From a

Hi Everyone,

I've enjoyed lurking here for the last several months. I recently bought a 5D after owning Minoltas for over twenty years. This forum was instrumental in helping me decide on the 5D. I have several KM lenses which I love. In order to keep this message reasonably short, I'll save further background information and comments about other subjects and the Sony issue for another time.

I've read several threads concerning software which helped me decide on Photoshop Elements 4. Several posters suggested getting a book to help learn about Elements 4. I went to the bookstore today and browsed through six or more books and became throughly confused about which book or books to buy.

I'm a novice on the PC and have absolutely no expierence in photo editing. I thought I needed an entry level book to help me understand how to upload pictures, organize and save files, perform basic edits, and output pictures to email and my home printer. I had a difficult time identifying a book to help with the very basic stuff. One of the books was called "EASY" which might be useful in getting started. Choosing a second book was terribly confusing. Some looked better then others, but they all looked overwelming to me. They all appeared to assume the reader knows the basic stuff to one degree or another.

I need yor help in identifying the right begginers book and a second more advanced book. I'm willing to reconsider my choice of Elements 4 (I haven't opened it yet) and my general approach of getting into photo editing.

By the way, my wife has a Nikon P1 for everyday use. We both thought getting one photo editor would be easier then learning how to use two limited editors (KM and Nikon).

Once again, I need your suggestions and thanks in advance to all of you for your help.
--
Thanks, Ed
Torrance, CA

Ed

I use PhotoShop Elements 3, and I've found the following books very useful:

1. Photoshop Elements 3: The Missing Manual - great book for a beginner to Elements

2. The Hidden Power of Photoshop Elements 3 - an advanced book for Elements. It comes with a CD that has some very useful tools.

Photoshop Elements 4: The Missing Manual is available. The Hidden Power of Elements 4 is due out in April of 06.

Check out http://www.photoshopelementsuser.com/forum/ for more information about Elements.

I can confirm what the earlier poster said; the "Missing Manual" books are very good, although I don't have the one for PE4. When you buy their books you also get access to their website that has useful add-ons, info, etc.

I'm writing this note to let you know that the manual that ships with the software (purchased in the US) is not bad and you may not need additional material.

You might want to also check out the $20 online/downloadable book on the 5D/7D from Gary Friedman. It is an excellent value. Do a search on this forum to find the website.

I haven't run accross the Missing Manual yet, but I'll check it out. I will also check out the mannual that came with the software - I haven't opened the software because I wasn't sure I was going the keep it. I will keep watching for the Hidden Power book.

I've read many threads about the Friedman book and I was already planning on getting it in some form. The pictures on his WEB site are beautiful and I assumed this was a must get book; however, I didn't know it would help with software issues.

Please keep the comments coming as I find them informative and reassurring.
--
Thanks, Ed
Torrance, CA

I think one of the best books on using Photoshop Elements is Photoshop Elements 4.0 for Photographers by Scott Kelby. Scott is a teacher at heart, and he breaks things up into manageable chunks as "projects". His books are about the clearest I have every read on complex photography/computer subjects.
--
Only my opinion. It's worth what you paid for it. Your mileage may vary! ;-}

About the choice of software - I think one of the most important factors is how you feel with the interface. Whatever software you choose, it's likely that you'll stick with it for quite a while ... but this also depends on how much time you're willing to spend. Right now you might have a different view of the role of software than you'll develop as you mature into it, so a growth path is important. With the "elements" products you can always segue into the full-blown Photoshop application, so that would be a good start. If you're unsure and are reluctant to open the package, Adobe probably offers a free trial that you can download from their web site.

To start, it helps to have an idea of the things you and your wife want to do with the software; some basic needs are sharpening, levels and white balance, red eye removal, and basic touch-up (cropping, removing/cloning out inconsistencies, blemishes, smudges, etc.), and elements can do these things. So I think that, as long as the interface works for you, you've chosen a good product. Just keep in mind that the best thing to do is shoot in RAW mode (with or w/o JPEG) as you've got the most editing lattitude from there; always keep the original RAW intact/uneditted, since your skills will grow and the software will get better - you can revisit shots that were "almost good" (or within reach of what you wanted) and improve your results. Best of luck!

Rich

I didn't mean to imply that the Friedman book will help you with your new software; it is to help you enjoy your camera to the fullest (taking the photos). The other books that have been mentioned will help with PE4. Go to Amazon.com to see what is available and read the reviews.

By the way, PE4 is a bit demanding of a computer. I hope that you have a late-model computer with enough memory.

You should also go to Adobe's website and download the latest RAW converter (3.3). You will also find some tutorial photos, etc., to download and a new version of the help feature in English. Check the Adobe site regularly to keep your software up to date.

To All

I bought the Missing Manual book today. I'm hoping this book and the manual that came with the software will get me started. I'll let you know how it's going in the next couple of weeks or so.

--
Thanks, Ed
Torrance, CA