Mastering Photoshop

Quick Overview

Many claim to be able to teach you how to master Photoshop, so why should you trust this eBook to explain techniques any better than others? Here is why: because the book was written by someone just like you.

Have you reached a dead end and feel like a massive barrier stands between your creativity and the screen? Thomas Giannattasio has been there and knows how to help. He has put together an intuitive guide to color management, as well as detailed instructions on how to get the most out of paths and brushes. Handle layer styles like a pro, take your typography to the next level, and make your photographs look like a professional’s with native CS5 techniques.

Formats: pdf, ePub, Mobipocket (DRM-free)
Pages: 178
Language: English
ISBN : 978-3-943075-01-4
Released: November 2010
Publisher: Smashing Media GmbH

Full Product Description

Mastering Photoshop for Web Design is the third book in our eBook series, and it’s definitely the best eBook we’ve published so far. It was written from scratch by our regular writer Thomas Giannattasio, exclusively for Smashing Magazine and its readers. We are very proud of the result, in particular because of the high quality of tips, ideas and techniques that Thomas—who is a deep expert in Adobe Photoshop—presents in his book.

All chapters have undergone a careful technical review by well-known designer, illustrator and speaker Elliot Jay Stocks. The book was proofread by our regular proofreader Andrew Lobo, and it has an attractive layout. The PDF can be printed and read on all devices.

The Author

Thomas Giannattasio is an interactive designer who resides in the Washington DC metro area. He specializes in Web design and front-end development, particularly art direction, website design and application design, and has 14 years of experience. Thomas cares strongly about typography, simplicity and user experience. He works as a senior designer for a global marketing firm and freelances under the name attasi.

Thomas’ articles on Smashing Magazine prove his expertise in Photoshop: The Ails of Typographic Anti-Aliasing and Unknown Photoshop Tricks and Time-Savers are two of the most useful Photoshop-related articles that Smashing Magazine has published over the years.

The Expert’s Opinion

“Photoshop is a powerful tool, and although the basics can be easy to grasp, mastering the application can be extremely difficult. This is where Mastering Photoshop comes in: it takes readers through the app in depth and relates all tasks back to the creative process. There’s much to learn in here, for beginners and experts alike.”

— Elliot Jay Stocks, designer, illustrator and speaker

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Color Management
Calibrating the Display
ICC Profiles
Setting Up Photoshop
Color Management Module (CMM)
Color Settings
Aside: Modern Browsers and Color Management
Color Management Policies
Conversion Options and Advanced Options

Chapter 2: Paths
Bézier Basics
Path Creation Tools
The Perfectionist’s Way
Other Creation Methods
Path Usage
Quick Tips
Keyboard Shortcuts

Chapter 3: Layer Styles
Basics
Effects
Blend Options
Contextual Controls
Saving and Loading Styles
Quick Tips

Chapter 4: Brushes
Basic Settings
Advanced Settings
Keyboard Shortcuts

Chapter 5: Typography
Anatomy of the Type Tool
Character Palette
Font
Size and Spacing
Color, Baseline Shift and Stretching
Fauxs and Variants
Anti-Aliasing
Flyout options
Paragraph Palette
Quick Tips
Glyph Shortcuts
Keyboard Shortcuts

Chapter 6: Photography
Garbage In, Garbage Out
Resizing and Interpolation
Smart Objects
Color and Tone
Repair
Sharpening
Masking
Quick Tips
Keyboard Shortcuts

Chapter 7: Exporting
Save for Web and Devices
Slices