Book Description
This book will assist journalists and Flash developers who are working together to bring video, audio, still photos, and animated graphics together into one complete Web-based package.
This book is not just another Flash book because it focuses on the need of journalists to tell an accurate story and provide accurate graphics. This book will illustrate how to animate graphics such as maps, illustrations, and diagrams using Flash. It will show journalists how to integrate high-quality photos and audio interviews into a complete news package for the Web.
Each lesson in the book is followed by a learning summary so that journalists can review the skills they have acquired along the way. In addition, the book's six case studies will allow readers to study the characteristics of news packages created with Flash by journalists and Web developers at The Washington Post, MSNBC.com, and Canadian and European news organizations.
* Perfect for photojournalists who want to create or produce online slide shows with audio.
* A list of keyboard shortcuts for Flash will be included as an appendix.
* Lessons, not reference. This accessible approach for learning Flash MX 2004 illustrates its concepts with concrete examples that make sense.
* Full Color!
Customer Reviews:
85% of perfect.......2006-05-17
Very clearly explained for people who have no experience in flash. However, it didn't get me all the way to where I wanted to be. I wanted to produce an audio slide show that featured a) faded transitions, b) synchronization to the audio track, c) seamless loading on the user's end, and d) dynamically loaded content for ease of re-use. Although the book teaches a, b, c and d individually, it never puts them all together; the "final project" doesn't incorporate syncronization or seamless loading, and the audio-sync slide show it teaches doesn't have dynamic content or faded transitions. However, I feel well equipped to pick up a more thorough flash book to take me the rest of the way, and I'm glad I started with this one (a more general starter book would likely have covered topics of no use to me, like advanced animation et cetera).
An excellent book. Focused and complete........2005-09-18
This book is excellent. It has a mission and it executes it well. Its mission is to teach people to use Flash to communicate their ideas through images, words, and if necessary, sound. The book is structured with an introduction to communicating effectively followed by 10 progressive lessons for using Flash to accomplish the stated mission. The 3rd part of the book presents 6 case studies, real live examples of Flash in action. These case studies discuss the issue at hand, the approach that the designers, producers, and developers took to solve their problem, plus a technical tip that we all encounter when building Flash applications. An Appendix is included with additional information, such as preloaders, swf management, and video. The companion website takes this book from 5 stars to 10 stars. This is one of the best technical books I have ever read. It never looses sight of its mission. It marries technical technique to a functional objective.
Finally a book to learn how to do a multimedia piece right!.......2005-06-04
Finally a flash book that does not just show you how to make a ball bounce across a stage!
This is the book I recommend to aspiring multimedia journalists.
If you are a journalist who wants to go toward the online realm this is the book to buy, read and learn from -- I have always sent folks to Mindy McAdams' web site in the past -- now this new book she has done is even better.
Seth M. Gitner
Multimedia Editor
(...)
Book Description
Use every amazing option your Nikon CLS offers
Light is the essence of photography. The Nikon Creative Lighting System lets you create the same lighting patterns with a portable, detached, wireless system that professionals achieve using cumbersome and expensive studio equipment. This practical guide is like having an expert at your elbow. It's packed with information about the CLS as well as tips, tricks, and recommendations for lighting a dozen different shooting situations. Take it on every shoot and get the most from your CLS.
* Know all about the features and functions of the SB-800 and SB-600
* Get insider tips for creating flawless portrait lighting and staging the best poses
* Set up masters and remotes, flash modes, channels, and groups
* Choose equipment for a wireless studio
* Use the ideal exposure and Speedlight system settings for shooting events, nature, sports, groups, portraits, or products
Visit our Web site at www.wiley.com/compbooks
Customer Reviews:
Good resources book.......2007-08-07
Good for beginner and amature photographer. Clean and easy to understand guide book for Nikon's creative lighting system. (Flashes) This is a book for those who wants to know how to use their Nikon flash fast, without going through your boring manual. (I think it is better to read the manual first) Many good tips. Worth the money!
