Learning PhotoShop 5, Introduction
ViaGrafix has Learning CD's. Lots and lots of them. This
is a review of their Learning Photoshop 5 Introduction training CD, from opening the jewel case to completing the last lesson.
Installation
As this is the intro level Learning CD, I expected a simple installation
procedure, and the Viagrafix Learning CD didn't disappoint me. I inserted
the disk into my CD drive, it started itself, and all I had to do was click
Next. When installation was complete, I was able to run the program from
my Start menu, just like any other Windows program.
Assessment of Skills
ViaGrafix Learning CD next presented me with an Assessment test. This
was a feature I really loved. I could not only see what I already knew
(which made me feel kind of smart) I could gauge my progress when I saw
myself learning things I hadn't had a clue about at the beginning.
Of course, for people who have never seen PhotoShop before, the Assessment
test could be skipped, and the lessons could be started at once.
Starting the First Lesson
When I went to the lesson screen, I was at first confused because the Play
button was dimmed, and not available, even after I had clicked on a lesson
title. When I double-clicked on the lesson title, I saw that there were
a number of parts to the lesson, and as soon as I had chosen one of these
I could click Play.
Surprise - A pleasant voice began telling me about the PhotoShop screen
and features. Each element was circled with a yellow outline as it was
described, so there was no confusion about which tool was being described.
At the bottom of the screen I saw a Pause button. I pressed it and opened
my own copy of PhotoShop, so that I could try out the tools as they were
introduced. By pressing Pause and switching back and forth between the
Learning CD and PhotoShop, I got in all the practice I felt I needed
before moving on to the next part of the lesson.
At this point, I encountered two quirks. The first was that after watching
the tutorial for a period of time without doing anything myself, my screen
saver blanked the screen. The second was that, after changing to PhotoShop
to work, the Learning screen tended to go black. Both problems were solved
easily by simply clicking back in the Learning screen.
Interacting with the Learning CD
My next discovery was that I could put the CD into Interactive mode by
clicking one of the subheadings beneath the main lesson title. The lesson
began playing in Interactive mode, requiring me to do the moving and clicking,
instead of just watching.
Skill Assessment
At the end of the first lesson, I was eager to see how much I had learned.
I took the test and only missed one of the questions. Not bad for a student
who used to have trouble just remembering what the day's assignment was
about.
Completing the Introduction to PhotoShop 5 CD
The rest of the lessons took me a few days to complete. It would have taken
longer to assimilate them if I hadn't already been familiar with PhotoShop.
I was gratified to see my grade for the course was an A.
Lesson One
Basics, Screen Features, Intro to the Tools, Some Major Shortcut Keys,
Palettes, Moving About in an Image. A basic, but adequately informative,
look at the main features of PhotoShop. Especially useful for people upgrading
from earlier versions of PhotoShop - they'll see some of the new features
in this lesson.
Lesson Two
Palettes, Converting an Image, Layers Palette, Other Palettes. As I worked
through this lesson, it became increasingly important to practice each
feature as it was presented. Later I would play the lesson back and simply
watch, as a review of the features I had studied, but practice is essential
if you want to master these skills.
Lesson Three
Tool and Palettes, Creating an Adjustment Layer, ReSizing, Tileable
Textures (seamless patterns), Creating Wallpaper, Compositing Images. I
found the instruction for these complex projects complete and understandable.
I found myself learning new things about features I thought I knew. There
was no confusion about which palette or menu item I needed to click, or
which tool I was supposed to be using, because I could see the yellow circle
around the icon.
Lesson Four
Readying Images for Print, Changing Resolution, JPEG format, Merging Layers,
Flattening an Image. This cleared up several areas for me, and improved
the quality of my outputted images. And I still have the Intermediate and
Advanced CDs to work through!
I strongly recommend Learn2.com's Learning PhotoShop 5 series, from ViaGrafix, for people who are:
1. Fairly comfortable using a computer.
2. Know nothing, or just a very little about PhotoShop.
3. Benefit from hearing instruction and watching steps carried out.
4. Enjoy being able to pause a lesson and practice skills hands-on.