Microsoft Excel 2010: Complete (Shelly Cashman Series)

Microsoft Excel 2010: Complete (Shelly Cashman Series) Review

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MICROSOFT OFFICE EXCEL 2010: COMPLETE provides a project-based, step-by-step approach to successfully teach students Microsoft Excel 2010 skills.

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New Perspectives on Adobe Flash Professional CS5, Comprehensive (New Perspectives (Thomson Course Technology))

New Perspectives on Adobe Flash Professional CS5, Comprehensive (New Perspectives (Thomson Course Technology)) Review

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NEW PERSPECTIVES ON ADOBE FLASH PROFESSIONAL CS5, COMPREHENSIVE offers a critical-thinking approach to teaching multimedia. This text explains and reinforces design software concepts and skills through the New Perspectives' signature case-based, problem-solving pedagogy. Students will transcend point-and-click skills to take full advantage of the software's utility.

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Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter

Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter Review

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James Gurney, New York Times best-selling author and artist of the Dinotopia series, follows Imaginative Realism with his second art-instruction book, Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter. A researched study on two of art's most fundamental themes, Color and Light bridges the gap between abstract theory and practical knowledge. Beginning with a survey of underappreciated masters who perfected the use of color and light, the book examines how light reveals form, the properties of color and pigments, and the wide variety of atmospheric effects. Gurney cuts though the confusing and contradictory dogma about color, testing it in the light of science and observation. A glossary, pigment index, and bibliography complete what will ultimately become an indispensible tool for any artist.

This book is the second in a series based on his blog, gurneyjourney.com. His first in the series, Imaginative Realism, was widely acclaimed in the fantastical art world, and was ranked the #1 Bestseller on the Amazon list for art instruction.

"James Gurney's new book, Color and Light, cleverly bridges the gap between artistic observation and scientific explanation. Not only does he eloquently describe all the effects of color and light an artist might encounter, but he thrills us with his striking paintings in the process." --Armand Cabrera, Artist

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Leaving Van Gogh: A Novel

Leaving Van Gogh: A Novel Review

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In the summer of 1890, in the French town of Auvers-sur-Oise, Vincent van Gogh shot himself in the chest with a revolver.  He died two days later, at the age of thirty-seven, largely unknown despite having completed over two thousand works of art that would go on to become some of the most important and valued in the world.          

In this riveting novel, Carol Wallace brilliantly navigates the mysteries surrounding the master artist’s death, relying on meticulous research to paint an indelible portrait of Van Gogh’s final days—and the friendship that may or may not have destroyed him. Telling Van Gogh’s story from an utterly new perspective—that of his personal physician, Dr. Gachet, specialist in mental illness and great lover of the arts—Wallace allows us to view the legendary painter as we’ve never seen him before.  In our narrator’s eyes, Van Gogh is an irresistible puzzle, a man whose mind, plagued by demons, poses the most potentially rewarding challenge of Gachet’s career. 

Wallace’s narrative brims with suspense and rich psychological insight as it tackles haunting questions about Van Gogh’s fate. A masterly, gripping novel that explores the price of creativity, Leaving Van Gogh is a luminous story about what it means to live authentically, and the power and limits of friendship.

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Ceramic Painting Color Workshop: Paints, Palettes, and Patterns for 16 Projects

Ceramic Painting Color Workshop: Paints, Palettes, and Patterns for 16 Projects Review

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Presented here are all the techniques needed to paint patterns and decorate ceramics with skillful and analogous color combinations. Twenty simple yet stunning ceramic painting projects include step-by-step instructions, pattern templates and varying color palettes for each project. The multiple color palettes for each project provide a range of effects for the same template expanding the potential of each project. For both beginners and advanced painters the tips provided include essential information for painting ceramics like a professional as well as providing ideas for creating color-style, color palettes and designs.

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Stagecraft Fundamentals: A Guide and Reference for Theatrical Production

Stagecraft Fundamentals: A Guide and Reference for Theatrical Production Review

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Stagecraft Fundamentals is the only book that tackles every aspect of theatre production. The history of stagecraft, safety precautions, lighting, costumes, scenery, career planning tips, and more are discussed with modern, color examples that display both step-by-step procedures and the finished product. From the student beginning in theatre to the practiced, Rita Kogler Carver assembles her vast experience into a one-stop guide for theatrical production. Instructor's manual, additional exercises that coincide with chapters from the book, CAD drawings, color theory, manufacturing information, and other resources can be found at www.StageCraftFundamentals.com.