Best Nikon CLS book on the market.......2007-07-05
After just finishing this book I wanted to let other photographers know how great it is. The book begins with explaining the actual flash and what all of those dials and switches do. That section also covers the settings for each mode. Then once you have an understanding of how the hardware works you move into the basics of photography which consists of studio lighting and strobes. This section was particularly valuable to me because the Nikon system meshes with this kind of setup so well.
Only halfway through the book at this point and already learning a ton of very good information. The next chapter is wireless lighting which might be a little beyond the normal photographer, but something you should look in to. A basic basement or guest room can be made in to a great photo studio. You will of course quickly learn this flash isn't only for indoor because it can also be used for some pretty interesting outdoor shots. One of which is extreme sports and events.
Overall I was very pleased with this book and highly recommend you go pick up a copy of your own.
Full of Information.......2007-05-18
I felt the book gave plenty of information on CLS. Sure you have to know a bit to grasp what you are being told here, but one can assume that anyone owning a couple of SB800 already has some knowledge of lighting.
For me it filled in serious gaps in the information Nikon gave in it's manual and we are now able to coordinate four 800 units. The Lumedynes are now in the box for backup and nothing more.
As I often say the great thing in my 40 year in the art and business of photography is that as I have gotten older, the equipment has gotten lighter and faster not to mention controlable.
Nikon D200 Creative Lighting Field Guide.......2007-05-06
This a good but not top notch introduction to Nikon flash photograhy and Nikon products.
I found it a bit thin, and probably not very useful once one had become familiar with the Nikon products.
I am not convinced that once i have gone through it I would keep returning in the future.
Padded and superficial.......2007-03-29
I wish I had noticed the earlier reviews of this book before wasting my money and time reading it. The author lays out the CLS flashgun basics more clearly than do the Nikon manuals, but then passes on into generalities, dwells at length on portraiture in a very superficial way (with pretty poor examples to boot), and further pads with unneccessary side issues. There are also factual errors.
Book Description
If you want to take your Flash Professional 8 skills to a new level while learning how to produce games that rival anything available on the web, this is the book for you. Macromedia Flash Professional 8 Game Development is written by a professional game developer. Using the power of Flash and the most recent advancements in ActionScript, the book progresses through the entire development process to teach programmers and Web developers how to create professional quality games quickly. It teaches techniques for producing fast 3D effects that can be used with "cheat" techniques to produce powerful, high-performance results. It details the actual science of game development, including design, character development, the physics and motion of a game, and audio issues. And in this new edition, all of the latest features of Flash Professional 8 are covered, including the new sound channels, bitmap caching, texture pages, and more. The book covers many advanced topics in a simple, easy to understand way. It emphasizes the incredible power of the new BitmapData class and teaches how it can be used to take the performance of Flash games to a whole new level. It has never been easier to get right down to the pixel level and manipulate things at blazing speeds, making previously impossible games a breeze to make. So get to your computer, insert the CD-ROM, and prepare to begin your journey into the world of Flash Professional 8 game development.
Customer Reviews:
Good for the intermediate Flash programmer.......2007-07-30
The book provides several examples that progress the reader through the programming of gradually more complex games. The reader should have a basic knowledge of Flash and Actionscript, as the book brushes over beginner-level concepts. At the time, the book is fairly up to date, however there is supposedly quite a jump between Flash 8 and Flash CS3, which uses Actionscript 3.0. Nonetheless, the concepts taught in the book are universally applicable regardless of what Flash version you are using. The inclusion of a CD-ROM is an added bonus and a must with this kind of book.
Great Book.......2007-06-11
I found the book easy to read and very practical. The use of examples to explain things is great. And of course, examples that do work is great also!!!
It's the right book for those that already know something about flash and actionscript (doesn't need to be an expert), and want to learn to develop some games in flash, and perhaps aplly those technics on other apllications.
The book is great fun!!!
very limited discussion of incorporating physics.......2007-05-29
As a physicist, I looked at the chapter on "Physics for Games". It's very introductory Newtonian mechanics. Applying these in time-discrete form for moving objects in the game. Gravity is considered for vertical motion, and wind is incorporated to affect horizontal motion. Freshman level stuff. If you are developing a game where you need to seriously incorporate physics, there are entire books devoted to it, like Physics for Game Developers.
