Lots going on

You haven't seen much of me at this blog lately because I've been deeply embroiled in writing and teaching. Just finished up a year as a Visiting Assistant Professor of digital art in Denver. Now it's back to writing more books and magazine articles. You can catch my column, Photoshop for Educators, in each issue of Photoshop User magazine, my features in Photoshop Elements Techniques newsletter, and my software reviews in MacWorld magazine. Which reminds me -- it's time to get back to work.

I'm Guest Blogging the Digital Photography Blog

Darren Rowse, of the wildly successful Digital Photography Blog, has asked me to guest-blog for him while he's away this month. I'll be writing Tips about Photoshop for you digital photographers. My first post describes a digital darkroom workflow. Come visit and comment.

I'm Pro Blogging at the Unofficial Photoshop Weblog

I've turned pro blogger, as an official blogger on Jason Calacanis' Weblogs, Inc. blog network. I'm writing on the Unofficial Photoshop Weblog and the Design Weblog. Come visit me there. There's news, tips, reviews, ideas and more on Photoshop, other Adobe software, and design. Weblogs Inc. network also includes Engadget, which Steve Jobs purports to read every day, and the popular Autoblog, among others. Joining this well-run blog network has given me support, encouragement, and some financial incentive to blog.

Technolawyer features me in Member News

Sara at Technolawyer wrote a very nice post about me, highlighting my double-life as Photoshop author and recovering attorney, under the banner: Member News: Jan Kabili Wows with New Photoshop Book.

Adobe Buys Macromedia

Exciting news in the graphics software world. Adobe is buying Macromedia.The implications are huge. Will Dreamweaver and GoLive become one? Will Fireworks remain as a separate program? And just think of all the great things that could happen between Flash and Photoshop.

Unique Flickr Search Engine

Check out this unique search tool for finding photos by tag on flickr.

How to use del.icio.us

John Udell at weblog.infoworld.com explains how to use the social tagging service del.icio.us in this screencast. Social tagging services like this are changing how we move through posts on the Web, as we create the semantic web.

Connor O'Neill's Pub

Site of The Shortest Parade in the World
Originally uploaded by kabili.

The Shortest Parade in the World

Originally uploaded by kabili.

Have I mentioned lately that I love living in Boulder. Here's another reason -- today's Shortest St Patrick's Day Parade in the World in downtown Boulder.

Flash Forward 2005 is almost here.

The 13th Flash Forward conference and Flash film festival is happening April 6-8 at the Herbst Theater in San Francisco. Flash Forward is put on by Lynda Weinman's lynda.com. This is an education oriented conference, with opportunities to learn from the best Flash gurus. I remember working at the very first Flash Forward conference back in 2000. When I got to the conference center in SF the day before, I thought I was at a major rock concert, because the line was already around the block.

Flickr acquired by Yahoo

Flickr, the online photo-sharing site, was just acquired by Yahoo. I love it when a good idea reaps its rewards. Flickr was a mom and pop operation, founded by a Candian husband and wife team on a shoestring. What's unique about Flickr is that it allows photo-posters to tag their photos with subject matter keywords so other users can easily find photos by subject. Users can comment on photos, creating a photo-based dialog. You can make your photos visible to the public or not. And you can use Flickr to post photos on your blog.

Visit with me at Photoshop World Las Vegas

If you're at Photoshop World in Las Vegas, come hear me speak on the latest tips and tricks for using Photoshop and ImageReady for the Web. I'll be in the Peachpit theater in the Expo hall on Tuesday March 8 at 2 pm. You'll find my book How to Wow: Photoshop for the Web at the Peachpit bookstore and my CDs of the same name at the Software-Cinema booth -- all in the Expo Hall.

Photoshop for the Web Training CDs at Software-Cinema

Software-Cinema just published a set of 4 of my training CDs on Photoshop for the Web. You can buy them one at a time or spring for the whole set from the Software-Cinema site. This is info you won't find on any other training CDs, illustrated with amazing artwork by my friend Colin Smith of PhotoshopCafe fame.

Algonquin Park, Canada

Arowhon Pines Lake
Originally uploaded by kabili.