Praise for the Book: Beautifully written! The author has succeeded in relaying technical theatre information without being too technical and putting the reader to sleep.  I read three sentences and instantly knew this book was for me and the way I teach.  When I think back on  the insufferable intro to tech theatre books I had to read, I feel cheated I didn't have this one as a student.  I will be using this text in my class! -- Rob Napoli, Designer and Technical Director at Penn State University, Berks Campus

This text has temped me to return to teaching with a textbook for the first time in seven years.  The language is both accessible and informal yet the text goes a long way in debunking some of the typical jargon that may alienate students just getting into the field, or trying it out for the first time.  The illustrations (the text is full of them) coupled with the stories reinforce the fundamental information being conveyed. -- John Paul Devlin, Associate Professor of Theatre at Saint Michael's College

What a great idea!  Thank heavens someone is doing this for students at that impressionable age.  That has been one of my mantras - education of teachers and students on the use of scenic materials.  The teachers don't have enough time in college to learn and do everything they have to teach.  Most get thrown into the theatre area by default and struggle with designing/building/painting the scenery. -- Jenny Knott, Rosco

Stagecraft Fundamentals is beautifully illustrated throughout, and the pofusion of color on every page gives this textbook the appearance of a coffee table book.  The writing is clear and personal, which should be very appealing to students.  Rita Carver covers all aspects of theatre production from scenery, to lighting, to an actor's makeup.  Her close ties to the New York theatre scene gives this book a special insight into the professional world, one that goes well beyond what is found in most college textbooks. -- John Holloway, Professor in the Theatre Department at the University of Kentucky and President of the International Association of Theatrical stage Employees (IATSE) Local 346.

I can't thank you enough for Stagecraft Fundamentals.  I have been teaching stagecraft since 1976 and you have saved me from the nightmare of writing a text to suit my class needs..After two semesters with your text, I have found that I had more time to develop the skills necessary within the classroom than before.   The humor that you have infused in the book has enticed my students to read on.  That alone makes this text invaluable. --Meta Lasch, Assistant Professor, West Liberty University

* The most comprehensive and up-to-date reference for theatrical production in existence * Filled with brilliant full-color illustrations * www.StageCraftFundamentals.com includes instructor's manual, additional exercises that coincide with chapters from the book, CAD drawings, color theory, manufacturing information and more! * Includes step-by-step models that lead the reader through each aspect of theatrical production * Written by an award-winning designer

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Adobe Flash CS5 Revealed (Revealed Series)

Adobe Flash CS5 Revealed (Revealed Series) Review

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ADOBE FLASH CS5 REVEALED provides a comprehensive yet concise introduction to Adobe Flash CS5 Professional and the art of creating exceptional interactive experiences, animations and applications that run on the Web, on the desktop and on mobile devices. The book begins with a discussion of fundamental concepts, which sets the stage for specific Flash skill development. A series of step-by-step tutorials follows that fully explains how to create animations, use special effects, draw objects, incorporate sound and video, develop for mobile devices and program in ActionScript 3.0. ADOBE FLASH CS5 REVEALED examines the new and enhanced features of CS5 including Code Snippets - blocks of code that save the effort of typing ActionsScript; Text Layout Framework - provides text flowing, character coloring and column creation; improved video capabilities; and inverse kinematics, a feature that allows you to manipulate Flash objects using the Bone tool in order to create sophisticated animations.

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The Elements of Typographic Style

The Elements of Typographic Style Review

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Renowned typographer and poet Robert Bringhurst brings clarity to the art of typography with this masterful style guide. Combining the practical, theoretical, and historical, this edition is completely updated, with a thorough exploration of the newest innovations in intelligent font technology, and is a must-have for graphic artists, editors, or anyone working with the printed page using digital or traditional methods.

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Creative Photoshop CS4: Digital Illustration and Art Techniques

Creative Photoshop CS4: Digital Illustration and Art Techniques Review

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If you are a digital artist, illustrator, cartoonist, graphic artist, designer, or serious hobbyist looking for new and interesting ways to use Photoshop, this is the book for you! You already know how to use Photoshop as an image editing tool; now, challenge yourself and discover the more artistic aspects of the program with one of the world's best teachers by your side.