Though to be fair, the book is about learning Flash and its effects. Other chapters offer code fragments. Of necessity, these are all elementary, from a programming complexity standpoint. But they help explain how to apply Flash.
The most intricate part of the book seems to be when you model a 3d world. Nice rendering examples. Doesn't go very deeply here. Flash almost certainly has more advanced functionality.
In-Depth game Development!.......2007-05-17
I've bought this book with the purpose of starting to make flash games. Well, i couldn't have chosen a better way! The book is very easy to read and understand and the the examples are incredible. It explores the appropriate tools to create games like the BitmapData while giving other tools an explanation too. 5 stars!
Specifics for beginners, bad habits for mid-levels.......2007-04-28
If you've worked with strongly type languages like Java/C++/etc then this book might make you cringe a bit. First, the code is very terse with clever tricks to shorten the number of lines. Eventually it makes sense but methods like makeFader() don't really make a fader, they do other things like remove a game object from the scene.
So along with softreferences ( for i to 10, make a variable box_i=i ) - ew, and bad naming conventions, it plays out more like an Oreilly Cookbook that encourages bad habits. Granted, I ordered it and I'll keep it as a book full of complete examples. But I think any of the examples that I copy/type/study, I'll refactor later to be more clear and well-coded.
It's a fast ramp-up to ActionScript 2.0. If you're looking for smarter and more mid-level code then maybe wait for a book on AS3.0 that is more class oriented and less procedural like this book. Else, if you just want to see end-to-end examples as fast as possible the author does a good job of explaining code blocks as he goes even if he's encouraging bad habits.
Book Description
More than 1100 flash cards, practice questions, and quick reference sheets for the CCNA 640-801, INTRO 640-821, and ICND 640-811 exams
CCNA test time is rapidly approaching. You've learned the concepts, you have the experience to put them to use, and now you want to practice, practice, practice until exam time. CCNA Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack gives you three methods of proven late-stage CCNA exam preparation in one package.
Test Engine
500+ question exam engine with practice simulation question types includes both practice and study modes
Flash Cards
More than 550 flash cards in PC, handheld, and print formats, available in customizable sets
Quick Reference Sheets
All exam topics included in 100+ graphical quick reference sheets
Companion CD-ROM
Contains 550+ flash cards and more than 500 practice test questions. Flash cards are downloadable to Palm OS and Pocket PC handheld devices.
Minimum System Requirements
Windows 98, Me, 2000 Pro, or XP
Acrobat Reader v5.0 or higher
Internet Explorer 4.01 or higher
16 MB RAM for Windows 98 and Me;
64 MB RAM for Windows 2000 Pro and XP
800 x 600 resolution or higher
256 or more colors
Internet Access for "instant" registration
Optional application on CD is functional with most Palm or Palm-OS compliant handheld devices and most Pocket PC handheld devices
This volume is in the Flash Card and Exam Practice Pack Series from Cisco Press. Products in this series arm Cisco Career Certification candidates with a set of exam practice tools, formats, and environments to help them in the final stages of their study regimen and increase recall of key exam topics.
Customer Reviews:
Good companion book.......2007-09-28
This book on its own isnt real good except for cramming. Used with a study system it is excellent. It covers more topics than you will likely find on the test but isnt that the point? If we knew what exactly what was on the test we wouldnt need a study guide or flash cards.
Great start for CCNA review and Pre Certification testing!.......2007-05-20
Handy guide for the individual on the go like me. A good start for anyone taking the CCNA exam, to be used after taking the Cisco CCNA classes! I really liked the test engine questions and simulation questions.
Chris
ccna.......2007-01-05
excellent choice of book..the student whom want to study before the test..cd also have simulation software which allow the reader to do the lab..and the price is cheap..nothing go wrong with that..