I've joined www.flickr.com so that I can post images to this weblog. Here's one of my favorite places in the world -- Arowhon Pines lake in Algonquin Park, Canada. I took this photo very early on a summer morning. You could hear the loons.

Mac Design Jan/Feb 2005 Designing Web Graphics Column

Pick up the next issue of Mac Design to read my regular Designing Web Graphics column. In the next issue (Jan/Feb 2005) I'll show you how to make your photos into classy-looking framed and colorized thumbnails. Use the photo thumbnails as links on a Web page, or as a way to display a collection of photos on a Web page.

How to Wow Photoshop for the Web finished!

I've just finished writing my latest book -- How to Wow Photoshop for the Web. Order your copy now at amazon.com. It will be published by Peachpit Press by Christmas. This book is part of Jack Davis' How to Wow series. Jack's book How to Wow Photoshop for Photography is selling like gangbusters.

Enjoy these links to popular blogs. This post is inspired by a post on quotesexchange.com about making small blogs more visible.

1. Minding the Planet
2. Wireless LAN
3. Writing Resources
4. BillBoard
5. Stock Quotes Stock Trading Stock Help
6. Christmas All Year
7. Quotes from Famous People
8. Recipes at World Famous Recipes
9. Jobs and Employment
10. Quotes
11. Jokes and Humor
12. 480 Area Code Guide
13. Phoenix Arizona East Valley Community Index
14. HTTP in Phoenix AZ
15. Daily Bible Verse
16. Love Poems
18. World Famous Recipes
19. Recipes Recipe
20. Members Space
21. Search Engines - World Search News
22. Home Improvement and Home Remodeling Ideas and Tips
23. Famous Quotes And Famous Sayings Network Weblog
24. Life Story Writing
25. Links Page Link Exchange Manager Site
26.Photoshop Books by Jan Kabili
27.Digital Art by Jan Kabili

Another 5 star review from noted publisher John Feld

John Feld, publisher of the respected PC Graphics Report, penned this review of Photoshop CS Complete Course:

August 31, 2004
Reviewer: John Feld "Writer on graphics" (Berkeley, CA USA)
 
Adobe Photoshop CS: Complete Course by Jan Kabili is a well-written book by a very knowledgeable teacher. First, Kabili's extensive teaching experience comes across in her lucid writing. The exercises are detailed, well illustrated, and completely self-explanatory. She does not talk down to the reader, nor does she make assumptions about skill levels. The book is divided into 16 sessions, each of which could be a complete class. And therein lies the problem: by deciding to limit the course to 16 sessions, many topics are not covered in the book. Although not purporting to be a reference book, it does not cover such topics as taking images to print or working with other applications; even Illustrator and GoLive are barely touched upon. However, as a course for learning Photoshop basics, the book is excellent. We imagine many teachers will choose it for their students. The book is one of a series published by Wiley in conjunction with Seybold.
From a review in PC Graphics Report

5 Star Review of Photoshop CS Complete Course

This kind reader posted this 5 star review of my book Photoshop CS Complete Course on amazon.com:

September 3, 2004
Reviewer: Simone Lange (Anchorage AK)
 
The book is laid out in seven main sections and then broken down into subsections within those sections, there are two bonus sections in the back of the book. A great tutorial CD is also included in the back of the book. You get an overview of what you can do with Photoshop and how to configure Photoshop for your particular working style in the beginning section. Then each section goes through a somewhat logical progression into the many tools and techniques that you start adding to your arsenal of knowledge.

They advise that you load the tutorial onto your system instead of working from the CD. Of course the CD works on both MAC and PC environments. Every session in the book is setup in a step by step format. The bold type indicates the steps you should do, the non-bold type gives more of an explanation of that step. The steps are illustrated with a hot pink number and those numbers correspond to the illustration. Also offered in hot pink are caution, notes and tips.

As many Photoshop users know there is usually more than one way to do something in Photoshop. In some of the sessions you can find which step works best with the way you work. I got a nice refresher course on some of the tools and learned some new and faster ways to get some of my work done.

I would have liked some more info on some of the other programs in CS but this was a Photoshop CS book and not a Creative Suites book. This book is not a reference book either while it gives some really good info for those that are new to the Photoshop world it does not offer much for the more advanced users of Photoshop. This would definitely be a good book for beginning graphics classes. This book whets your appetite for more in-depth features that Photoshop has to offer.

