I know I am a little behind the times but about a month or so ago I got Photoshop CS2. 3 books and some youtube.com tutorials later and I feel like i haven't even scratched the surface. I wish there was a pill I could take that would instantly make me know all there is to know about it. Oh well, I have some more reading and experimenting to do....back to the books.

Make sure you check out www.psworkshop.net for their 4800+ tutorials.

I know! My first day in Photoshop was so confusing- many years ago now. This book really helped me out. I never read the directions but Photoshop requires you do.

Photoshop CS in 10 Simple Steps or Less
http://www.amazon.com/Adobe-Photoshop-S ... 859&sr=8-1

I challenged myself to go through 2 a day. It really helped. The lessons take less than an hour. And you can use it as a reference. I have the Photoshop Wow books but rarely use them, they seem so specific to an uncommon goal. But a fun way to learn Photoshop.

make sure you read books and tutorials that are for photoshop for digital photographers. ALl else in that program doesnt matter.

I agree the amazon link to the Photoshop CS in 10 simple steps is for digital photographers. And much easier to grasp and apply. You're not behind just catchin up

I just bought CS3 last December, about a year after CS4 was released, I got it for $105 NIB from an E-bay reseller! CS4 was going for about $680 at the time.
I think I know how you feel. I feel as if I've entered a foreign country, and can't speak the native language. Now I'm slowly picking it up.

the wealth of information on the Internet (48,000 tutorials from just one site!) and books out there claiming to have all the answers...can be as or more confusing that PS itself.

you would be wise to narrow it down just a tad and follow jjmirenzi's advice.

PS is great, i love it but it's also in some ways highly overrated. i don't believe folks starting out in digital photography have to run out and buy PS. in part because you'll only ever "scratch the surface" to meet your needs as a digital photographer. many (most) of which Photoshop Elements and/or Lightroom will do.

and then there are plugins like Nik Software (that work in Elements as well) that do much of the complicated stuff in a very uncomplicated way. i know how to do these things in PS but prefer NIk simply because it's way easier and faster (and in some cases better).

just my thoughts.


ps,

i love Photoshop...been using it longer than i've been shooting digital. just don't overlook your options.

I used CS2 almost every day until about a year ago. Now I'm on CS4 but since you already have CS2, there's no reason to buy something else. I've used Photoshop since 1997 (version 4) but there's still a lot I don't know. In fact, not a day goes by that I don't learn something new.

I doubt that anyone knows everything about Photoshop, except perhaps Thomas Knoll. But you don't have to know everything. You just need to know how to do what you want to do. Anyway, it's often been said that there are at least 10 ways to accomplish the same task in Photoshop.

Take your time. Personally, I think the best way to learn is to work on some of your own images. Basic stuff like sizing, levels, color correction, sharpening, etc. Get comfortable with the various Palettes, especially History. Then Adjustment Layers. That will get you going.

Finally, don't forget to calibrate your monitor!

Richard