Wrong answers on test.......2006-03-05
I would have rate this one ZERO stars, but there is no selection for that, so it gets ONE star,
If you are studying for your test, stay away from this publication. The practice test contains a number of wrong answers.
One question's 'correct' answer said that to break into the boot sequence, you should issue the break sequence within the first FIVE MINUTES after powering up the router. Another one said that you would need 27 PVC's for a fully meshed wan network of 8 branch offices. That one even spelled out the
math in the answer, i.e. n(n-1)/2, or 8(8-1)/2, which is (8*7)/2, which they said equals TWENTY SEVEN!!! I was just blown away.
I've emailed cisco press 4 or 5 times on this. I wanted a refund, but they want me to be their proof reader for free.
I wish I had read some reviews before I made this purchase. Don't waste your money.
OUTDATED QUESTIONS!!!.......2005-07-29
Plain and simple, some of the question are outdated. I hate having to go through unneccessary questions to study for this exam. It's bad enough that there is a ton of material that I need to know.
Book Description
More than 950 flash cards, practice questions, and quick reference sheets for the CCDA DESGN exam 640-861 and CCDP ARCH exam 642-871
- Run through practice exam questions while reviewing crucial information on challenging topics
- Boost memory retention with 350+ flash cards, specifically designed to cover all exam objectives
- Download the electronic flash cards to your handheld for ultimate portability
- Create and save personalized sets of electronic flash cards for focused review
- Digest complex CCDA and CCDP information with a set of 55+ quick reference sheets
- Review all exam objectives in a variety of formats using proven self-study methods
CCDA/CCDP Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack includes the following three tried-and-true methods of late-stage test preparation:
-
More than 350 flash cards. Test your understanding of CCDA and CCDP concepts with flash cards in print and electronic formats. The electronic version is PC-, Palm OS-, and Pocket PC-compatible, allowing for supreme flexibility. Shuffle the electronic cards, work from preset groups of cards, or create and save your own challenging set for focused review.
-
550 practice exam questions. Verify your knowledge with this robust exam engine. Test your proficiency in two modes-study mode and practice mode-and identify areas of weakness so you can concentrate on specific topics for which you need the most help.
-
55+ quick reference sheets. Review crucial CCDA and CCDP exam objectives with these comprehensive reference sheets. Succinct text overviews of complex concepts are supported with detailed diagrams to provide a valuable late-stage review of all that must be mastered for exam success.
Are you ready to take your CCDA DESGN or CCDP ARCH exam? You've learned the concepts, you have the experience to put them into real-world use, and now you want to practice, practice, practice until exam time. CCDA/CCDP Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack gives you three methods of proven, late-stage CCDA and CCDP exam preparation in one package.
Test Engine
550-question exam engine includes both practice and study modes
Flash Cards
More than 350 flash cards in PC, handheld, and print formats, available in customizable sets and perforated for easy removal
Quick Reference Sheets
All exam topics included in 55+ graphical quick reference sheets
CCDA/CCDP Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack is part of a recommended learning path from Cisco Systems that includes simulation and hands-on training from authorized Cisco Learning Partners and self-study products from Cisco Press. To find out more about instructor-led, e-learning, and hands-on instruction offered by authorized Cisco Learning Partners worldwide, please visit www.cisco.com/go/authorizedtraining.
Companion CD-ROM
The CD-ROM contains 350 flash cards and 550 practice test questions. Flash cards are downloadable to Palm OS and Pocket PC handheld devices.
Minimum System Requirements
Windows 98, Me, 2000 Pro, or XP
Acrobat Reader 5.0 or higher
Internet Explorer 5.5 or higher
16 MB RAM for Windows 98 and Me; 64 MB RAM for Windows 2000 Pro and XP
800 x 600 resolution or higher
256 or more colors
Internet access for "instant" registration
Optional: Palm or Palm OS-compliant handheld device; Pocket PC handheld device
This volume is in the Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack Series from Cisco Press. Products in this series arm Cisco Career Certification candidates with a set of exam practice tools, formats, and environments to help them in the final stages of their self-study regimen and increase recall of key exam topics.