Photoshop Elements Complete Course-Reader Praise

I just travelled through your book, Photoshop Elements Complete Course, and must thank you for the great journey. I saw a few books on Photoshop Elements the past year and must say this was the best, but for all most enjoyable, book I saw. I learned a lot about the program and it makes me want want to put things in practice. So now I’m starting on Webdesign Complete Course. Thank you again and I hope you will be able to publish more on this subject in the future.
Regards,
Jan Herps, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Mac Design Magazine column - Sept/Oct 2004 Issue

Look for the Sept/Oct 2004 issue of Mac Design Magazine, in which my Designing Web Graphics column tackles another new feature in ImageReady CS -- Slice Sets. Lots of you have wondered what this feature is for. I'll show you how to use Slice Sets in conjunction with Layer Comps to output multiple Web pages from a single file. This is cool!

Mac Design Magazine column - current issue

Most of you know that I'm a regular columnist for Mac Design Magazine. My Designing Web Graphics column in the July/August 2004 issue--currently on the newstands--covers a little known new feature in ImageReady CS that you can use to make multiple versions of a rollover navigation bar. I show how to output multiple HTML files with rollovers from a single psd file using the Selected rollover state and the Output Multiple HTML Files output setting.

Article in October 2004 Photoshop Fix Newsletter

The October 2004 issue of Dynamic Graphic's new Photoshop Fix Newsletter features a Studio column by yours truly. In this piece I show how to prepare a photograph for publishing on the Web. Photoshop Fix is devoted entirely to Photoshop. It's packed with illustrated tutorials and advice by Photoshop experts. The Studio section offers a broad perspective by trainers like Katrin Eismann (and me) on how to use Photoshop to solve a real-life problem. Check it out.

Article in SBS Digital Design - Aug 2004 Issue

Look for my article on using Photoshop to change the background of a portrait in the August 2004 SBS Digital Design Newsletter. It shows how to use Photoshop's Extract feature to select complex objects like fly-away hair. SBS Digital Design is a publication of the well-respected Dynamic Graphics group. The In-Depth section is a special monthly pull-out section on a current hot topic in digital design. The topic for August is Selections in Photoshop. I'll be contributing to this publication in the future, so keep an eye out for my articles.

Presentation for Adobe

I just returned from the Technology in Education Conference at Copper Mountain, Colorado, where I gave a class for Adobe Systems on using Photoshop Elements and Album in the classroom. The audience of K-12 educators packed the room and was very enthusiastic. Thanks to all who attended and to Holly Harris Monk of Adobe for asking me to speak.

Upcoming Photoshop Classes

A number of you asked where I would be teaching Adobe Photoshop classes in the near future. Here's my upcoming teaching schedule:

Photoshop Intensive
July 12-16, 2004:
I'll be teaching an intensive 5 day workshop in Photoshop I (Beginning
Photoshop) for the Digital Media Academy from July 12-16, 2004. The class will be held at the University of Texas at Austin. I highly recommend this class if you really want to learn Photoshop. We cover all of the features of the program in detail with hands-on training at a terrific facility. I've taught similar classes at Lynda Weinman's Digital Arts Center and other locations, and they are always a great
learning experience.
Go to www.digitalmediaacademy.org for more information or call The Digital Media Academy at 1-866-656-3342 to register.

Photoshop for the Web
M, Th July 26-Aug 4, 2004 6-9 pm
or W Oct. 27-Nov. 11, 2004 6-9 pm:
I'm teaching a four evening class called Professional Photoshop for the Web (CAGR 3111) through University of Colorado at Boulder Continuing Education. The course meets in the University Management Systems Building at CU Boulder. It's being offered twice: from July 26 through August 5 on Monday and Thursday evenings and again from October 27 through November 11 on Wednesday evenings. You'll learn literally everything about preparing photos and graphics for the Web.
Go to the CU Boulder Continuing Education website for more information.

Photoshop for Photographers, Sat. October 16, 2004:
This is a one-day workshop that covers how photographers can get the most out of Photoshop. This is a very practical focused class with lots of great information for this audience.
Check the CU Boulder Continuing Education website in a few weeks for detailed information about this Fall semester workshop.

