Painter 11 for Photographers
by Martin Addison

I am always surprised by the number of photographers who are unfamiliar with Corel's Painter program. As a user of Painter since the first version, I have used it to create unique art for myself and clients for years. If you are a photographer looking for a tool for getting the most out of your collection of photos and you haven't seen Painter, you don't know what you are missing.

This book is one of the best aimed at photographers. While other books are clearly for graphic designers, this book aims at inspiring photographers. The book is packed with beautiful illustrations and tutorials. Addison is adept at creating step-by-step directions that are easy to follow. The accompanying DVD has over 2 hours of video tutorials and has all of the images that you will need to work along in the book. There is also a website that contains even more tutorials and images with which to work. Worth the price to learn another marketable skill.

Digital Photography Best Practices and Workflow Handbook
By Patricia Russotti and Richard Anderson

Elizabeth and I recently met a woman, new to photography, who had just returned from a trip to Africa, traveling with a new camera. She still hadn't gotten the thousands of images off of her CF cards, and was asking us if we could help her figure out what she was supposed to do now.

Unfortunately this woman is not unique. I think I would be safe in stating that with the ease of use of digital cameras and the ability to take thousands of photos without the cost constraints of film, the majority of those shooting with their digital cameras are in exactly the same predicament. Sure, they may know how to download their pictures and they may now a little about iPhoto or the software that came with their cameras to do a little editing, but the more important steps for renaming, organizing, and archiving their precious images are beyond their radar.

This book is funded by the Library of Congress and a project of the  American Society of Media Photographers. It is the answer to photographers' dilemma in managing their images in a way that, after years of shooting, they will be able to easily retrieve their images.

So far it is the easiest to understand of the Digital Asset Management books I have seen. This goes far beyond the few that have been published before.

The only criticism I have is the reliance of the authors on Apple and Adobe products. From reading the book you would not know that other software solutions exist for managing, cataloging, and editing your images. One noteable, ACDSee by Acdsystems, Inc. , does not even receive a mention, even though I find it easier, more innovative, and in many ways more powerful to use than the products mentioned this book, especially for novices.

The Photoshop Darkroom, Creative Digital Post-Processing
By Harold Davis and Phyllis Davis

This is a fun book. The layout is original, almost like reading the author's notebooks. It is easy to follow and understand. The authors cover such topics as working with RAW, workflow, creating black and white images, using layers, and making and the use of LAB.

What I liked, beyond the way they decided to do the layout, was the thoroughness of their tutorials. It is a very personable approach to teaching some cool and essential skills.

100% Photoshop, Create stunning artwork without using any photographs
by Steve Caplin

As you can tell from the title this is a book primarily aimed at the graphic artist as opposed to photographers. Its approach is to create artwork from the ground up without the use of any external assets. You will learn how to use the filters and others tools found in Photoshop to produce realistic, eye-catching illustrations. If you don't want to go through the trouble of learning Adobe Illustrator, and you already have Photoshop this will be a book you want to check out.

With each new upgrade we look forward to the latest editions of Photoshop books from our favorite authors. We have reviewed the following three books in the past. Look for the links to the original reviews.

Photoshop CS5, Essential Skills
by Martin Galer and Philip Andrews.

First Review. A new edition by two of the most respected Photoshop gurus in the world. Even more tools, tips, and tricks for the latest Photoshop upgrade.

Adobe Photoshop CS5 for Photographers.
by Martin Evening

First Review. For those of us who grew up reading and appreciate a well-written book, this has become the Photoshop "Bible." You won't find the graphic novel-like approach of other books. Not only will you learn the how-to, but the why.

Each edition gets thicker and heavier, but here's a important tip: If you have the previous editions don't throw them away and don't lose their DVDs. Because of space constraints, Evening and his publishers have left some things out from older versions in order to add the new stuff. I have found that some of the tutorials I use for my classroom can only be found in earlier books, even though they work the same way in the CS5.

How to Cheat in Photoshop CS5: The art of creating realistic photomontages
by Steve Caplin

First Review. Another update with more illustrations and an accompanying DVD with over three hours of video tutorials. A must read for Photoshop users who want to perfect their montaging skills.

Text: A
Layout: A
Photography: A
User: All Photographers

MF

There continue to be photographers who feel that Photoshop has gotten too big and unnecessary for most photographers. Here are three books that make the argument that everything photographers need can be done in Elements. These are new editions covering the upgrade to version 8.

First Review. Here is the definitive Elements book showing all the workarounds to doing almost anything in Elements you can do in Photoshop. If you are not a believer yet, check this out. You will be surprised!

Text: A++
Layout: A+
Photography: A
User: All Photographers

MF

Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 for Photographers
by Philip Andrews

First Review. This is to Elements what Evening's book is to Photoshop. Andrews, another Elements guru, provides the "Bible" for Elements users.

Text: A++
Layout: A
Photography: A
User: All Photographers

MF

First Review. In this book you get montage tips and tricks that can be used in Elements. Again, strong evidence of the power of Elements.

Text: A+
Layout: A
Photography: A
User: All Photographers

MF