CCDA/CCDP Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack covers all the objectives on the most recent CCDA and CCDP exams, including the gathering of network requirements, designing IPv6 solutions, using security, working with MPLS, deploying wireless technologies, using content networking, designing IP telephony solutions, and implementing storage networking.
Flip through the flash cards and test yourself on the critical details that form the foundation of the CCDA and CCDP exams. Whether you are searching for the ultimate Cisco design exam late-stage test preparation tool or simply need a complete package with at-a-glance, comprehensive information on advanced networking, CCDA/CCDP Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack is packed with everything you need to access this information at home, at work, and on the go!
Customer Reviews:
Great tool for final exam preparation!.......2005-08-23
CCDA/CCDP Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack won't teach you the concepts of network design, so it can't be compared to and won't replace a study guide. The only purpose of this book is to help you in finding weak areas and providing a summarization of all exam topics to aid you in your study.
I used it to prepare for the CCDA exam after reading the CCDA Self-Study Guide and Top-Down Network Design book. It served as a great preparation tool, especially the quick reference sheets which provided comprehensive information on all relevant topics. A little buggy but useful nonetheless were the Flash cards, they helped to memorize small but important facts which proved very useful during the exam. Without this book it would have been much harder to pass.
I'm really looking forward to use it throughout my CCDP study!
Nice summary tool.......2005-03-20
Having just passed the CCDA DESIGN exam 640-861 and CCDP ARCH exam 642-871 within the period of one week, I found this book to be one of the more useful study tools. The ARCH exam is really an extension of the DESIGH exam...in fact the two tests share some of the same knowledge, so it's best to take them consecutively to cut down on your study time. The Flash Cards in this book relate directly to the Quick Reference Sheets and these Sheets are probably the most outstanding feature of this book. They do a great job of summarizing most of what you need to know to pass this exam. The study questions were great, too, at filling in small details that you will see on the exam. I want to stress that this was not the only study tool I used, but this book was outstanding for final test preparation. Highly recommended.
Useful but PDA users beware.......2005-01-25
All in all I found this to be a good supplement to my other CCDA study material. It particularly was useful to skim though the cards prior to reading that topic (from another source) and then really quizzing yourself after finishing the chapter.
The quiz engine had a few mistakes but overall I found it quite useful.
However, when I installed the flash cards on my Sony Clie TH-55 it caused a fatal memory error that required a hard reset! It was a painful loss of data! After sending my clie back to Sony, they certified it OK, and when I tried to install the cards (a 2nd and 3rd time) it crashed again! Acckk!! I'm sure this is not common but back up your PDA before installing it!!!
I rate it 3 stars only because I bought it so I could study on the train with my PDA, and sadly cannot do so. (would be a 4 otherwise)
Delivers on Its Promise.......2004-04-20
CCDA/CCDP Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack by Anthony Sequeira and Kevin Wallace (Cisco Press 2004) delivers on what it promises: solid final preparation materials for the CCDA (DESIGN 640-861) and CCDP (ARCH 642-871) exams. If you have studied the basic exam material for these exams you are ready to burn in your knowledge using this book. For the CCDA, preliminary preparations means reading the CCDA Exam Certification Guide and/or the CCDA Self Study book for the DESIGN topics. Both of these are now available from Cisco Press. Unfortunately, there are no corresponding books for the ARCH topics, so you need to take a more creative course, such as perusing the SRND guides on Cisco's website for topics such as storage, wireless, VPN, content, and telephony, while keeping the exam objectives (listed on Cisco's website) in the back of your mind. Overall, I would rate this book a 5 (out of 5), with the strong caveat that it will be difficult to pass the exams unless you do a significant amount of outside research, especially in the case of CCDP ARCH.