I hope to see you soon at one of my classes.
Jan

How to Wow: Photoshop for the Web

Work begins today on my next book -- How to Wow: Photoshop for the Web. This is part of Jack Davis' new How to Wow series. The book will show how to create powerful graphics for the Web with Photoshop and its companion program ImageReady. My co-author is award winning artist Colin Smith. The book will be published by Peachpit Press and should be on the shelves by October 2004. Onward!

Reader says: The best Photoshop Elements book ever written

Here's what one happy reader had to say about Photoshop Elements 2 Complete Course:

Perhaps the best PSE book ever written, February 20, 2004
Reviewer: rjbpjb from Orland, CA United States
I have a library of about 10 books on PSE and have referred to them all on occasion. However, this book I will read from front to back, all 430 plus pages. There are also another 50 plus pages on the CD which accompanies the book. The CD contains all of the graphics needed for the creation of the course projects. She even lists her E mail address on the CD. Jan teaches PSE by creating 10 or so sports related post card size graphics. The projects require you to use many of the specialized tools and filters. She has some very impressive credentials (technical, literary and academic). However, her ability to convey her knowledge is what impresses me most. A five star rating implies perfection. Therefore, I might downgrade the rating to 4.9 because of the first tutorial in the book, "Confidence Builder". I believe this tutorial is too much too soon for a bare bones PSE beginner (page 7). If this tutorial seems too advanced, you can skip it and return after session 2. Amazon offers the book for about $32 with free shipping, a substantial saving and a very good investment. I wish Jan had written the book when PSE 2 was first released over a year ago. However, she has apparently been busy writing other books.

PSE2 Complete Course errata

There are literally thousands of instructions in my tutorial books. So there are bound to be a few things that slip through the editing process, as in almost any book on your shelf. (Fortunately, humans are not perfect. Think of all the creativity that would be lost if we were.) Here's a short list of errata for Photoshop Elements 2 Complete Course. Fortunately, most are minor. If you find anything more please let me know by email, so I can make changes in the next printing:

Pg. 8, Tip: Add the Mac equivalent after the Windows command Edit>Preferences>General -- (Macintosh: Photoshop Elements>Preferences>General)

Pg. 9, Step 5: Add after Notice in the File name field that Photoshop Elemnts 2 automatically adds a .psd suffix to the file name climber -- unless you changed the Format field earlier. If so, choose Photoshop from the Format menu.

Pg. 197, Step 3 reads: R...B...C
Should read: R...G...B

Pg. 199, Step 8 reads: Choose Select>Invert
Should read: Choose Select>Inverse

Pg. 205, Step 4 reads: move the cursor
Should read: hold the Alt (Macintosh:Option) key and move the cursor

Photoshop Elements 2 Complete Course is on the shelves

My new book, Photoshop Elements 2 Complete Course, is out. I'm quite proud of this book. I made all the artwork in addition to writing the book. This is a step-by-step tutorial book that teaches all the features of Photoshop Elements 2 -- a dandy program that is so cheap it's sinful. Pick up a copy of the book at , Amazon.com.

Visit me on Apple's Driven by Design Tour

I'm traveling with Apple's Driven by Design tour, demonstrating Adobe's new Creative Suite. The Creative Suite includes the new Photoshop CS, Illustrator CS, InDesign CS, GoLive CS, and Version Cue, as well as Adobe Acrobat 6.0 Professional. Check Apple's web site to see when the tour will be in a city near you. It's all free -- including demos, presentations, a chance to talk with the experts about new products, and even a box lunch. I've met some of you as I toured to San Francisco, Denver, Cincinnati, Kansas City, and Washington D.C. My next appearances are in Boston on December 2 and Atlanta on December 5. Hope to see you there.

Appearance at Seybold SF 2003

I'll be at Seybold San Francisco on September 9 speaking on Unconventional Tools for Unconventional Design. I'll be showing some of the automatic features of Photoshop Elements and of ImageReady. That panel is from 2-3 pm. Following the talk I'll be appearing at the John Wiley & Sons booth in the exhibit hall to promote my books, Photoshop Complete Course and Photoshop Elements Complete Course. Drop by if you're there.

