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Total Training For Photoshop CS2

Video tutorials from Total Training for Photoshop CS2, CS, and Elements 3.
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Total Training Masters Collection:
Advanced Adobe Photoshop CS2

Hosted by Deke McClelland
Level: Intermediate through Advanced
Running Time: 8 Hours, 1 DVD (ROM) / Platform: Windows & MAC OS
Project Files: Included / Extras: Contains a free plug-in called Texture Anarchy
[view sample clips, see full index]
review by Eric Martin

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To redeem our exclusive discount coupon, use promotion code save20pss in your shopping cart. You could save hundreds of dollars. Use this special link to see the full offer.

Let's Start At The Beginning
Total Training - Advanced Adobe Photoshop CS2The Total Training Masters Collection: Advanced Adobe Photoshop CS2 training DVD starts by prompting you to install all the 68 project files you'll need to complete the lessons, as well as a copy of host Deke McClelland's own Photoshop presets. This configures your copy of Photoshop CS2 to be the same as Deke's, and it is recommended that you do this to make following along easier.

If you'd rather not change your personal settings in Photoshop, no worries, as there's an option to skip this part of the installation process and return to it later.

As I've mentioned in other reviews of their products, Total Training's interface has always been user-friendly, and this now includes 2x and 4x fast-forward buttons, which are an enormous help when searching through a previously viewed lesson for a specific segment.

What's On The DVD
For a full list of the lessons on the DVD you can read the index below. What follows here is a quick rundown of what each lesson covers.

The prologue "Setting Up 'Shop" includes some good tips. For instance, did you know that there's an option to activate 'Zoom with Scroll Wheel' in the general options?

Lesson 1 "Advanced Levels and 16 Bit" shows the advantages of working on images in the 16-bit-per-channel mode, along with measuring colors with eyedropper targets, and ways to control the exact ink density of commercial prints.

Lesson 2 covers the Bridge and Camera Raw and explains how to work with digital camera images, discusses opening and saving .DNG images, and demonstrates how you can edit multiple images at once in Camera Raw.

Lesson 3 "The Wonders of HDR" focuses on high dynamic range, 16-bit-per-channel images and shows how to work with them.

Lesson 4 "The Art of Sharpen" walks you though the best ways to sharpen images and offers tips on working with the smart sharpen filter, as well as how to correct motion blur.

Lesson 5 "Adding Blur and Removing Noise" concentrates on how to perform photo retouching by using some new filters found in CS2. Here Deke offers techniques that combine automatic settings with some manual tweaking to get the best results.

Lesson 6 "Mixing the Perfect Monochrome" deals exclusively with black and white images. This section includes converting color to grayscale, and shows ways to work with the channel mixer to get great results.

Total Training - Advanced Adobe Photoshop CS2 Lesson 7 "Duotones, Spot Colors, and Gradient Maps " talks about ways to integrate spot colors into art work, the creation and editing of duotones, and using a gradient map to render black and white images in CMYK.

Lesson 8 "Advanced Retouching Techniques" reveals some professional photo retouching techniques, focusing on the History Command and the History Brush.

Lesson 9 "Vanishing Point" is all about the extremely popular Vanishing Point Tool. This section shows how to create a grid and add planes to a grid, edit and retouch your images using the stamp tool, and how to work with text.

Lesson 10 "Smart Objects" explores the benefits of using Photoshop's new Smart Objects, which allow you to perform non-destructive editing.

Targeted To The Power User
This training will mostly benefit the intermediate to advanced user, as beginners might get lost if they do not first have a firm understanding of some of the fundamentals of Photoshop.

If you are a beginner, Total Training offers a comprehensive package for CS2, Total Training For Photoshop CS2, which is also hosted by Deke, and I would suggest you complete that training package first before tackling this one.

Summary
For those that are already proficient with Photoshop, this training package will take you straight to all the good stuff in Photoshop CS2, including working with the Vanishing Point Tool, HDR integration, performing non-destructive editing with the use of Smart Objects, and working efficiently with Adobe Bridge and Camera Raw.

Deke is an old hand at this and he moves through the lessons in his usual buoyant way. There is some rambling and some repetition, but that's just Deke being Deke, and it's a small price to pay for learning from this somewhat mad genius.

Overall, Advanced Adobe Photoshop CS2 is a surefire way to go from simply being good at Photoshop to coming very close to mastering Photoshop. And that's quite an accomplishment. Kudos to Deke.

©2005 Eric Martin & PhotoshopSupport.com

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Exclusive 20% Discount On Select Total Training Products & BundlesTotal Training has given us an exclusive 20% discount coupon, and we've been told that this coupon can also be applied to the already heavily discounted Creative Suite 2 Premium Edition Bundle.

