Photoshop CS4 – After The Shoot is a book that explains some major Photoshop feature that useful for digital photographer. This book is written by Mark Fitzgerald. He is a Photoshop trainer whom also works as photographer’s consultant. There are so many digital Photographers that gets benefit from his private training, classes, and workshops. Now he and his family lives in Portland, Oregon, where Mark owns a consulting business called The Digital Darkroom.
Photoshop CS4 After The Shoot published in 368 full colored pages. Here are a few of my review of this book topics.
The earlier chapter explains about basic file format information and tips on how we make a good file list. A good explanation about JPEG file format, and I think the explanation is easy to understand. Other file format also explained here, such PSD, TIFF, and Raw files.
Next chapter is explain about Adobe Bridge, how to set up this program, so we can get it maximum functionality. There is also a chapter which we can get information about how to get photos from digital camera and brought it to computer. We will learn about transferring photo from camera and manage them in keyword and metadata information, so it will be easier to find any of them when we need.
Furthermore there is a chapter that brings up detail information about Raw file format. A great reading source for basic to intermediate digital photographers.
The next chapters are describing about Photoshop CS4 features. From basic workspace location and navigating, to the image correction techniques such how to correct brightness, gamma, exposure and more. The techniques itself are the same as other books, but this book is more focused on photographic view.
In the next chapter, this book explains about monitor calibrating and how to correct color and make a good color combination. The color theory described in this book is detail, but the technique is not so described in detail here.
In the next chapter we can learn about Photoshop selection, but only in the basic way. Masking also explained but not very detail of it.
The next of this book chapter is explain about photo retouching using Clone stamp tool, Healing brush, Burn/Dodge tools. Later on, this books ending up with lesson about finishing up the photo and how we publish them both in printing and in web publishing.
Overall, Photoshop CS4 After The Shoot is a useful reading source for basic and intermediate photographer who wants to learn about Photoshop as a way to enhance their work in digital era. If you are a photographer and want to know more about how to combine your photographic skill with Photoshop CS4, I recommend this book as a starting point. There are lot of valuable tips and notes in certain pages.