In making the design track more relevant to the current networking scene, Cisco replaced (in 2003) the old CCDA course with one that focused much more on cogent design practices, such as identifying the technical and business goals and constraints put forth in Priscilla Oppenheimer's Top Down Network Design. They also dropped old technologies like IPX and AppleTalk and replaced these rarely used protocols with forward-looking material like IP telephony, modern security issues like IP spoofing and DDoS mitigation, and the enterprise composite network model, which further breaks down the familiar access, distribution, and core layers into an enterprise campus (which includes submodules for network management and the server), an enterprise edge (with separate internet connectivity and e-commerce modules, along with a remote access and WAN module), and a service provider edge.
Similarly, the CCDP ARCH course was upgraded (also in 2003), with a deeper focus on all of the above areas, and a much deeper treatment of QoS options for voice and data, specifics on multicast features such as sparse and dense mode operations and shared versus source distribution trees, details on the CiscoWorks network management tools including LAN Management Services and Routed WAN Management System, content caching, routing and switching, and storage essentials including NAS and SAN. In most cases the ARCH course drills deeper than the DESIGN course; in some, such as IP telephony, the DESIGN course seems to deal with the lower level issues (such as tip and ring) while ARCH deals with applications (such as Call Manager configurations including single-site, multisite, and clustering over the WAN).
The examples in CCDA/CCDP Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack are very easy to understand and the flash cards follow the quick reference sheets quite faithfully. The illustrations are excellent and the practice questions (available on the accompanying CD-ROM) are highly relevant. The authors have delivered exactly what should be expected for this type of book; they are both certified Cisco Systems instructors with KnowledgeNet and clearly know their stuff.
By the time you're acing all the topics in the flash card book (when preparing for CCDP, I went back over CCDA), you're ready to make an educated guess on anything that isn't obvious. There were still a few surprises in the exam but this book definitely helped me muddle through. I would assume the CCDP ARCH will be an easier nut to crack when Cisco Press releases an exam certification guide, currently slated for November 2004.
Great resource for my students.......2004-04-15
As a CCSI that teaches the DESGN course for the CCDA, I highly recommend this resource. It definitely gives students an edge going into the exam. It is very Exam-centric.
Book Description
VLSI-Design for Non-Volatile Memories is intended for electrical engineers and graduate students who want to enter into the integrated circuit design world. Non-volatile memories are treated as an example to explain general design concepts. Practical illustrative examples of non-volatile memories, including flash types, are showcased to give insightful examples of the discussed design approaches. A collection of photos is included to make the reader familiar with silicon aspects. Throughout all parts of this book, the authors have taken a practical and applications-driven point of view, providing a comprehensive and easily understood approach to all the concepts discussed. Giovanni Campardo and Rino Micheloni have a solid track record of leading design activities at the STMicroelectronics Flash Division. David Novosel is President and founder of Intelligent Micro Design, Inc., Pittsburg, PA.
Customer Reviews:
A very detailed NOR flash design guide.......2006-11-13
Make no mistake. This book is dedicated for NOR flash only. Well, I guess it is because all the authors are STM engineers. Nevertheless, it covers all the basic and if you are non-volatile memory circuit designers (eeprom/nor/nand/whatever), this book is for you.
On second thought, if you have IEEE account and want to go cheap (cheap == not paying for the book), you can get most of the good stuff from this book by downloading PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE, VOL 91, NO.4, APRIL 2003. I remembered there are total of 11 or 12 papers in series. Yes, the papers are from the same STM people.
Nevertheless, it is a great book. BTW, forget about the IEEE non-volatile memory book by William D. Brown. It is not a real circuit designer book but rather a poorly lumped together papers by other people.
Book Description
Photography is all about light. Canon Speedlites give you the next best thing to cumbersome studio lighting - wireless flash units that you can actually pack in your camera bag and take along. Tuck this full-color book in there, too. It will help you maximize the effectiveness of your Speedlites and help you create professional lighting effects in more than a dozen unique settings. With this Digital Field Guide you'll:
- Learn all your Speedlite's settings and how to use E-TTL metering.
- Experiment with bounce flash, fill flash, and using multiple flash units.
- Set up a portable wireless studio with backgrounds, umbrellas, and soft boxes.
- Use Speedlites to light professional-quality shots ranging from studio portraits to concerts to product photography.
