Digital Alchemy: Printmaking techniques for fine art, photography, and mixed media (Voices That Matter)

In Digital Alchemy, acclaimed printmaker Bonny Pierce Lhotka shows how to turn your standard inkjet printer into a seemingly magical instrument capable of transforming your printed images into true works of art. Using plenty of visuals and straightforward terms, Lhotka walks you step-by-step through over a dozen projects. Forget printing on boring old paper, in Digital Alchemy, you'll learn how to transfer and print images to a variety of surfaces including metal, wood, fabric, stone, and plastic using the techniques Lhotka's spent years developing. If you're a photographer looking for new ways to personalize your work or a digital artist who's ready to take your work to the next level, you'll find all of the tools, techniques, and inspiration you need in this book. Lhotka's enthusiasm for experimenting with unusual printing materials and processes has led her to create new and amazing transfer techniques, including one that resembles a Polaroid™ transfer on steroids. She also shows you how to make prints using unexpected, everyday materials such as hand sanitizer and gelatin. You'll even learn direct printing, the technique for sending your custom substrate through your printer almost as if it were paper. In Digital Alchemy, you'll learn how to: Transfer images to metal, wood, plastic, and other materials that will not feed through an inkjet printer Print directly on metal for a fraction of the cost of using a print service Simulate a print from an expensive UV flatbed printer using an inexpensive desktop printer Use carrier sheets and paintable precoats to print on almost any surface Achieve near-lithographic quality digital prints with transfer processes to uncoated fine art paper In addition to the tutorials in the book, you can watch Lhotka in action on the included DVD-ROM, which has over 60 minutes of video footage where you'll learn how to perform an alcohol gel transfer, transfer an image to a wooden surface, use your inkjet printer to achieve remarkable prints, and more. Simply insert the DVD-ROM into your computer's DVD drive. Note, this DVD-ROM will not work in TV DVD players. 1. Building A Photoshop System : Choosing A Platform ; Processors And Cores ; 64-bit Processing, Ram, Virtual Memory ; Monitors And Video Cards -- 2. Image Essentials : Pixels And Paths ; Pixels And Images ; Resolution ; How Much Resolution Is Enough? ; Using The Image Size Dialog ; Resampling ; Image Mode -- 3. Color Essentials : Primary Colors ; The Color Wheel ; How Colors Affect Each Other ; Device-independent Lab Color ; Colors In The Real World -- 4. Color Settings : What Is Color Management Anyway? ; Color Management Systems Explained ; Choosing Your Working Spaces ; Handling Color-space Conversions ; Photoshop And Your Monitor ; Assign Profile And Convert To Profile ; Soft-proofing Other Color Spaces ; Converting Colors When You Print ; Printing To Desktop Printers ; Troubleshoot By Isolating Variables --^ 5. Building A Digital Workflow : Choosing A Digital Workflow ; Copying Files From A Camera ; Verifying Images ; Refining A Shoot Using Bridge ; Opening Images Into Camera Raw ; Camera Raw Controls ; Camera Raw Preferences ; The Output Buttons ; Camera Raw Workflow Options ; Camera Raw Image Control Tabs ; The Basic Tab ; The Tone Curve Tab ; The Detail Tab ; The Hsl/grayscale Tab ; The Split Toning Tab ; The Lens Corrections Tab ; The Effects Tab ; The Camera Calibration Tab ; The Presets Tab ; The Snapshots Tab ; Filmstrip Mode ; Copying Adjustments To More Images ; Generating Adjusted Images ; Using Adobe Bridge ; Using Bridge Windows ; Managing Files In Bridge ; Image Previews And The Cache ; Evaluating And Comparing Images ; Applying Metadata And Keywords ; Finding And Filtering Files ; Presenting Your Photos ; Exporting To Online Albums And Folders On Disk ; The Image Processor ; About Automating With Actions ; Using Mini Bridge --^ 6. Essential Photoshop Tips And Tricks : Window Tips ; Navigation Tips ; Moving Tips ; Guide And Grid Viewing Tips ; Dialog Tips ; New Document Tips ; Keyboard Shortcut Tips ; Tips For Tools ; Panels And Workspaces ; Setting Preferences ; When Things Go Wrong -- 7. Image Adjustment Fundamentals : What Is Image Quality, Anyway? / Visualizing Tonal Values With The Histogram ; The Three Basic Tonal Adjustments ; Making Adjustments Using Levels ; Adjusting Levels For Color Images ; Controlling Auto Corrections ; The Info Panel ; Output Levels ; Eyedroppers In Levels And Curves ; Preserving Quality As You Edit ; Making Adjustments Using Curves ; Hands-on Curves ; Using Color Samplers ; Using Shadows/highlights ; Hue, Saturation, And Lightness ; Vibrance ; Choosing A Color Mode For Editing ; Quick Lab Mode Fixes ; Photo Filter ; Replace Color ; Selective Color ; Channel Mixer ; Tools Of Limited Usefulness -- 8. The Digital Darkroom : Adjustment Layer Basics ; Creating Adjustment Layers ; Controlling Adjustment Layers ; Selections, Masks, And Channels ; Using The Masks Panel ; Adjusting Images Using Blending Modes ; Dodging And Burning By Hand ; Using History To Mix Adjustments ; Soft-proofing An Image For Print --^ 9. Making Selections : Reviewing The Basics ; Selection Strategies ; Selecting Areas Manually ; Selecting With Edge Detection Tools ; Tips For Using Selection Tools ; Selecting By Tone Or Color ; Anti-aliasing And Feathering ; Selecting Difficult Edges ; The Modify Submenu ; Floating Selections ; Quick Masks ; Selecting With Channels ; Selections, Layers, And Masks -- 10. Sharpness, Detail, And Noise Reduction : What's Sharpening All About? ; Why Unsharp Masking? ; A Practical Sharpening Workflow ; Sharpening Techniques ; Sharpening In Photoshop Vs. Camera Raw ; Smart Sharpen ; Noise Reduction -- 11. Essential Image Techniques : The Color Of Grayscale ; Creating Hdr Images ; Retouching ; Using The Clone Source Panel ; Correcting Lens Distortions ; Blending Images Automatically ; Depth Of Field Effects ; Content-aware Scaling ; Vectors Vs. Pixels ; Smart Objects ; The Nondestructive Workflow ; Text ; Filters And Effects ; Actions And Scripting --^ 12. Image Storage And Output : Save As ; Opening Images ; Printing From Photoshop ; Preparing Images For Online Services ; Creating Output For Prepress ; Creating Images For The Web ; Saving Images For The Web ; File Formats ; Compressing Images. Conrad Chavez. Includes Index. In Digital Alchemy, acclaimed printmaker Bonny Pierce Lhotka shows how to turn your standard inkjet printer into a seemingly magical instrument capable of transforming your printed images into true works of art. Using plenty of visuals and straightforward terms, Lhotka walks you step-by-step through over a dozen projects. Forget printing on boring old paper, in Digital Alchemy, you'll learn how to transfer and print images to a variety of surfaces including metal, wood, fabric, stone, and plastic using the techniques Lhotka's spent years developing. If you're a photographer looking for new ways to personalize your work or a digital artist who's ready to take your work to the next level, you'll find all of the tools, techniques, and inspiration you need in this book. Lhotka's enthusiasm for experimenting with unusual printing materials and processes has led her to create new and amazing transfer techniques, including one that resembles a PolaroidTM transfer on steroids. She also shows you how to make prints using unexpected, everyday materials such as hand sanitizer and gelatin. You'll even learn direct printing, the technique for sending your custom substrate through your printer almost as if it were paper. In Digital Alchemy, you'll learn how to: Transfer images to metal, wood, plastic, and other materials that will not feed through an inkjet printer Print directly on metal for a fraction of the cost of using a print service Simulate a print from an expensive UV flatbed printer using an inexpensive desktop printer Use carrier sheets and paintable precoats to print on almost any surface Achieve near-lithographic quality digital prints with transfer processes to uncoated fine art paper In addition to the tutorials in the book, you can watch Lhotka in action on the included DVD-ROM, which has over 60 minutes of video footage where you'll learn how to perform an alcohol gel transfer, transfer an image to a wooden surface, use your inkjet printer to achieve remarkable prints, and more. Simply insert the DVD-ROM into your computer's DVD drive. Note, this DVD-ROM will not work in TV DVD players.

