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Post Processing Book Suggestions


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Looking for something technical...what is the digital equivalent of Adams' The Negative? I have seen Schewe & Fraser recommended here, but was wondering if there was something better.

 

Thanks.

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I have seen Schewe & Fraser recommended here, but was wondering if there was something better.

There isn't anything better than Fraser and Schewe ... at least not in the fields these two authors cover. Which is limited, as they address rather specific fields, namely a) raw conversion and B) image sharpening using Adobe products. Particularly the book on image sharpening is singular—i. e. it's not just the best; it's the only one that exists on this topic.

 

For general digital image processing, you may also want to check out the books by Martin Evening, Katrin Eismann, and Dan Margulis. However all these are centered around Adobe Photoshop (naturally, as this simply is the industry standard).

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Thanks, I appreciate the suggestions and looked up all those authors. The limitation to raw workflow is no minus for me, actually.

 

In fact I would consider a book on just b&w. I still have not run across anything I would call "academic" or technical, and I guess I won't. Thanks again.

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I've heard good things about the B&W books by Joe Farace. Others call them flashy. I cannot say from personal experience, though. Have a look at this forum:

http://www.digitalmonochromeforum.co.uk/content/

My preferred general book is the Martin Evening book. The books by Dan Marguiles are mostly about LAB color, very good, but hard work to understand sometimes.

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The books by Dan Margulis are mostly about Lab color ...

One of them, Photoshop Lab Color: Solving the Canyon Conundrum, is mostly about Lab colour. The other, Professional Photoshop: The Classic Guide to Color Correction, is about digital colour in general and covers RGB, Lab, and CMYK equally.

 

Margulis as an author tends to intersperse the occasional rant here and there and often tries to be funny or witty, without much success. This makes his books a little hard to read, especially when English is not your first language. Still, they're worth the effort. Moreover, these two books have been translated into several languages.

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If you want technical than Dan Margulis's Photoshop Lab Color: Solving the Canyon Conundrum, is the Bible. Although it is set in the land of LAB, it's truths & practices are easily applied in any setting.

 

The book that I was turned on to by William Palank & that changed EVERYTHING for me is Scott Kelby's 7 Point System. A true game changer. He gives you a roadmap with all the bones & from there you build your own universe. I don't know anyone that has undertaken to master Kelby's system whose work hasn't been transformed. It sure made all the difference for me. Of course, you have to have an imagination.:D

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  • 2 weeks later...

If you understand german, there is a serious, technical book from Uwe STEINMÜLLER and Jürgen GULBINS "Handbuch Digitale Dunkelkammer" which is very good.

Those guys have also written some other books in english. I'm not sure if the one mentioned is also available in english.

They have a web-page called "fotoespresso - workflow for photographers" on <http://www.fotoespresso.com>

 

Christoph

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On my bookshelf (collected over the years) stand following books:

 

 

Dan Margulis: Photoshop LAB Color: The Canyon Conundrum and Other Adventures in the Most Powerful Colorspace

 

Bruce Fraser: Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop

Bruce Fraser: Real World Camera Raw with Adobe Photoshop

 

Martin Evening: The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Book: The Complete Guide for Photographers

Martin Evening: Adobe Photoshop CS3 for Photographers: A Professional Image Editor's Guide to the Creative use of Photoshop for the Macintosh and PC

 

Matt Kloskowski: Layers: The Complete Guide to Photoshop's Most Powerful Feature

Nigel French: Adobe Photoshop Unmasked: The Art and Science of Selections, Layers, and Paths

 

Vincent Versace: Welcome to Oz 2.0: A Cinematic Approach to Digital Still Photography with Photoshop (2nd Edition)

George Dewolfe: Digital Masters: B&W Printing: Creating the Digital Master Print

 

Leslie Alsheimer: Black and White in Photoshop CS4 and Lightroom: A complete integrated workflow solution for creating stunning monochromatic images in Photoshop CS4, Photoshop Lightroom, and beyond

Katrin Eismann: The Creative Digital Darkroom

 

Peter Krogh: The DAm Book, Digital Asset Management for photographers

 

Some of them better than others, but I have never been able to find one book that covers it all.

 

If you can be more precise about which technical part you are looking for more information about I may be able to help you better

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I'd go for the 7 point system, as a well processed color photo is of eminent importance before going into B&W. Leslie Alsheimer's book is top as well.

 

but ...

 

In the end it is a question of reading, then doing. And doing it some more. Hard work.

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I'd go for the 7 point system, as a well processed color photo is of eminent importance before going into B&W. Leslie Alsheimer's book is top as well.

 

but ...

 

In the end it is a question of reading, then doing. And doing it some more. Hard work.

+1 for the whole post. But I wouldn't describe it as hard work, Marco.:p

 

Pete.

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