All the design options are daunting. Photoshop, in particular, has such a range of effects and multiple avenues to achieve those effects that I find it difficult to maintain a direct A to B approach learning any specific function. Typically, I fail to follow the instructions and end up doing something that I had no intention of doing. Sometimes these neophyte diversions lead to profitable discoveries and sometimes not. Ultimately, time seems to be the real issue. With enough time, I’m sure a preferred method can be found for a desired effect. That is why I have a preference for the tutorials by Moll and Petrik. Simply, I like having my hand held. I like having a clear idea of what I’m attempting to accomplish and the steps needed to pull it off before I begin. I also like being able to refer back to the tutorial after I make a mistake or miss a step. Petrik’s tutorial was particularly helpful to me because I have photoshop elements. The more I tried to implement Eismann’s restoration techniques on scanned images of my grandparents old photos, the more I realized that photoshop elements and photoshop are substantially different. So in the end, I just wish I had more time. In that regard, this post can be considered a vote in favor of tutorials.
And speaking of the use of historical images, the NY Times ran this article by Errol Morris about a photo found on the battlefied at Gettysburg. Pretty interesting.
Tutorials are definitely a great tool. I found Eismann to be helpful in the same way that I still find Meyer helpful, as a reference tool. Yes, if you had unlimited time, the book can probably teach you everything, but who can do that? To reach comprehension-level retention on a book dealing with that many different techniques (when we will probably have different goals/results much of the time) would take a while!
That being said, it’s good to be exposed to a greater degree, both by the tutorial and Eismann’s book.
Comment by vz2man — March 30, 2009 @ 6:07 pm |
I agree that tutorials are a good thing! Until I gain a lot more familiarity with all of the possibilities and which steps I need to take to achieve what I want to achieve – I need step-by-step guidance. I have Photoshop Elements, as well. Eismann says that Elements is 75% of Photoshop so I hope that I will be able to apply what I need to – after all I bought the book! I will make it work for me! That being said, all of the examples in Eismann’s book are exciting and impressive. It is amazing what can be done with even really damaged photos.
Comment by treppe — March 30, 2009 @ 8:25 pm |