This Learn by Video title is specifically geared toward photographers who use or want to use Photoshop to make the most of their images. It combines over 10 hours of exceptional video training with a 120-page full-color guide to teach you what every photographer needs to know about Adobe Photoshop CS5.

After helping you master the program’s interface, expert trainers and authors Mikkel Aaland and Tim Grey tap into their years of photography experience to teach you core functions and new features in Photoshop CS5 including file management, image retouching, noise reduction, and making lens corrections.

Other topics include:

• Using Adobe Camera Raw
• Managing images in Bridge
• Masking layers
• Creating HDR (high dynamic range) images
• Making complex selections
• Color correction

And in the live action 'Shop Talk' portion of the course, Mikkel and Tim meet in a North Beach photo studio to compare thoughts on everything from CMYK and the Pen tool to Content Aware Fill.

The lessons are wrapped in a feature-rich interface that lets you jump to any topic and bookmark individual sections for later review. Full-Screen mode provides a hi-def, immersive experience, and Watch-and-Work mode shrinks the video into a small window so you can play the videos alongside your application.

As with all titles in the Learn by Video series, the project files used in the lessons are included with the course, and interactive review questions help reinforce what you’ve learned. Selected videos are also provided ready to be downloaded for viewing on your iPhone, iPod, or other compatible mobile device.

This Learn by Video title is specifically geared toward photographers who use or want to use Photoshop to make the most of their images. It combines over 10 hours of exceptional video training with a 120-page full-color guide to teach you what every photographer needs to know about Adobe Photoshop CS5. After helping you master the program's interface, expert trainers and authors Mikkel Aaland and Tim Grey tap into their years of photography experience to teach you core functions and new features in Photoshop CS5 including file management, image retouching, noise reduction, and making lens corrections. Other topics - Using Adobe Camera Raw- Managing images in Bridge- Masking layers- Creating HDR (high dynamic range) images- Making complex selections- Color correction And in the live action "Shop Talk" portion of the course, Mikkel and Tim meet in a North Beach photo studio to compare thoughts on everything from CMYK and the Pen tool to Content Aware Fill. The lessons are wrapped in a feature-rich interface that lets you jump to any topic and bookmark individual sections for later review. Full-Screen mode provides a hi-def, immersive experience, and Watch-and-Work mode shrinks the video into a small window so you can play the videos alongside your application. As with all titles in the Learn by Video series, the project files used in the lessons are included with the course, and interactive review questions help reinforce what you've learned. Selected videos are also provided ready to be downloaded for viewing on your iPhone, iPod, or other compatible mobile device. "In Digital Alchemy, acclaimed printmaker Bonny Pierce Lhotka shows how to turn your standard inkjet printer into a seemingly magical instrument capable of transforming your printed images into true works of art. Using plenty of visuals and straightforward terms, Lhotka walks you step-by-step through over a dozen projects. Forget printing on boring old paper, in Digital Alchemy, you'll learn how to transfer and print images to a variety of surfaces including metal, wood, fabric, stone, and plastic using the techniques Lhotka's spent years developing. If you're a photographer looking for new ways to personalize your work or a digital artist who's ready to take your work to the next level, you'll find all of the tools, techniques, and inspiration you need in this book. Lhotka's enthusiasm for experimenting with unusual printing materials and processes has led her to create new and amazing transfer techniques, including one that resembles a Polaroid transfer on steroids. She also shows you how to make prints using unexpected, everyday materials such as hand sanitizer and gelatin. You'll even learn direct printing, the technique for sending your custom substrate through your printer almost as if it were paper. In addition to the tutorials in the book, you can watch Lhotka in action on the included DVD-ROM, which has over 60 minutes of video footage where you'll learn how to perform an alcohol gel transfer, transfer an image to a wooden surface, use your inkjet printer to achieve remarkable prints, and more." -- Back cover This edition of Real World Photoshop is more tightly focused for the needs and demands of the professional digital photographers. From acquiring images to using an efficient processing workflow to maintaining image quality and final output quality all within the powerful feature set of Adobe Photoshop CS5. Coverage of new CS5 features includes: Refining Edges, Eyedropper tools, Merge to HDR, Content Aware Fill/Scale/Heal, and Lens Profile. The book's focus helps readers understand the core workflow tasks, main print and web output options as well as the commercial printing information necessary to hand off images for prepress. Essentials information on file formats, color settings, image adjustment fundamentals, sharpness, detail, noise reduction, and image storage and output is also included. Photoshop Extended is covered where it relates specifically to photographers. The perfect guide for intermediate to advanced photographers to set up an effective workflow and master the features of Photoshop CS5. Streamlined to focus on features of Photoshop CS5 and Photoshop CS5 Extended that are most relevant to intermediate and advanced digital photographers Four-color guide packed with essential tips and step-by-step techniques Includes unrivaled coverage of Photoshop CS5 color settings and color management principles