- Explore exposure, lens choices, and lighting for outdoor portraits, still lifes, and much more.
Order your copy today!
Customer Reviews:
Not enough depth or detail..........2007-09-16
I picked this book up at a local bookstore. Unfortunately I gave the book a quick look before purchase only to find it less than I have hoped once I got it home.
The book doesn't go in depth on any specific topic which is what one expects of a book dedicated to a specific niche on a specific product. The whole book reads like a couple of chapters from a more general purpose photography book rather than a book dedicated to the Canon 580ex and 430ex Speedlite System. Please note that other models are not mentioned and while they don't have all the bells and whistles of the new versions, they can be used with some minor tweaks. Too bad he doesn't even mention that.
Well, I do know why he didn't mention that...
The author never gets beyond using the flash system outside of E-TTL II mode where the camera uses the flash in automatic mode. While I think E-TTL II is good, it always isn't the answer. I cannot imagine he never mentions manual mode other than early on when mentioning the various modes available with the camera.
The good is he does describe the Speedlites a little better than the user manual (or at least in a more interesting style) in the first chapter. Some additional good is the wireless section and ratios but it does lack real detail but it is enough to get you started with the concept.
The bad is all the custom functions of the Speedlites are ignored. The examples of flash photography are generally not great examples and the explanations are totally lacking. There are no diagrams of how the flashes are arranged or what accessories are being used. Even if not possible for every shot, some should have been shown with the additional detail.
I also don't know why the book gets into posing techniques unless it is to broaden its appeal. That truly is not the function of a Speedlite. I would rather see some more depth in the use of fill flash which is a complicated thing to do well.
Overall the book is good for someone wanting a quick read to learn the very basics and get some start on more complex flash set ups using the Canon Speedlites at a modest cost. If you are familiar with the functionality of your Speedlites already, then skip the book.
Excellent presentation.......2007-09-04
This book is for anyone interested in learning to use Canon's external flash units, either camera mounted or remote.
No point is left untouched and one can learn good technique towards achieving great pictures both indoors and outdoors. I learned a great deal about using a flash for ourdoor photography.
I would highly recommend this to anyone.
Good for people who don't read manuals.......2007-08-08
I'm sure the manual covers a lot of info provided in this book, but I don't read them because the information is often too dry and boring for me. I thought that this guide was better at explaining the features for someone like me, who is new to flash in general and is trying to understand what certain buttons do. It isn't a good reflection of theory, and I'd recommend considering web searches for certain flash techniques and also the book Light: Science and Magic - 3rd Ed.
Book needs a re-write.......2007-07-19
The book held a lot of potential and promise but barely came through to fullfill. I agree with the author's premise and have been using Speedlites in the field myself for wedding and portrait photography to stay "low impact"; dragging around lots of lights and equipment is just not practical. I fly out to Orange County for a wedding next week and won't be bringing strobes or tripods or any heavy equipment.
The errors drove me nuts. Refering to figures that just plain were not there, indication of examples that did not exist, not picturing equipment such as light modifiers, etc. is just plain inexcusable. Also there were times of great contradiction, such as on page 56 where he says to set your camera to flash setting for White Balance at the top of the page, then at the bottom says leaving your camera set to auto-white balance is more accurate. Which is it? Why not just start the options and tell the user to experiment instead?
I give this two stars since there is some value here; some nice examples and some inspiration. If this can be re-done into a more advanced edition, and be generic to speedlites (not just the 580 and 430) then it could have a wider range audience and won't appear to be out-dated information in a years time. I own the 550 and 420 and I purchased it anyway; so why not include the others and make enough elbow room for when new Speedlites are introduced (like Canon just did with the new 580 EXII).
If you want to gain some technique and inspiration with low impact speedlite lighting in the field, do consider this book. Just don't buy it new. Pick up a used copy for $5-$10 if at all possible, or borrow a friends.
Happy speedliting!!