This bundle of DVDs teaches pro level tips and techniques for Photoshop CS2, InDesign CS2, Illustrator CS2, GoLive CS2, and Acrobat 7. Regulary priced at $1,179.94, it's on sale right now for $449.99, saving you $729.95, and when you add on our coupon you save an extra $90.

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About Deke McClelland
Total Training Masters Collection: Advanced Adobe Photoshop CS2Deke McClelland is a number one selling author of books about computer graphics, digital imaging, and electronic design. Having written more than 50 titles in the past decade and with over 2.5 million copies in print, his knowledge of programs such as Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator is unsurpassed.

You can read a short interview with Deke in our Photoshop Blog.

About The Masters Collection Series
Discover all Photoshop has to offer with this Masters Collection Series of video-based training. The comprehensive lessons are geared for power users of Photoshop CS2 with valuable techniques and advanced lessons reserved for this series only.

Bonus Software
Courtesy of Digital Anarchy, this product contains a free plug-in called Texture Anarchy, which makes texture creation easy. It's a powerful texture engine that allows users to create many different types of textures. It gives users full texture control, four modifiable light sources, a complete gradient editor, and 38 different base noise types for creating an infinite number of textures. The textures are generated using sophisticated fractal algorithms, which allows the textures to be scaled up or down infinitely to any resolution.
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TOTAL TRAINING FOR PHOTOSHOP CS2 - SAMPLE CLIPS
Here are 4 sample clips from Advanced Adobe Photoshop CS2 hosted by Deke McClelland.

Liquify Filter Warp Tool
In this sample clip you'll learn the following:
 How to work with the Liquify Filter Dialog Box.
 How to use the Liquify Filter's Warp Tool to make subtle adjustments to an image.
See the Liquify Filter Warp Tool video tutorial.

Camera Raw Color Controls
In this sample clip you'll learn the following:
 How to work with the new Color Sampler Tool to set specific color sample points.
 How to use the Temperature and Tint sliders in the Color Controls dialog box.
See the Camera Raw Color Controls video tutorial.

Surface Blur Filter
In this sample clip you'll learn the following:
 How to use the Surface Blur Filter for photo retouching.
 How to adjust the Threshold and Radius values to control your blur.
See the Surface Blur Filter video tutorial.

Exposure Command
In this sample clip you'll learn the following:
 How to work with 32 bits of data per channel.
 How to modify the brightness and contrast of an image using the Exposure Command.
See the Exposure Command video tutorial.
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ADVANCED PHOTOSHOP CS2 - FULL INDEX

Program 1: Advanced Photoshop CS2

0. Setting up 'Shop (25 min)
Lesson 1: Customizing Preferences
Lesson 2: Optimizing Color Settings
Lesson 3: Customizing Keyboard Shortcuts
Lesson 4: Working in Different Color Spaces
Lesson 5: Customizing the Info Palette
Lesson 6: Changing the Background Color
Lesson 7: Saving Preference Settings

1. Advanced Levels and 16 Bit (46 min)
Lesson 1: Introducing Levels & 16 Bit
Lesson 2: Using the Levels Command
Lesson 3: Restoring an Image after Adjusting Levels
Lesson 4: Targeting Shadows & Highlights
Lesson 5: Setting the Black Point to Match a Target
Lesson 6: Setting the White Point to Match a Target
Lesson 7: Adjusting Flesh Tones by Setting the Gray Point
Lesson 8: Downsampling & Saving for Print

2. The Bridge and Camera RAW (43 min)
Lesson 1: Viewing .DNG Images in Bridge
Lesson 2: Using the White Balance & Color Sampler Tools
Lesson 3: Adjusting Temperature & Tint
Lesson 4: Adjusting Exposure & Shadow Levels
Lesson 5: Adjusting Brightness, Contrast & Saturation
Lesson 6: Cropping & Upsampling Images
Lesson 7: Viewing Image Metadata
Lesson 8: Opening & Saving .DNG Images in Photoshop
Lesson 9: Editing Multiple Images at Once in Camera Raw
Lesson 10: Cropping a Group of Images
Lesson 11: Copying & Pasting Camera Raw Settings
Lesson 12: Accessing & Purging Cache Files

3. The Wonders of HDR (37 min)
Lesson 1: Applying the Levels Command to 16 Bit & 8 Bit Images
Lesson 2: Applying the Curves Command to 16 Bit & 8 Bit Images
Lesson 3: Introducing HDR
Lesson 4: Downsampling with the Image Processor
Lesson 5: Using the Merge to HDR Command
Lesson 6: Adjusting the Exposure & Saving HDR Images
Lesson 7: Downsampling HDR & Adjusting Hue/Saturation