Leveraging her training as a traditional painter and printmaker, Bonny Lhotka brings new innovations and inventions that combine the best of centuries of printmaking techniques with modern technology to create unique works of art and photography. After years of experimentation and development, these new processes allow alternative photographers, traditional printmakers, and 21st century digital artists to express their creative voice in ways never before possible. Both by adding digital images to their traditional prints and taking their digital works into the tactile world, photographers, printmakers, and artists will find that they can easily add these processes to their studios.

The book covers the basic processes and materials to transfer images to a variety of surfaces, including wood, plaster, stone, and plastic. It moves on to allow the creation of images on metal through either direct printing or transfers using affordable printers. More advanced processes include the creation of decals, skins, and complex mixed media compositions that are truly unique. For each of the more than 20 individual projects and processes, the book provides step-by-step instructions and tips suitable for professional photographers and artists, interested students, and enthusiastic hobbyists.

Every graphics professional worth his or her salt knows the importance of color management. No matter how much thought artist and client put into the color scheme for a given project, all of that work is for naught if you can't get your results to match your expectations. Enter Real World Color Management, Second Edition. In this thoroughly updated under-the-hood reference, authors Bruce Fraser, Chris Murphy, and Fred Bunting draw on their years of professional experience to show you everything you need to know about color management. Whether your final destination is print, Web, or film, Real World Color Management, Second Edition takes the mystery out of color management, covering everything from color theory and color models to understanding how devices interpret and display color. You'll find expert advice for building and fine-tuning color profiles for input and output devices (digital cameras and scanners, displays, printers, and more), selecting the right color management workflow, and managing color within and across major design applications. Get Real World Color Management, Second Edition--and get ready to dazzle! "In this updated under-the-hood reference, authors Bruce Fraser, Chris Murphy, and Fred Bunting draw on their years of professional experience to show you everything you need to know about color management. Whether your final destination is print, Web, or film, this book takes the mystery out of achieving color fidelity, covering everything from color theory and color models to understanding how devices interpret and display color. You'll find expert advice for building and fine-tuning color profiles for input and output devices (digital cameras and scanners, displays, printers, and more), selecting the right color management workflow, and managing color within and across major design applications"-- Book jacket "This 1 1/2 hour training video with supporting reference guide will help beginning and intermediate Photoshop, Bridge, InDesign, and Illustrator users to understand the basics of color management, set up their monitors, and create consistent color in their workflow."--Verso du conteneur "This 1 1/2 hour training video with supporting reference guide will help beginning and intermediate Photoshop, Bridge, InDesign, and Illustrator users to understand the basics of color management, set up their monitors, and create consistent color in their workflow."--Container Covers core functions and new features of Adobe Photoshop CS5, including Camera Raw, image management in Bridge, masking, creating HDR images, making complex selections and color corrections, image retouching, noise reduction, making lens corrections, and more Discusses concepts of color science and digital color and explores topics such as how to analyze a color-management system, how to evaluate ICC profiles, and how to use color-management services. Includes: over 10 hours of HD video training plus a printed guidebook