In addition to four brand new chapters on real world projects, this new edition of award-winning digital artist Derek Lea's bestselling Creative Photoshop contains several brand new features such as "What you'll learn in this chapter” summaries, so you can quickly find projects using the specific tools you'd like to focus on, and supplementary information at the end of each chapter, containing useful resources and additional gallery images to provide further study and inspiration. As you work through Derek's fantastic artistic methods, be sure to visit www.creativephotoshopthebook.com for more information, including the project files for each chapter, available for download for you to work with, a reader forum, and more.

*Stunning images from award winning digital artist Derek Lea inspire you to push your own creativity further than you even thought possible
*Compatible with previous versions of Photoshop
*Explore Photoshop from an entirely unique perspective as you learn how to create graffiti, antique effects, stencil art, and so much more
*Fully updated throughout for CS4, plus four brand new chapters on real world projects that combine traditional art methods with Photoshop to create tactile images

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Illustrator CS5 Digital Classroom, (Book and Video Training)

Illustrator CS5 Digital Classroom, (Book and Video Training) Review

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A book-and-video training package provides a unique illustration to the basics of Illustrator

Adobe Illustrator is a unique design and drawing program that allows you to create and produce brilliant art for a variety of mediums. This full-color book-and-video training package deciphers even the most complex Illustrator tasks and gets you quickly up to speed using the capabilities of the newest release of Illustrator. Thirteen self-paced lessons explain how to create and produce vibrant graphics using this robust vector drawing application. The complementary lessons featured on the videos are each approximately five minutes long and demonstrate the concepts and features covered in the lesson.

• Escorts you through the basics of creating and producing vibrant graphics using Illustrator
• Deciphers even the most advanced Illustrator tasks and makes them less intimidating
• Features full-color, step-by-step tutorials in the downloadable videos that complement the topics covered in each lesson of the book
• Encourages you to absorb each lesson at your own pace

Jam-packed with information, this book and video training package is just like having your own personal instructor guiding you through each unique lesson.

Note: DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook files. These materials are available for download upon purchase.

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The Pastel Book

The Pastel Book Review

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Absolutely the most thorough guide to pastel materials and techniques ever assembled in a single volume, this is the book for anyone working with pastels, from beginners to experienced artists looking to develop more professional skills.

Defining the pastel medium broadly—color in stick form to be used for drawing and painting simultaneously—the author creates works of sensuous textures and colors, ranging from subtle to intense. He uses traditional soft and hard pastels, as well as oil pastels and oil sticks, showing the effects produced by each in step-by-step demonstrations. Included are sophisticated ways to combine pastels with water, acrylic, alkyd gels, and oil paint for stunning mixed-media results.

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New Perspectives on Microsoft Access 2010, Introductory

New Perspectives on Microsoft Access 2010, Introductory Review

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With the New Perspectives' critical-thinking, problem-solving approach, students will gain a comprehensive understanding of MICROSOFT OFFICE ACCESS 2010 and will learn how to take advantage of the flexibility it offers. Case-based tutorials challenge students to apply what they are learning to real-life tasks, preparing them to easily transfer skills to new situations. With New Perspectives, students understand why they're learning what they're learning and are better situated to retain skills beyond the classroom.

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Digital Expressions: Creating Digital Art with Adobe Photoshop Elements

Digital Expressions: Creating Digital Art with Adobe Photoshop Elements Review

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Express yourself on a digital canvas

Imagine flying through an inky night sky tethered to a red, heart-shaped balloon. Now imagine expressing that dream artistically. With Digital Expressions you can take ordinary photos and, with the help of Adobe Photoshop Elements, voice your flights of fancy.

Digital Expressions guides you through 25 digital art projects created with Adobe Photoshop Elements. With this easy-to-follow guide, you'll get inspired to tackle all kinds of digital mixed-media techniques using stock photography, custom brushes, textured backgrounds and your own digital photos.

Use your digital palette to:

· Manipulate single images by adding texture layers, color fills and text

· Re-create the look of traditional art like drawings and abstract paintings

· Build collages using transparent layers and photo filters

· Blend seamless montages with various effects

· Incorporate your own traditional art into digital works

Mixed-media artists, art journalers and scrapbookers alike can turn the ordinary into extraordinary! Express yourself in digital form as you learn to master creative digital art techniques.

