A couple of months ago, I posted high-resolution versions of the first four videos from my book, Photoshop CS4 Channels & Masks One-on-One, absolutely free to registered members of dekeOnline. I promised there would be more, and this bright and cheerful Friday morning, I’m here to make good.
It’s a shockingly valuable offer with very little upside to me other than inspiring your misplaced affection. And yet I do it. Either I have a real thing for misplaced affection. (Which I do, but that’s another story.) Or I love my members. (You must be a member to receive the love.)
For a limited time (the previous installment is poised to expire soon, btw), I will make available to any registered member of this site the second batch of movies (one introductory live-action piece and three screen captures) from my most recent book Photoshop CS4 Channels & Masks One-on-One. Granted, it’s first and foremost a gorgeous four-color book, but it also includes 17 videos weighing in for a total of three hours. Produced by industry leader lynda.com, these babies are beautiful. Measuring 128 x 8 pixels, each movie is pixel-for-pixel accurate, with no downsampling and only moderate compression. Which means everything is crystal-clear legible.
Note that these movies are included only with the book — they are not available as part of the vast and comprehensive lynda.com Online Training Library — so you’re really getting a treat here. They make most sense in the context of the book, but they stand on their own as well.
Also note that these videos are not meant for streaming or playing online. They are meant for you to download, keep, backup if necessary, and watch again and again with childlike wonder. Please don’t share because if you do, you risk destroying the virtual love I almost had for you.
To download the videos, right-click the upcoming images or hyperlinks and choose Save or Download Linked File. And be forewarned, the videos are HUGE, between 1MB and 84MB!!! So make sure you have a fast connection.
Part 1 Introduction: Masking Essentials
Video Lesson 4: The Quick Mask Continuum
Video Lesson 5: Using the Image to Select Itself
Video Lesson 6: The 25 Standard Blend Modes
Note that this is Part 2 of what will ultimately be 4. This is the intermediate stuff. Future videos will get into the advanced and extra-advanced stuff.
And don’t be fooled. If you end up liking the videos, this is only the beginning. The book is one of the deepest, most comprehensive, and best looking guides in the business. Check out Photoshop CS4 Channels & Masks One-on-One for more information.
Enjoy, and let me know your thoughts.
new
Like others, from Lynda.com, new to PS, AE and Flash, but hopefully old farts can learn too.
Cool
Hey there. Nothing really interesting to say, because I haven’t finished downloading the vids yet. I just thought you might like a comment down here. You know… to look at, and read and think to yourself how much you like comments.
Actual comment
Ok - I’ll go ahead and make someting of an actual comment then.
Seen your previous videos many times - over and over again - and the striking thing about them is that every time I watch them - even for the umpteenth time - I learn something new I’ve missed.
Just amazing, isn’t it - and these ones are no exception. New version Photoshop, new and improved tools and still the same process of learning even more.
May you never quit this business, Deke !
Oh - and Richard Adams - stick with Deke and I guarantee you’ll learn more Photoshop than you ever thought possible. That said from one old fart to another, so trust me .. :))
Thanks!
I’ll check them out :)
Thanks Deke
Just d/loaded and about to watch them, cheers Deke :-)
Bright and Cheerful!
Thank you, Deke for these videos while I wait for the book to come in. I have always favored using the channels pallette in Photoshop for selections mainly.
I have 2 out of print books that you authored and I have one question for you. Where the H have you been? Now that I’ve found you again, I think I’ll keep you.
Bonnie
props
man, you are the bomb. thanks for your time and talent!
slim
my favourite teacher of photoshop
well deke i got to admitt you’re the man ! you’re my favourite since renaissance photoshop cs 2. you have that thing, that other’s don’t !
yoyo
Question
Dear Deke
Can you help me with a problem a have?
I´m new in photoshop and I found your videos extreme usefull. The problem is This. When I take pictures with my Eos camera I get pictures that are 1.8 - 2.0 Megabytes large.
I generally retouch them with the levels command or the curves command, as you theached me in your videos. Then, when I save them I always save in JPEG format, in the maximun level (12) thinking that I don´t want to loss any pixel of my pictures. The problem is that I get 4.3 Megabytes files….. What is the compresion level That I have to use for no loss o pixels and no growth of the picture size?.
Sorry for my poor English, but I Think you can understand it!!
Regards
Willy
JPEG compression
It sounds like you might have the compression on your Eos cranked up a bit high. Check for a quality setting and set it to its maximum. That will give you better quality images to work with in the first place.
Even better, shoot to your camera’s raw format (CRW or CR2). That will give you much larger files but superior results as well.
