Digital Lady Syd’s Favs
My Favorite Photoshop Books
No Photoshop blog could be complete without a list of favorite Photoshop books. I like all these books pretty much the same so they are presented in no particular order.
1. The Photoshop Wow! Book (both versions CS/CS2 and CS3/CS4) by Linnea Dayton and Christen Gillespie.
These books are definitely for the creative type. When I got the first book, I did not look at it that much. I did not have my Photoshop skills up to par and did not have the time to really enjoy all that was contained within the covers. I wish I had taken more time. What wonderful books with all kinds of interesting ideas and great coverage of Photoshop, including many ways of using the tools that had never occurred to me. Worth every penny! I am now using CS6 and I still enjoy these books immensely!
2. Adobe Photoshop CS6 Book for Digital Photographers by Scott Kelby
Scott Kelby just keeps creating good books! What I like about this book is that it is written with the digital photographer in mind – all the fixes and tools needed to make an average image look great. That is all lots of people need.
3. Photoshop CS6 – the Missing Manual by Lesa Snider
This is the first book I have bought of Lesa’s and I am not disappointed. She covers everything about Photoshop very thoroughly in this 862 page book, with lots of little tips throughout. I like the many cross-references added to the text to get more info on a topic.
4. The Photoshop Darkroom Creative Digital Post Processing Book 1 and Creative Digital Transformation Book 2 by Harold Davis and Phyllis Davis
Harold Davis books are all great but I particularly enjoyed these two – they have lots of examples of the techniques he is using and gives you new insights into getting totally crisp looking images, whether shooting HDR or not. Wonderful techniques in these books.
5. Adobe Photoshop Master Class – 2nd Edition: The Essential Guide to Revisioning Photography by John Paul Caponigro
This book was published in 2003 and as far as I know, is the only technical book he has published. Caponigro uses very different approaches to all his art and I absolutely love his techniques. He has a very active website and does sell DVD’s which have more current information, but much of what he teaches is presented in this book. This book is definitely not for someone who wants to just adjust an image – it is really about creating fine art in Photoshop. Simply the best for this.
6. Vision & Voice – Refining Your Vision in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom by David duChemin
This is easy to understand and has beautiful photography in it. duChemin is one of the best photography authors and this book totally connected with me. If you have Lightroom, it is a must read! Once again, even with Lightroom 4 or 5, the basic presets he discusses work just fine since most involve the Split Toning section. And basically, anything he writes is a great read!
7. The HDR Book by Rafael “RC” Concepcion
This book covers all three of the major HDR programs (CS5, PhotoMatix Pro, and Nik HDR Efex Pro) with very good explanations. RC does a great job of showing how to get a similar look using all the programs – very useful reference.
8. The Moment It Clicks by Joe McNally
This book has been around for a while and he has several newer books which are very good. I just love this book and the stories that go with it – totally entertaining and pretty light on the photography aspect, which his other books explore more. He is a fabulous photographer and the book totally entertains!
9. The Digital Photography Book – Books 1 through 4 by Scott Kelby
Even if you are new or old to photography, these little fairly inexpensive books are great reads – you will learn something and there is very little repetition between each book. Quick reads and chocked full of tips!
10. Art Beyond the Lens by Sarah Gardner
This book is THE book if you want to learn how to apply textures to an image correctly. The images are beautiful and her explanations easy and straight forward.
11. Professional Portrait Retouching Techniques by Scott Kelby
I am starting to sound like an ad for Scott Kelby! Once again, when I had to retouch a couple wedding shots, this book was indispensable! He takes you through everything you need to get that great face look from getting rid of 5-o’clock whiskers to changing the color of lipstick. I am not the best at people retouching and this book saved the day for me!
Favorite Photoshop and Photography Websites/Blogs
1. Digital Lady Syd’s Fun Photoshop Blog
I have to list my other blog – I have been blogging there for two years now and a lot of my favorite techniques are shown. Take a look if you have a chance. There is a link to it at the top of this page.
2. Scott Kelby’s Photoshop Insider Blog
Simply the best blog on Photoshop. Has interesting topics and interesting guest bloggers. Check it out frequently.
This is Trey Radcliff’s blog – simply the best blog on HDR. I have been following him for years and his photos just keep getting better. He also has some great information on HDR photography on the site. Another one I check every day.
4. Adobe Photoshop’s Lightroom Killer Tips Blog or The Ski Report
This is Matt Kloskowski’s Lightroom blog and his new Photoshop blog, which he is updating more frequently now, and they are both great sites.
5. John Paul Caponigro’s Digital Photography Blog
This is a very interesting blog and site. There is always something very different to look at on his site. Also check out his resources – they are excellent!
6. CreativeLive
Great way to learn all about how to do everything in photography or Photoshop – runs 24-hours non-stop with various Live and past videos. Great way to learn new techniques! One of my favorite sites!
7. Alltop’s Top Photoshop News and Top Lightroom News links
This website is updated frequently and shows all the latest additions to some of the best blogs on both Photoshop and Lightroom. A major timesaver!
I am partial to this guy (he’s my son) as he is using my old camera to create some of the best concert photos you will ever see. Some of his photos have appeared recently on major network news shows and newspapers. Check it out.
9. Shorpy’s Historical Photo Archive
I am a bit of a history nut and this site usually posts between 1 – 3 old historical photos a day from all over the country. Many are from the turn of the century of the large hotels and the beaches up and down the East Coast. If you enjoy the old images, this site is great.
This site has an active on-going blog but also hundreds of wonderful free textures that he has created for download. I cannot say how much I have enjoyed his textures and feel fortunate that someone is willing to give away their textures – very rare for this expensive hobby.
11. Bored Panda
This website has some of the most remarkable photos that are updated many times a week. Lots of fun to see what other people are coming up with! Check it out!
Totally interesting and covers many of the great painters of the past and current times. Always find interesting information on this site.
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