of publication is to download the GIMP 2.8 add-on. This wonderful little tweak removes the rest of most people's resistance to using GIMP, the main view and the way your work is presented. In 2.8, you now have the option of switching to "single window view, which makes GIMP handle way more like Photoshop.

    This book covers just about anything you might ever want to do in GIMP, and then some. It is well written, supported by lots of photos and other graphics, and is written in language that anyone familiar with photo processing will understand.

    Oh yeah, GIMP is free. Photoshop is definitely not. This book is well worth the price.
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  • Steve
    3.0 out of 5 stars Worth Buying
    Reviewed in the United States on December 25, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    I'm a beginner with gimp and this book was helpful. Some lessons sort of leave you hanging to figure out some ot the details. It doesn't explain why things are done a certain way, but just tells you how to do it. Some of the lessons had me going about it the long way, where I had already learned a shorter method from youtube, etc. However, it did help to open up a few things about gimp that I didn't know about. I think is was worth the money and has a cd included that saves you from hunting down a lot of the plug-ins. It also has a couple of raw programs on it and the book starts out with a good lesson on using ufraw. The cd also includes a lot of sample photos to work with.
    One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Mario
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great
    Reviewed in Canada on January 7, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    This book is great. The cd contains pictures to work on. There is a lot of exercises and it full of colors. This book is worth the price!
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  • Stuart
    5.0 out of 5 stars Gimp 2.6 for Photographers
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 8, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    I have been using GIMP, initially 2.6 and now 2.8, for some time for processing and retouching my photos. I bought this book in Jan 2011 so I have been using it on and off for a couple of years. I see that an update for 2.8 by the same author is due in May 2013, so I thought a review would be timely.

    The book is very comprehensive and detailed. It is organised as a series of exercises (with the necessary sample images and other resources available from the included DVD). The material is well and clearly explained and the exercises are covered in a clear, step by step approach. They tend to start off with very detailed hand-holding and then the hand-holding is withdrawn as things progress and the instructions become somewhat terser. I rather like this approach - it avoids becoming patronising which is one of the pitfalls of this sort of detailed step by step approach.

    Its subtitle is "Image editing with Open Source Software" and it does indeed cover several other pieces of software in some detail, particularly the raw converters UFRaw and RawTherapee. The DVD includes copies of GIMP and the other pieces of Open Source software mentioned.

    It starts off with the basics of loading and saving images, cropping, resizing and various basic touching up: colour correction, removing spots and scratches, sharpening, etc. There is extensive coverage of working with scanned images, which I find particularly useful as I have an extensive collection of 35mm slides and need to deal with these from time to time when organising materials for talks.

    A number of common filters are covered in some detail for things like red-eye removal, perspective and lens distortion correction, frames and vignetting and dealing with under- and over-exposure. It then moves on to layers and masks with a series of exercises covering things like replacing the sky in an image, removing increasingly more complex objects from their background and building composite images. I have found these exercises very useful and have returned to them a number of time when I need to remind myself how to do some of the more complex tasks.

    There is a brief appendix "A Forecast on GIMP 2.8", but this book was written a couple of years before the release of GIMP 2.8 and cannot therefore say much about the changes. The user interface of GIMP 2.8 has changed somewhat (especially the single window mode and the major new "Gotcha" of separate Save and Export commands in the File menu) but, in general, the exercises work perfectly well in GIMP 2.8.4 (the current version at the time of writing). I will be interested to see the updated version of the book when it arrives!

    Overall, I would thoroughly recommend this book both to the new comer to GIMP and to the more experienced GIMPer who wants to remind themselves about some of the more complex stuff.
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  • Jose Angel
    5.0 out of 5 stars Muy completo
    Reviewed in Spain on December 29, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    Me ha gustado que el libro contenga un dvd con software y contenidos complementarios. Además hace referencia a distintas webs donde ampliar conocimientos.
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  • chane
    4.0 out of 5 stars bien
    Reviewed in Spain on May 19, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    es completo, pero quizá se para demasiado en detalles de menor importancia. Muy interesante el apartado que dedica a UFRaw.
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very useful
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 28, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    If you want to learn the ins and outs of the GIMP, this is probably the book for you. It is well laid out, and explains, not only how to achieve results, but a good deal of technical background, so that you can understand what you're doing as well. If you haven't used GIMP, I suggest you do, as it's a very viable alternative to other (expensive) software - and then buy this book.
    Report