Let me tell you about Software Cinema's Live Photoshop Training Camp in San Diego on August 25 and 26. This show features live training by photoshop gurus. And the price is so low (I think it's $99 if you pre-register, $119 at the door) that you can't pass it up if you live in the San Diego - Los Angeles area. Speakers include:

• Julieanne Kost - Adobe Systems Photoshop Evangelist
• Jack Davis - Speaker and Author of the Photoshop WOW! Book
• Eddie Tapp - Master of Color Management and Advanced Techniques
• Jim DiVitale - Owner of DiVitale Photography and Photoshop Guru
• Dave Montizambert - Canada’s finest and a Photoshop Top Trainer
• Todd Morrison - Owner of Morrison Photography & Zero2Digital.com
• Kevin Ames - Fashion Specialist, Ames Photographic Illustration

See you there.

Thanks to blogwise for including a link to this site on their categorized list of blogs.

I'm almost done writing Photoshop Elements 2 Complete Course. I know you'll find it helpful. It's the only true tutorial book on Elements 2. It will be out in a couple of months.

More great reviews of Photoshop 7 HOT, written by me and Lynda:

Reviewer: Charles W. Anderson from Arlington, VA:
My favorite tutorial books for software are the Hands On Training and the Classroom In A Book series. And, if forced to choose one series or the other, I'd choose H O T. Authors Lynda Weinman and Jan Kabili have done a great job. Although I remain a devotee of CIB methods, my library will include the HOT books for all complex software. Discussion of animated GIFs, automation and integrating with other programs, such as GoLive, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, Acrobat and QuickTime [Chapters 13, 14 and 16] are of especial importance. This book is a must for users of Adobe's ImageReady and Photoshop.

The Absolute Best!
Reviewer: Patricia Schoepke from Rio Rancho, NM:
This is by far the best and most informative and detailed book of its kind. It covers every aspect of "everything you ever wanted to know about" rollovers and rollover animated menus! It does not leave you 'missing something' or saying: 'yes, but it really doesn't cover...' - It covers everything! The accompanying CD is excellent!

IMPORTANT NOTICE ABOUT THE PHOTOSHOP TRAINING ADS CURRENTLY DISPLAYED AT THE TOP OF THE SCREEN.
I have no relationship to the courses and products advertised in these banner ads. In fact, I've never heard of these advertisers. Apparently blogger.com took it upon itself to put these ads here. I urge you not to click on those ads.

Instead, contact me directly if you're looking for the very best training in Photoshop, GoLive, or web design. I offer hands-on, customized training on Macs or PCs at your business, school, or home. I have taught at the Stanford Digital Media Academy, where I recently developed a Photoshop Immersion course; at Lynda Weinman's Digital Arts Center, where I developed and taught Lynda's world-famous Adobe curriculum; and at universities and national design conventions. If you are looking for the best training in Photoshop, GoLive, or web design, contact me directly by email. Click here to email me.

Here are a couple of items to watch for as you're reading Photoshop 7 Complete Course:
-- If you're a Windows user, each time you see an instruction to fill a selection or layer using the shortcut Option+Delete (a Mac shortcut), use Alt+Backspace (the Windows equivalent of this shortcut).
-- In the Confidence Builder chapter, one reader clicked in the white background area of the cutboard image before applying the Type tool. Because the Type tool was set to create white text, that text didn't show up against the white background. If that happens to you, select the move tool and drag until your white text appears over the black cutboard. Even better -- click on the black area of the cutboard image, rather than the white, before you start to type.

I've been working hard on Photoshop Elements 2 Complete course. This program is such a great deal for any of you who want to try Photoshop but don't want to shell out the big bucks. It doesn't have all of the features of Photoshop, but there is plenty you can do with it, as you'll see in the book.

audblog audio post

Here's some really exciting news. I've begun work on my next book for Wiley & Sons Publishing -- Photoshop Elements 2 Complete Course. This book will be similar in structure to Photoshop 7 Complete Course. I'll walk you through a series of progressive, step-by-step tutorials that will teach you all the ins and outs of Photoshop Elements 2. As you work through the tutorials, you'll be creating a sophisticated design project -- a set of greeting cards with a sports theme. This is going to be a very exciting book, which I think will appeal to a large audience of designers and digital photography enthusiasts. You'll be amazed at how much you can do with Photoshop Elements 2. This program is definitely not just a dumbed-down version of Photoshop. It has lots of the same tools and commands as Photoshop (with the exception of some high-end features like channels and curves), and some unique features (like a selection brush and a red-eye brush) that haven't made it into Photoshop. Trust me -- you'll love this program and this next book.

