by Brian Gorst (Author) "Artists painting in oils today can consider themselves abundantly provided for when it comes to materials…"

 

Book Description
Oils are perhaps the most versatile of all paint mediums. Yet for many artists oil painting is either shrouded in mystique or considered very difficult. Filled with clear, step-by-step instructions and surefire strategies, The Complete Oil Painter is an essential, one-stop guide to becoming an expert in every aspect of this medium. Artists will discover everything they need to know about materials (pigments, supports, canvases); tools and equipment (palettes, brushes); paint application (wet-into-wet, alla-prima, glazing, impasto); form and color (light and dark, expression, color mixing); exploring themes (still life, portraiture, figure painting); and much more.

About the Author
Brian Gorst studied at the Cheltenham School of Art in the UK and at the New York Academy of Art in New York City. He has published many articles on painting and painting techniques. He lives in Gloucestershire, England.

An Excellent Reference, March 18, 2004

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by Robert Massey (Author) "Since the Middle Ages-indeed as early as the 13th century when Theophilus, the monk of Paderborn, wrote his work, On Divers Arts-artists and craftsmen have…" (more)
Key Phrases: hide glue solution, sun thickened linseed oil, final picture varnish (more…)

Its all here, October 11, 2005

If you want to know what you are working with in the world of paint-here it is.I’m talking types of paint and not brands.a Fantastic book for consultation on varnishes,fixatives,glazes,etc.It gives you the lowdown and how to make the stuff and what their purpose and use.It is not a "must-have" book but its one I really love as I’ve always been curious about the alchemist side of things.It is a technical book only but thats exactly what I wanted…but not needed.I love this book.

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If you love photography, this book is a must have, February 3, 2008

This book is written in such a way that photographers of every experience, style and age will gain huge value.
This is now my favorite book to date on photography.

My one line summary:

It will teach you "how to have a single photo tell a real story", with emotion and from different perspectives. In my opinion it is a must for amateurs through pros.

Pros:

The books is written simply with no unexplained jargon. If the author mentions an industry word (e.g. Ripping Film), he goes on to explain what it means. You learn some of the industry street terms and get a feel for the authors experience shooting.

Every turn of the page has a compelling photo which is the subject of the lesson. Some lessons are technical such as how-to on lighting, while others are lessons on approach, demeanor or attitude.

The book is emotionally engaging. You want to put the book down and immediate try some of the approaches.

The author isn’t demonstrating ego – this book is NOT about him! It’s about the the world around him. You turn each page and learn how he captured an amazing picture of someone like James Brown, or how he found the real story in Augusta.

It will give you ideas on how to have a single photo tell a real story.

Cons:

The only real complaint: This is a soft cover and Amazon shipped it in an envelope instead of a box. The edges of the cover got crimped a bit.

Feedback for the author:
I’d love for more – just simply put – I want the second volume. I’d love to figure out how to get this signed

This is a real gem and I would have loved it in perfect condition for my office desktop.

Great job to the author.

Most useful reference book for Photoshop Elements 5, February 13, 2007

Adobe Photoshop Elements 5 offers all the digital photo editing power most people will ever need (especially when used together with a third-party noise reduction program and RAW converter). The problem is how to make the most effective and efficient use of that power. Kelby’s book does a fine job of addressing exactly this problem, which wins it my vote as the most useful PSE 5 reference book currently available. (Its main competitor, Barbara Brundage’s "Photoshop Elements 5: The Missing Manual," is too loosely organized and gives too much attention to PSE 5 features that are tangential to actual digital image editing.)

Kelby’s book is organized around a basic digital image processing workflow, starting with organizing images and moving through RAW conversion, resizing and cropping, color correction, noise reduction, and so on. Each chapter presents several techniques, usually moving from basic to more advanced, all thoroughly illustrated. His explanations are clear, thorough, and direct—not a lot of wasted motion here. Though the publisher rates the book for intermediate to advanced users of PSE 5, I think it’s accessible to a wider audience. Anyone who knows her/his way around a digital camera (especially an advanced point and shoot or a "prosumer" digital SLR), understands the fundamentals of digital photography, and is comfortable with PSE 5’s layout will be able to make good use of Kelby’s book.

