Adobe Photoshop CS Down and Dirty Tricks Down & Dirty Tricks: Amazon.co.uk: Scott Kelby: Books

Product Description

Bestselling author Scott Kelby (Editor of Photoshop User magazine) is back with an amazing new collection of Photoshop Down and Dirty Tricks, including how to create the same exact effects you see every day in magazines, on TV, at the movies, and on the Web. It's more of those eye-popping, jaw-dropping special effects that made Scott's previous version an award-winning worldwide smash hit!

But this isn't just an update to his previous book--these are 100% ALL NEW EFFECTS from cover-to-cover to reflect the latest trends in Photoshop special effects and design. These are nothing but today's real world techniques--the same ones you see used by leading Photoshop photographers, designers, and special effect masters, and its all here in the only book of its kind.

You'll learn the most closely guarded inside secrets for creating the latest cutting-edge effects, including techniques that have never been revealed before anywhere! And the book is written so clearly, and is so easy to follow, that you'll be able to create every one of these amazing effects yourself. You'll learn:

Tricks professional photographers use to show off their work
The most popular effects used by the big Hollywood studios
The latest cutting-edge photographic special effects
How to fake all kinds of studio shots (you'll be amazed how its done!)
The type effects that are most in demand by clients
How to get stunning 3D effects without using a 3D program
How to turn simple snapshots into museum quality gallery prints
The most asked for new Web effects
Plus loads of advanced effects that look hard, but are easy, once you know the secrets

But Down and Dirty tricks is more than just a just an effects book--it's a tips book too, because on every page Scott includes a cool tip, a quick trick, or a timesaving shortcut, making this an invaluable productivity tool too! Plus the whole book is packed with design techniques, creative ideas and stunning layouts that will help you unleash your own creativity. It's all here-- "Just the funk and not the junk" and if you're into Photoshop, you're absolutely gonna love it!

From the Back Cover

Tricks professional photographers use to show off their work
The most popular effects used by the big Hollywood studios
The latest cutting-edge photographic special effects
How to fake all kinds of studio shots (you'll be amazed how its done!)
The type effects that are most in demand by clients
How to get stunning 3D effects without using a 3D program
How to turn simple snapshots into museum quality gallery prints
The most asked for new Web effects
Plus loads of advanced effects that look hard, but are easy, once you know the secrets

See all Product Description

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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

Ideal for recent PhotoShop converts and newcomers 12 Feb 2004

By M. J. Hewitt

Format:Paperback

Last year I moved from Corel to PhotoShop and needed to find out how to do things the Adobe way. This book was ideal, explaining clearly and concisely how to use PhotoShop's design capabilities quickly and easily.

Most PhotoShop books contain murky black and white screenshots. Not so here. All the exercises are presented in full colour making it easy to see what to do and what each step should look like once completed. Additional useful tips are given in the wide page margins so as not to interfere with the flow of the main text.

The chapter on type (text) effects uses commercial fonts in the excercises but the techniques work on any font including the standard Windows ones.

Throughout the book the author's humour helps ease the reader into the complexities of PhotoShop CS. Each chapter reveals the power of CS beyond colour management and photo retouching.

Down & Dirty Tricks is best suited for the knowledgeable designer new to PhotoShop or absolute newbies to graphics. More experienced PhotoShop hands would do better looking elsewhere like the PhotoShop Wow! books.

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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

Hollywood effects in a nutshell 15 Nov 2003

By R. Clercx

The CS edition of 'Down Dirty Tricks' is somewhat misleading in title, as I expected to find a lot of Photoshop CS oriented effects. In reality most of the tutorials can easily be achieved in Photoshop 7, which makes the title misleading. This gives me the feeling that Scott Kelby was to eager to publish this book, as the possibilities of the new CS Photoshop are so expanded, that it's virtually impossible to incorporate all the new functions in the tutorials of this book.

Those who already purchased a 'Down Dirty Tricks' edition, however won't be disappointed as the tutorials are straightforward, clearly explained and step by step illustrated. It's possible to download some of the images, but a cd with the image files of the book would be nice.

There is an extra focus on Hollywood effects (especially on billboard effects), but the problem with publishing tutorials on common effects, is that this doesn't lead to creativity, only to reproducing cliché effects.

So, some what a mixed bag, but those who want clear tutorials on common Hollywood effects, can't probably buy a better book than this.

Ronald Clercx

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful

Photoshop CS Down and dirty tricks - save your money 30 Jan 2004

By Jesper Berg

If you want your first book on PhotoShop- buy it.
If you want a book on PhotoShop CS - save your money.

The CS related material in this book is very hard to find. The "tricks" could might as well be done in an earlier version of PS. The tricks often use fonts that you have to buy to get the full out of it. Half of the tricks are old and not to be found in a "state of the art - all brand new" book on PS.
If you've spent time in PS before and read a book or two on the subj. before then read the Help file and use your imagination insted of buying this book.