4. The Art of Sharpen (51 min)
Lesson 1: Creating a Custom Sharpen
Lesson 2: Applying the Unsharp Mask Command
Lesson 3: Adjusting Basic Smart Sharpen Settings
Lesson 4: Adjusting & Saving Advanced Smart Sharpen Settings
Lesson 5: Creating a More Accurate Smart Sharpen
Lesson 6: Using the Fade Command
Lesson 7: Correcting Motion Blur
Lesson 8: Sharpening with the Emboss Filter
Lesson 9: Color Sharpening in Lab Color Mode
Lesson 10: Color Sharpening with the Fade Command

5. Adding Blur and Removing Noise (39 min)
Lesson 1: Using Smart Sharpen to Fix Motion Blur
Lesson 2: Using the Dust & Scratches Filter to Get Rid of Stray Hairs
Lesson 3: Adding a Layer Mask to Bring Back Detail
Lesson 4: Using the Layer Mask to Paint Away Noise inside the Skin
Lesson 5: Using the Remove Noise Filter
Lesson 6: Blending Layers in the Layer Style Dialog Box
Lesson 7: Removing Compression Artifacts with the Reduce Noise Filter
Lesson 8: Working with the New Surface Blur Filter
Lesson 9: Getting Rid of Whiskers Using the Average Filter

(continued from previous...)

6. Mixing the Perfect Monochrome (53 min)
Lesson 1: Using the Channel Mixer to Create an Autumnal Effect
Lesson 2: Mixing Channels & Adjusting Blending Options
Lesson 3: Converting an RGB Image to Grayscale Automatically
Lesson 4: Creating a Grayscale Image Using the Channel Mixer
Lesson 5: Using the Color Range Command to Create a Layer Mask
Lesson 6: Balancing Source Channels
Lesson 7: Punching up Luminosity Values Using the Curves Command
Lesson 8: Flattening a Converted Grayscale Image
Lesson 9: Converting to Grayscale in the Camera Raw Dialog Box
Lesson 10: Cropping & Adjusting the Curves of a Grayscale Image
Lesson 11: Editing Curves in the Camera Raw Dialog Box
Lesson 12: Compositing Versions of a Grayscale Image

7. Duotones, Spot Colors, and Gradient Maps (47 min)
Lesson 1: Monochrome & Multi-Ink Monochrome Images
Lesson 2: Converting Images to Duotones
Lesson 3: Adjusting a Duotone Curve to Balance the Inks in an Image
Lesson 4: Editing a Duotone
Lesson 5: Loading Preset Duotones
Lesson 6: Inspecting the Independent Channels of an Image
Lesson 7: Adding Spot Colors to an Image
Lesson 8: Saving an Image
Lesson 9: Using Gradient Maps
Lesson 10: Working with Deke's Predefined Gradients
Lesson 11: Modifying Adjustment Layers

8. Advanced Retouching Techniques (46 min)
Lesson 1: Rotating a Canvas & Using Variations
Lesson 2: Creating a Gradient Selection & Filling with History
Lesson 3: Painting with the History Brush
Lesson 4: Using the Healing Brush Tools
Lesson 5: Using Color Range to Generate a Selection to Make a Patch
Lesson 6: Filling in Seams of a Patch with the Healing Brush
Lesson 7: Retouching Using the History Brush, Cloning & Fading
Lesson 8: Adding Noise with the Healing Brush & Fading Opacity
Lesson 9: Moving & Transforming a Selection from One Image to Another
Lesson 10: Adjusting the Levels of One Image to Match Another
Lesson 11: Merging Two Layers Using the Healing Brush
Lesson 12: Using the Liquify Filter to Retouch an Image
Lesson 13: Softening Transitions & Bolstering Shadows

9. Vanishing Point (61 min)
Lesson 1: Preparing to Use the Vanishing Point Filter
Lesson 2: Creating a Grid
Lesson 3: Adding Planes to a Grid
Lesson 4: Editing an Image inside Vanishing Point
Lesson 5: Healing Transformed Areas
Lesson 6: Retouching Using the Stamp Tool
Lesson 7: Pasting & Compositing with Vanishing Point
Lesson 8: Adjusting Masks for Better Composites
Lesson 9: Accounting for Different Perspectives
Lesson 10: Pasting Text into Vanishing Point

10. Smart Objects (37 min)
Lesson 1: Placing an Illustrator® File as a Smart Object
Lesson 2: Using Illustrator to Edit the Contents of a Photoshop File
Lesson 3: Importing an Image into a Composition
Lesson 4: Converting a Standard Layer to a Smart Object
Lesson 5: Duplicating & Transforming Smart Objects
Lesson 6: Applying Warp Transformations to Smart Objects
Lesson 7: Modifying Smart Objects in the Liquify Dialog Box
Lesson 8: Changing the Color of Smart Objects
Lesson 9: Applying a Color Overlay to a Single Smart Object
Lesson 10: Grouping Layers & Making Final Transformations

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PHOTO CREDIT: Product shots & logo (© Total Training) plus blur on color pools.
© 2004 Eric Martin of Futura Studios


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