-Jeff, Johansen Photography
Disappointed .......2007-07-14
I was looking for a book that would help me understand Canon's Speedlite system and E-TTL II. This book is not it. As others have said, it begins as a manual describing the Speedlites with the what and where each button and part. There is a short chapter on setup that basically describes the flash modes. Then there are two chapters on multi-flash, wireless setups. I guess they are good if that's what you are trying to do. The idea for chapters on Applications and Posing is good but the execution is lacking.
What's missing: I tried to find the answer to the question In what modes does the Speedlite operate as a fill flash and in what modes does it operate as the primary light source? This book does not tell you. In a short paragraph on fill flash it mentions that in Tv and Av modes the flash operates as a fill flash. How does it operate in other modes? I couldn't find the answer. Also, missing is a discussion of the custom function settings and why one would set them one way rather than another. Maybe the author consider most of the them obvious. But a short discussion should have been provided. The book discusses the different types of batteries. It doesn't discuss milli-amp Hour ratings and how one might choose rechargeable batteries based the the mAH or why its important.
I am disappointed in this book. It has not enough technical information on the Speedlight and too many pages on basic photography.
Book Description
Anyone with moderate Macromedia Flash experience who is looking to acquire or improve their understanding of ActionScript will find this book a valuable resource. Author Gary Rosenzweig is highly respected in the Macromedia community and pioneered the use of advanced programming techniques in Macromedia Flash. For this edition, he has updated the games from the previous edition and has added several new projects. Each chapter studies and then deconstructs a new type of game or gadget such as hunt and click games, catch and avoid games, or action and adventure games and the CD contains the project source code.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent Resource.......2007-08-31
Even though this book was written for Actionscript 1.0, it still has plenty of life left in it. A reasonably capable Flash designer should be able to convert the script to AS 2, and probably even convert it to AS 3. If you're already a guru you may not find it as useful, but intermediate level Flashers should find plenty of inspiration. The game theory is light - just the basics - but I was more interested in the script, which it is full of. Well worth the money.
Great for intermediate Flash users.......2007-05-19
If you have even a little background in Actionscript or programming in general, you will find this book worthwhile. The author gives a few beginner's tips, but for the most part this is for the intermediate user looking to take the next step into Flash gaming. There are a variety of games covered and each game is included on the companion CD. The CD is probably the biggest selling point when compared to other Actionscript books as it's a huge help to see what the author is talking about on screen.
Not good for beginners.......2007-02-01
This book is not very well suited for beginner actionscript programmers.The author gives two or three brush off chapters on actionscript.Then bombardes you with math.random()* this that and the other.And starts using object type programming with little explanation of whats going on behind the code.He does comment the lines but the comments faintly explain what he is doing.I would have given this book 2 stars,but because you can take these games change them around graphics,little script or whatever and "make them your own" I am giving it 3 stars.I've owned this book for over a year and after reading other books it's making more sense what he's doing now.But for someone with little experience, be prepared to get lost very quickly.
Great transaction, but..........2006-03-19
The five stars are only for the price and quality of transaction for the distributor. The book, however, deserves 3 max. If you want to know how to create these specific games, then look no further. If you want to learn the theory behind the games so you can easily go on to create your own, buy another book. This is a good tool if you are interested in Rosenzweig's style of programming, but only that. If you wish to expand your knowledge of ActionScript on a more modular and appliable level, I would suggest Flash MX 2004 Savvy or an ActionScript Bible (for the more advanced topics).
There's probably a better book out there..........2006-03-15
The examples in the book are not updated and show an older method of writing action script. While it still works, it's not the best way to learn the current methods.
Book Description
Untitled
Macromedia Flash MX ActionScripting: Advanced Training From the Source teaches readers ActionScript using a hands-on, project-based approach. This book will be different in several ways. Instead of just explaining how scripting works, explains scripting by translating real-life activities into scripts, so that users can begin to see the association of how programming and scripting is something they instinctively already know how to do. Readers will be shown many methodologies and techniques for building nearly thirty real-life Flash ActionScript projects, including sample games, wireless applications, Web sites, and more, enabling them to work faster and more efficiently. The companion CD-ROM contains all project files and images necessary for each project in the book.
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