**Bonus CD includes assorted brushes, photos and textures you can use to create on your own digital canvas.** PLEASE NOTE that one of the images was left off of the CD by mistake. You can download it from the "Books" section of the author's website at ilkasattic.com**

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Microsoft Excel 2010: Comprehensive (Shelly Cashman)

Microsoft Excel 2010: Comprehensive (Shelly Cashman) Review

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Microsoft Office Excel 2010: Comprehensive provides a project-based, step-by-step approach to successfully teach students Microsoft Excel 2010 skills.

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National Geographic Simply Beautiful Photographs

National Geographic Simply Beautiful Photographs Review

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National Geographic Simply Beautiful Photographs takes readers on a spectacular visual journey through some of the most stunning photographs to be found in National Geographic's famed Image Collection. Award-winning photographer Annie Griffiths culled the images to reflect the many variations on the universal theme of beauty. Chapters are organized around the aesthetic concepts that create beauty in a photograph: Light, Composition, Moment (Gesture and Emotion), Motion, Palette, and Wonder.

Beyond the introduction and brief essays about each featured concept, the text is light. The photographs speak for themselves, enhanced by lyrical quotes from scholars and poets. In the chapter on Light, for example, we read these words of whimsical wisdom from songwriter Leonard Cohen: "Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything. That's how the lights get in." And then the images flow, of light entering scenes via windows, clouds, and spotlights, from above, alongside, and behind, casting radiance upon young ballerinas and weathered men, into groves of autumn trees and island-dotted seas, revealing everything it touches to be beautiful beyond expectation.

To illuminate the theme of Wonder, Griffiths chose a wish from Andre Bazin: "If I had influence with the good fairy...I should ask that her gift to each child in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last throughout life." This thought is juxtaposed with an exquisite vision in white, a frame filled with the snowy-pure dots and rays of a bird's fan tail. And on it goes, picture after tantalizing picture, alive with wondrous beauty.

When she created National Geographic Simply Beautiful Photographs, Annie Griffiths set two goals: to maximize visual delight, and to create a book unique in the world of publishing--one in which many of the photographs could be purchased as prints. She has succeeded on both counts. Many of these stunning images are available for order, and there can be no doubt as to the visual delight. You must open this book for yourself, and take in its radiant beauty.

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Adobe After Effects CS5 Visual Effects and Compositing Studio Techniques

Adobe After Effects CS5 Visual Effects and Compositing Studio Techniques Review

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This is the only book on the market to focus exclusively on the creation of visual effects for After Effects users, and is a one-stop resource for anyone who wants in-depth explanations that demystify the realm of visual effects and how they were created, thanks to veteran author Mark Christiansen's friendly and accessible style.

A thoroughly packed, informative read, this masterful guide focuses on explaining the essential concepts, features, and techniques that are key to creating seamless movie-quality visual effects. Users who are comfortable with After Effects will find a helpful review of the fundamentals - managing footage, viewing and editing layers, animating type, and more - so they can learn how to work smarter and more efficiently. Readers of all levels will learn core techniques for effects compositing including color matching, keying, rotoscoping, motion tracking, emulating the camera, and concluding with using expressions in After Effects, written by contributor and expert Dan Ebberts. An incredibly useful appendix on scripting in After Effects is included as well, written by Adobe engineer Jeff Almasol. The final section of the book delves into creative explorations, demonstrating professional effects that are commonly seen in films and games which readers can re-create.

Readers will also find comprehensive coverage of all that's new and makes this version of Adobe's effects programa must-have update, including the revolutionary new Roto Brush, all new effects such as the New Refine Matte effect, new support for Color Look-Up Tables, workflows that take advantage of the all-new 64-bit support, inclusion of third-party tools for additional creativity, and much more.

Note from the publisher:

FREE Adobe After Effects CS5.5 updates are available for this title. Simply register your product at www.peachpit.com/register and you will receive the updates when they become available.

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Creative Landscapes: Digital Photography Tips and Techniques

Creative Landscapes: Digital Photography Tips and Techniques Review

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Capture the beauty of the world around you with this professional advice

Landscape photography inspires millions of photographers. If you're one of them, you'll find new insight into landscape photography in this book by professional photographer Harold Davis, as well as tips, tricks, and technical advice to help you improve the quality of your photos. You'll learn to use lighting and composition creatively, choose and use appropriate equipment, look at your subject matter in a new way, and even when to break the rules in order to capture the best image of all. Illustrated with the author's own spectacular landscape photos.

