Whether you're just getting getting into Photoshop or have been using it for a while, you know that it's a many-faceted application that can be somewhat overwhelming to master. With 53 easy-to-follow recipes, Photoshop CS3 Photo Effects Cookbook shows you how to use Photoshop CS3 to simulate classic camera and darkroom techniques and special effects--without making you first learn Photoshop inside and out.

• Using the improved Vanishing Point, Lens Blur, and Black & White filters

• Creating graphic art effects: posterization, watercolor, pen and ink

• Working with lighting effects: neon glows, lens flares, fire and flame effects

• Simulating natural phenomena: rain, snow, and lightning

• Adapting traditional techniques: film grain, contrast masks, hand-tinting, cross-processing

• Adding motion blurs and other special effects

• Assembling multi-layered images and photomontages

Packed with hundreds of full-color images, step-by-step instructions, and many practical tips, this book-and Adobe Photoshop CS3- are all you need to create professional graphic art effects from almost any image source.

The book covers:

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 24 Ratings

very informative - 2009-07-07
Reviewer Rating:
a lot of great ideas-I am a teacher and the step by step is very helpful and gives lots of fun ideas

excellent getting started book - 2009-02-09
Reviewer Rating:
i agree with a couple of the reviews here about the settings used in the examples. 41% opacity? will it explode if i make it 42? however, the book is aptly called a cookbook, because like all recipes (except for baking), they are meant for experimenting with once you get the basics.

we rarely question a recipe that says 1/4 teaspoon of tumeric. what happens if i bump it up to 1/2? but i know what happens from experience when I accidentally put 1 tablespoon of cayenne in instead of 1 teaspoon!

From this perspective, these books are awesome - cutting straight to the chase more than a dummies guide. just play with the settings in each step - save different versions of the files as you go along - and then test print the different results. we did this with black and white photo developing, why not with photoshop?

Lots of tips and tricks. - 2008-09-30
Reviewer Rating:
This book is very visual, and it's very simple to follow the step-by-step instructions in this book. Highly recommended, if you want to take your photoshop skills to the next level.

Complete Photoshop CS3 for Digital Photographers (Graphics Series) by Colin Smith - 2008-06-08
Reviewer Rating:
This is a good book however; I do miss the step by step instructions to create an photo. CS3 do is a heavy professional program and do have very much possibilities. A beginner does not know all the tools and gadgets what are build inn. The most simply case like: how to cut that part from your picture to create a better look a like photo is one of these delays. Not everybody does know how to use specific tools. This is a missing point for a really good written book.

Quick and to the point - 2008-04-05
Reviewer Rating:
This book is great if you aren't looking for too much explanation into what you are doing. I began to read this book at my local super book store, and wrote down the information. I like this book because it gives me the information I want to do what I need to, without all the fluff and stuff of other books.

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Graphics

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Graphics > Digital Photography
Graphics > Photoshop
Photoshop > Technique