The tutorials are self-contained, that is, you don’t need to read the early chapters to understand techniques presented later in the book. If information presented elsewhere is relevant, it’s referenced so the reader can take a look, then come back. Some skills are basic to using PSE 5, like making selections, so it’s good to spend time learning them first. The general workflow model guiding the book’s organization is another reason for taking the topics in the order Kelby presents them. But if you have some understanding to start with, you can jump around pretty much at will. There’s no doubt that anyone who works her/his way through the book will develop a very full understanding of PSE 5.

No one will ever use all the techniques Kelby presents, and everyone is likely to prefer some of them over others. In fact, the number of techniques discussed could be somewhat daunting if you’re just looking for a quick fix with a particular image. That’s one drawback to the book.

Another drawback is that some topics don’t get quite the attention they need. I found that particularly the case with image sharpening, a basic issue in digital photography. Kelby includes numerous recommended settings for the unsharp mask tool, but I would have liked to learn about a wider range of sharpening techniques. (A half star off for this.)

A final drawback is Kelby’s repetitive, almost compulsive attempts at humor. A little of it goes a long way, and though it’s good to keep the tone light in a book like this, after a while the repeated one-liners at his editors’ expense become stale. I found myself muttering, "Just get on it with it, will you?" after about two or three chapters. (Another half star off here.)

Still, the book is well worth the time and money, these drawbacks aside. If you’re serious about learning to edit digital images with PSE 5, and maybe also learning to be a better digital photographer along the way, this is the one book to have.

A fantastic learning tool!, September 17, 2004

This book is even better than the old edition, and expands on some of the topics that were only briefly touched on in the first book. One in particular that sticks out in my mind is that he explains the "don’t care" apertures of F8 and F11 that he uses often. The old book mentioned it in passing, but I don’t recall an explanation on why those apertures were useful. There is a short section on just that in this book and suggestions on when to use them.

Full color photos are used throughout the book, and are a great help in understanding the concepts that he talks about. Each picture has a caption with the information used to take the exposure. He shows you the same picture with different settings so you can see the effects the settings have on the exposure.

I find the book pleasant and easy to read. The tone and writing are very agreeable and easy to follow. While some aspects are technical, they are written in a manner that makes them easily understandable.

This is all about how to capture the image, not processing of the image after it is captured. There is brief mention of pushing or pulling film and the effects it can create, but in general, this is about how to get take a proper picture. If you are looking for a book on how to process the picture after you have taken it, this is not the book for you.

I can not recommend this book enough if you are interested in photography. I don’t know how useful it would be for professionals, but for the person just starting out or serious amateur, I can’t see how you could go wrong with this. While all of the information can be applied to SLR cameras (film or digital), the majority of it can be applied to the point and shoot cameras of either variety as well.

The Digital Photography Book, Volume 1 (Paperback)

How you can get professional results with your equipment., September 6, 2006

I have enjoyed photography as a hobby for 50+years. I own a Canon 20D and am a Scott Kelby fan. He is a great photoshop expert, yet emphasizes the importance of getting the best possible shot when taking the picture, to make your time in photoshop more enjoyable. You don’t have to work as hard if you make the correct exposure to begin with.
Scott approaches each chapter with some humor, and really understands what you really need is a clear bottom line on how to approach the person or subject you want to photograph.

I received my book Sept 4th, read it and used some of his tips shooting 500+ volleyball pictures Sept 5th. I think I can see some improvement in my pictures already.

He has equipment recommendations and shooting tips for the person that has just bought a digital camera to the person that uses it to make a living.

He has worked alongside of professionals learning tips on how to process the digital photographs and how to best print them. Scott believes photography can be more fun if you get results you like by using some of the basic principles used by professional photographers.

I have unhesitatingly recommended this book to several of my friends.

This is one of the least expensive camera related purchases that I have made to bring my excitement of photography to a new level.
I am quite certain you won’t be disappointed, especially if you own a Nikon or Canon digital SLR.
I expect my copy to become dog eared from use.

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