Good news. The publisher has decided to reprint Photoshop 7 Complete Course. This means that the book is selling even better than originally expected. Thanks to all of you who are snapping up the book from retail bookstores and online booksellers.

The publisher received another complimentary review of Photoshop 7 Complete Course from Nemo and Terry, a couple of nice folks who write for mymac.com. They concluded that: "The range and scope in this book / 2-CD combo is so impressive it's intimidating to attempt to convey within a humble review, but we'll try...Overall, the attention to thorough details is remarkable, and comprehensive. This book should serve as a prototype of how much care and professionalism could go into every comparable volume in future."

Photoshop 7 Complete Course readers: Send me any typos, errors, and other oddities you may run across as you read through the book. That will help me make the next edition of the book even better for you.

Errata: An observant reader has found a layer name discrepancy in Steps 59-61 of the Confidence Builder on pp.15-16. The alleged "star walk" layer is actually called the "Background" layer in the tutorial file cb_walkofame.psd on the CD-ROM.

Fan mail is streaming in. Here's one of my favorites from a reader:

Dear Jan,

I NEVER contact an author about his/her book. Never. Until today.

I just finished the Confidence Builder of the Photoshop 7 Complete Course and am greatly impressed. I have tried to learn Photoshop off and on over the past several years and haven't been able to grasp it. So, I settled for using Paint Shop Pro, a nice program but certainly not up to the standards of THE standard, Photoshop.

If the rest of your lessons are as good as the Confidence Builder I will be most impressed. I teach classes online, and I know how hard it is to create written words that will suffice when the guru is not there.

Great job. I can hardly wait to continue with the book/course.

Lindsey Allen
Austin, Texas

My book Photoshop 7 Complete Course is getting great reviews from customers. Knowing that readers love the book makes all the hard work worth it. Here's what one happy reader wrote on amazon.com:

Absolutely Superb!, December 3, 2002
Reviewer: A reader from Aurora, IL This is the best Photoshop training book I've found, and could possibly be the best Photoshop book, period. Somehow it manages to be both incredibly beautiful and unfailingly instructive. It's composed of a very concise, logical progression of lessons that are easy, yet sophisticated.

The author, who apparently really knows her stuff, takes you by the hand and shows you around Photoshop while you create a professional-quality brochure. You start with the basics and progress to professional-level techniques, with all of the files you need on the CD. The steps are peppered with asides and tips that provide more context to what you're actually doing. With no previous knowledge of Photoshop required, you're soon using sophisticated layering and compositing techniques, masks, text effects...well, you get the idea.

The whole thing is layed out in a very visual, easy-to-follow design in full color, and the images used throughout are awesome. If only more books were like this...!

My next new book, co-authored with web guru Lynda Weinman, just came out. It's called Photoshop 7 ImageReady Hands on Training for the Web, and tells you everything you'd ever want to know to create graphics for your web site. Check it out at amazon.com. It's already in the top 2500 sellers.

My latest book, Photoshop 7 Complete Course, has been released and is selling like hotcakes at major bookstores and online (including at amazon.com, wiley.com, barnesandnoble.com)!

Photoshop 7 Complete Course is a step by step hands on training course that walks you through all the features of Photoshop 7. It is as complete as I could possibly make it, and includes all kinds of tips, warnings, and notes that put Photoshop in context for designers and students of design, art, photography, and new media. The book teaches all of the features of Photoshop in the context of a sophisticated, real-world design project -- a print brochure and web site for a film festival. It is written to be used in the classroom (saving all you Photoshop instructors out there from having to write your own curriculum) or for self-study.

The book is part of a new series of hands-on books by Wiley and Sons and Seybold Communications that currently includes Dreamweaver MX Complete Course and Flash MX Complete Course. I put my heart and soul into this book, and I think it shows!