What a man, what a man, what a mighty good man
Yes, Deke, you are the man. I love your vids and will keep watching, as others have, to make sure I get the techniques down as best I can. CS4 is challenging, but it’s by far the best. Thanks for all the good stuff.
Video Downloads
Hi, Deke:
Am downloading for the second time your free videos. But I wanted to tell you I think your videos are the best! I had downloaded the previous ones, but for some reason they would play about halfway through and then went wonky (sorry for the technical term). Some of them were just completely unintelligible and the sound started screaming at me, and some of them just stopped halfway through.
I do have a slow DSL line, but the phone lines in “old” Santa Fe won’t support anything faster.
I had a free 30-day to lynda.com which I used exclusively for Deke Photoshop training. I only have PS CS3, but still learned a lot. I have not rejoined NAPP after being a member for eight years, because I believe the best training I can get is through you (and I just can’t afford it on Social Security). Wish I could afford your book & videos, but thanks to the recession can’t hack that now. Your training has proven that old farts (even female ones) can learn!
Anyhoo—I am trying again to download your free videos. We’ll see what happens.
Thanks for being the cool—and effective—trainer you are!
Shirley A Taylor
Lone Eagle Graphics
black@white photos
DEKE, Are there any tutorials regarding refurbishing old b/w photos @ postcards ,and also how to print on a ink jet printer
MANY THANKS
ROY
Ancient Doorway
Where can I get the file: Ancient Doorway.psd That I can open on my Mac so can finish that chapter tutorial in Channels and Masks book.
Thank you so much
Denny
Man you’re the Best,
Man you’re the Best, sometime ago I watch your one on one in design style shets and a learn much more tha many years of working hard. Now I hope to learn the same way photoshop Thanks for you effort to build this site. Sorry for my English isn’t my mother language.
Looking back things have dramatically changed.
Things have came a long way since when I used to run Photoshop on Windows 3.11 - had to copy over a lot of 32bit win32 dll’s.
Where is the file for Ancient doorway.psd so I can download it?
Fred
Ancient Doorway
Is here: http://www.deke.com/content/channels-masks-ancient-doorway-file
Ancient doorway file
Fred Why couldn’t I find its location. I went through blog, pod, press, video, Dekestuff, and about??
I even looked in www.deke.com/content/ and was told there was no such place,
Thanks for the help
Timeshare Relief
hey, nice post. thanks for the information. it’s a big help on my business.
Timeshare Relief
how do timeshares work
All well & good .... but what about the OUTPUT resolution?
Deke: One of the things that really pisses me off about tutorials, especially Kelby’s, is that they are methods & techniques mostly done at & for low resolution OUTPUTS!!!!!!
Low Res outputs are fine. Lots of graphic artists need LR for web etc.. But many of your mehtods & others, need IMO, Caveats starting with, “.... this technique is for Quick & Dirty LR Res (specifiy pixels or type of end output) outputs…” or “.... this technique is a slow & high quality way of making a CRITICALLY detailed mask for high res output, such as for large display prints, or detailed reproductions, or high res photographs….”
My point is that many of your techniques are cute, but for a photographer that requires other than the horrid Quick & Dirty crap, the info is not very helpful. Sure it’s an intro & with a lot of kludging, one could rework the techniques, but then what’s the point of your tutorial if it is misleading one to think that it’s for any and all types of outputs?
I’d REALLY suggest that you define what the intended output resolution for every technique before you even start talking about the technique and or, add info on how to modify the technique for a variety of outputs.
EVERYTHING that we do in Photoshop is for one type of OUTPUT or another, yet it seems to me that I’m THE ONLY instructor that defines what the output is to be for the given technique. Sadly for me, I only know a fraction of what you do when it comes to PS, so my teaching so far is pretty limited. But as a photographer, 95% of my learning needs are for HIGH RES OUPUTS. So many of your tutorials are not of much use and most of Kelby’s out of his mouth (Gawd how I hate his tutorials), are useless for much high res work, unless of course, you know how to modify his quick and dirty crap, which most “students” won’t know.
So PLEASE, specifiy what the intended output the technique is for? Low Res, Medium, High, all of them any of them, one in particular? This is critical for selections and masks, as many of the PS tools will drive one crazy trying to make very fine pain staking selections or masks. A magic marker won’t do when a fine tip pen is really needed!!!
04_quickmaskcontinuum.mov Corrupt?
I just tried to watch your 04_quickmaskcontinuum.mov but at about the 8:08 mark, just after you swtich the mask bkgrd from black to green, the video stops & the image is frozen. The dialogue is fine & continues, but the image is frozen. I’ve downloaded and played this video twice & the same problem occurs.