There is an old proverb that says, "If you want to be successful, surround yourself with successful people".  It would be just as true to say, "If you want to be creative, surround yourself with creative people.  Along those lines, "Illustrations in Photoshop: A Designer's Notebook", takes a trek through the techniques and ideas of nine successful, creative people who make a livelihood creating art using Photoshop.          

            Regardless of whether it's simple a way to combine filter-affected photography with pencil sketches and painting, as in the case of Joël Legars' children's book illustration "Back to School", or a medium in and of itself which carries the art from concept to finish, as in the case of Nicolas Bouvier's videogame preproduction-style "Confrontation", Photoshop has become an essential tool for today's designers and illustrators.

             Though this slim little book is not exactly an entire reference manual, or an exhaustive, encyclopedic tome of Photoshop how-to's, is uniquely targeted towards its audience, appealing to the way Photoshop users diverge in their thoughts and methods, from the mainline software users, being general more "right-hemisphere" thinkers, who often deal with physical/concrete, associative and creative ways of approaching life, rather than linear, analytical and organizational ways.

            Thus, the format of the book is perfectly nuanced, like a fine wine, for those who will consume it.  Perhaps we should not be surprised - after all, the book is originally French.  The translation, however is flawless with good diction and strong, distinctive style.

            This is a neat little book to have - just to feed your creativity.  It is a nine-course meal, featuring that many case studies giving us a taste of the work done by professional artists working in fields as diverse as advertising, roleplaying games, graphic novels, children's books and more.  This pieces, sumptuously displayed on the page with flawless, interesting layout, are enough to inspire almost any artists.   Thus, perhaps the best way to view this book is as a boost of creative energy.  Each of these studies is short enough to imbibe in one sitting and are unique enough in their approaches to things to give anyone an idea or two.

            Each study comes with a neat little sidebar which outlines the hardware (computers, monitors, scanners, tablets, etc.) used with each piece of work, and the version of Photoshop and/or other software used.  Looking over some of the low-end specs used for some of this computers, and some of the antiquated versions of Photoshop employed, is enough to give me hope that maybe talent really does count for something.

            A good mix of the theoretical and the practical, the various contributing artists discuss not only the source of their inspiration, the reasons they are doing these art pieces (whether for illustration, advertising, personal enjoyment, etc.) but their own philosophy on art that guides the down-and-dirty techniques they use on a day-to-day basis.  “Notebook” includes a number of pointers and tips from both an abstract and an applicable point-of-view.

            Some of the topics and techniques include:

                            -scanning and resolution

            -digital cleanup for artwork

            -use of layers and blend modes

            -lighting effects

            -how to start your compositions and images

            -choosing colors

            -creative ways to use mixed media in Photoshop

            Bear in mind that "A Designer's Notebook" basically assumes that you already know how to draw, and can do so well.  It does not linger on the process of actually drawing or creating the art, but affecting, filtering, coloring and manipulating it in Photoshop.

            Whether you like or dislike Adobe's popular program, the incontrovertible fact is that Photoshop is not just the "professional option" now, it is now the "only option" for high end image manipulation.  "A Designer's Notebook" covers a range of uses, including a variety of genres, feels and styles.  Through this personally guided display of techniques, this book shows the incorporation of mixed media from pencil sketches, paintings to scratchboards, photos of nothing, and even a pair of the artists boxer shorts!