• Landscape photography intrigues and inspires photographers, but there is more to getting great landscape photos than many photographers expect
• Professional photographer Harold Davis teaches tricks and techniques that will enhance your skills
• Explains how to approach the subject creatively, choose and use appropriate equipment, and refine photographic technique to create spectacular landscape shots
• Looks at how lighting, texture, and composition affect landscape imagery
• Lavishly illustrated with the author's own photos

Landscapes have long been a popular photographic subject; this book helps you advance your skills as a landscape photographer.

An Amazon.com Exclusive Introduction from Author Harold Davis

Dear Amazon Reader,

I’m passionate about landscape photography. I love getting out, traveling, finding new vistas, and photographing them. But, there’s a surprising paradox with landscape photography. On the one hand, this kind of photography might seem easy: It isn’t hard to find spectacular landscapes, no specialized gear is needed, and on its face, landscape photography doesn’t seem technically difficult.

On the other hand, as Ansel Adams put it, “Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer, and often the supreme disappointment.” Great landscape photography is, in fact, far harder than it looks.

Part of the trick is being in the right place at the right time. But even if the scene you are witnessing is sublime, there’s no guarantee that you’ll bring back compelling digital landscape imagery without the right creative ideas, techniques, and tips—which is where Creative Landscapes: Digital Photography Tips & Techniques comes in.

I’ve always loved landscape photography, and in the course of my career I have had the opportunity to photograph a wide variety of landscapes from many perspectives. I’ve pursued my love of the landscape by hiking solo across the Brooks Range—the northernmost Mountain range in Alaska—crossing ranging torrents with my camera perched precariously on my back and the rest of my gear on handmade rafts. I’ve gone hungry in my pursuit of the wilderness landscape. I’ve dangled from small planes and helicopters, lashed in with a harness, to photograph urban and wild landscapes from above. And I’ve sought the dark spaces of the night, to photograph landscapes and show them in ways they haven’t been seen before.

Digital has changed almost everything about the tools of the landscape photography trade, and how captures are processing in the digital darkroom.

My goal in Creative Landscapes: Digital Photography Tips & Techniques is to be your companion and guide in landscape photography. I work with you to find the right locations for your kind of landscape photography, and help you figure out the right time to be there. I share my best creative ideas about landscape photography with you, and explain the equipment, tools, and techniques you need to master. Finally, I show you how I process my landscape work in the digital darkroom.

Each of the photos in this book can be used as idea generation for your own work—how you might approach a specific kind of landscape to make spectacular photos of your own. I’ve included the story behind each photo in the book, as well as full technical data about the captures. Like other books in my Creative series, Creative Landscapes is intended to be useful as an idea book.

Creative Landscapes is divided into four parts. As you’ll see, there’s a great deal of material that covers a lot of ground:

Part I: The Tao of Landscape—Tao is a philosophy with ancient roots that refers to the primordial essence of things, the natural order of existence, and the fundamental aspects of the universe. My approach to landscape photography involves embracing the Tao of the world, and this section begins a conversation about integrating one’s work holistically with the world around us and the demands of modern life.

Part II: Tools & Techniques—Explains in detail the camera settings you need to know to make the most of your landscape photography opportunities.

Part III: One World, Many Landscapes—Photographing a mountain landscape is different from photographing a desert—and both are different from capturing a seascape, or the city as landscape. This section explores different considerations to keep in mind depending upon the kind of landscape you are photographing.

Part IV: Landscapes and Post-Processing—With digital photography, taking the photo is only the beginning of creative image making. In this section, you’ll learn to use RAW processing, Photoshop, and HDR techniques to improve the creative impact of your landscape photos.

I hope you enjoy Creative Landscapes: Digital Photography Tips & Techniques. I hope it encourages you to try new techniques. Be adventurous, and seek out awe-inspiring vistas. Explore the world around you, as you capture your own creative landscapes.

Best wishes in photography!

Harold Davis

Landscape Photos from the Author

Bridge and Stars at Night (Click to see larger image and the story behind the photo)

Yosemite Morning (Click to see larger image and the story behind the photo)

Yosemite in Snow (Click to see larger image and the story behind the photo)

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