Not so hot!!!
Very disapointed in this book; nowhere up to the other "For Dummies" volumns I've purchased. As a "how to" instructional volumn I found it very lacking in clarity and comtinuity as a step-by-step manual.
Photoshop Elements 2 Joke Book
While I found a lot of help from reading the book it was not worth wading through the author's feeble attempt to be a comedian. If I want to read comedy I will buy a joke book.
I would certainly not recommend this book.
A Bit Humor Makes the Learning Easier
The real difference between Photoshop and Photoshop Elements is the price. Looking at Amazon, Photoshop (CS2) is $579, Photoshop Elements is $69.99.
When Photoshop came along, it was a marvelous gift to photographers. Adobe took the package and every year or so came out with a new version having dozens if hot hundreds of new feature. Like a lot of other software, the new features became more and more esoteric as everything really important was built into the package.
Result, Adobe, like other software companies, came out with 'light' versions of their mainstream products. Photoshop Elements is one of these. It's kind of like taking a step backwards for a version or two. The result is that Photoshop Elements really is Photoshop with a few high end (and infrequently used) features removed.
If you are just starting out, I recommend that you start with Elements. You'll use the standard Photoshop screens, the standard commands, the same philosophy. And this book is an excellent way to get started. The For Dummies books are the fastest way to get up and running I know. They are well written, informative, and concentrate on what you need to know to get started.
The cutesiness is dull, dull, dull
I learned a lot from this book, but it was annoying to have to plow through a lot of meaningless chit chat to do so. The book could be 25% shorter without all the senseless yammer--which was not that funny. When I'm trying to understand a particular tool or function, I don't appreciate the extra time it takes to read about how pixel resolution is like grandma's oatmeal cookies, or whatever.
Great Help
I always had difficulty with the original manual. On a given subject it referred you to another place in the manual. The Dummies book does a better job of covering a subject in it's entirety. The index is also much better.
(19 reviews)
