O'Reilly Digital Media

Winners of the 2006 O'Reilly Photoshop Cook-Off

O'Reilly's 2006 Photoshop Cook-Off offered Photoshop enthusiasts and newbies an opportunity to exercise their imagination and ingenuity — and win great prizes, too. Entrants took their original digital photographs and "cooked" them with Adobe Photoshop, using recipes from O'Reilly's five Photoshop Cookbooks. The contest was judged by a panel of A-list Photoshop and industry experts, who based their decisions on five key criteria: image quality, composition, originality, the appropriateness of the applied technique, and the use of color and/or tone.

Grand Prize

Grand Prize Winner

Suzanne Pitts
Laguna Beach, California
Biography: Suzanne Pitts has made it her personal mission to bring the fine art of editorial photography to its fullest potential using her natural eye for detail, beauty and composition. Her work has graced the cover of Coast Magazine, and has been published in Cruising News, Picture Framing Magazine, and the Orange County Register. She has illustrated fine art and health books such as "Turkoman Weavings" and "Kundalini Yoga Meditation", and has worked with organizations such as the Laguna Beach Art Museum, Laguna Dance Festival, the Children's Bureau and the Los Angeles Clippers Foundation. Her work has been exhibited at Dangenart Gallery in Nashville and the Crystal Image in Laguna Beach. Suzanne lives in Laguna Beach, California.

Submission:

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Related Books:

"A new series of books under the O'Reilly Digital Studio imprint brings the concept of the lavishly illustrated cookbook to the world of Photoshop digital imaging. The result is a collection of colorfully illuminated, clearly written, eye-popping recipes that will surely provide relief from even the worst case of illustrator's block."

The Photoshop Cookbooks Series
Book reviews by Ric Getter
MacDirectory Magazine
February 2006

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Photoshop Photo Effects Cookbook
Photoshop Fine Art Effects Cookbook
Photoshop Retouching Cookbook
Photoshop Filter Effects Encyclopedia
Photoshop Blending Modes Cookbook

Blending Modes

Blending Modes Winner

Karen Swaty
Owensboro, Kentucky
Biography: Karen Swaty was born and raised in Northern Michigan, and spent her days riding, drawing, painting and decorating horses. Although she worked in many different mediums, she didn’t even touch a computer until she was in her mid- forties, and then only because she had to for work. For the last 5 years or so, she has been teaching herself Photoshop, and confesses that she now dreams in layers. Karen lives in Owensboro, Kentucky.

Submission:

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Blending Modes Runner-Up

Sally Welch
Perrysburg, OH

Submission:

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Related Book:

Photoshop Blending Modes Cookbook
November 2005
$29.95 USD

Layer blending modes have been part of Photoshop for years, but they're not easy to understand at first glance. With clear, step-by-step instructions, an easy-to-follow format, and hundreds of full-color examples, Photoshop Blending Modes Cookbook for Digital Photographers shows you how to use blending modes... read more.

Filter Effects

Filter Effects Winner

Nancy Johnson
Columbia, South Carolina
Biography: Nancy Johnson is a retired institutional pharmacist with a lifelong interest in both art and science. Soon after she retired, she had the opportunity to take a course in Photoshop at the University of South Carolina Art Department and found that the application combined her interest in computers and digital cameras with her interest in art, and she's been an avid user ever since. Nancy lives in Columbia, South Carolina.

Submission:

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Filter Effects Runner-Up

Jim Nooney
Washington Township, NJ

Submission:

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Related Book:

Photoshop Filter Effects Encyclopedia
November 2005
$29.95 USD

Photoshop Filter Effects Encyclopedia explains and decodes the settings of every filter that Photoshop CS2 has to offer. And, unlike many reference books, it is filled with easy-to-follow, step-by-step recipes for creating truly amazing effects using Photoshop filters. Packed with hundreds of full-color photographs... read more.

Fine Art

Fine Art Winner

Ben Grace
Santa Rosa, California
Biography: Ben Grace is an artist and graphic designer working digitally and in traditional media, from oil painting to photography. Ben enjoys combining imagery in Photoshop to create truly unique digital composites. He graduated from the graphic design program at CSU, Chico and is working for the design and advertising studio, Robert, Mather and Gibbs, in Santa Rosa, CA.

Submission:

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Fine Art Runner-Up

Debra Booth
Atlanta, GA

Submission:

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Related Book:

Photoshop Fine Art Effects Cookbook
February 2006
$29.99 USD

Photoshop Fine Art Effects Cookbook tells you all you need to know to turn your digital photographs into images that mimic the styles of great visual artists. From advice on how to choose appropriate subject matter to 62 step-by-step recipes that show you how to create an "original" van Gogh, Vermeer, Edward Weston, or Andy Warhol... read more.

Photo Effects

Photo Effects Winner

Pamela Helm
Blacksburg, Virginia
Biography: Pamela Helm is a graphic designer and multimedia professional based in Blacksburg, Virginia. She runs an independent multimedia freelance business and teaches courses in Digital Imaging and Advanced Website Design at Radford University. In her spare time she dabbles in photography and watercolors. She holds BA and MFA degrees in Art and has over 15 years of professional design experience.

Submission:

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Photo Effects Runner-Up

Sebastian Wolff
Santa Rosa, CA

Submission:

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Related Book:

Photoshop Photo Effects Cookbook
November 2005
$29.95 USD

You don't have to be a Photoshop expert to create sophisticated effects. With 61 easy-to-follow recipes, Photoshop Photo Effects Cookbook shows you how to use Photoshop CS2 to simulate classic camera and darkroom techniques and special effects-without making you first learn Photoshop inside and out. Packed with hundreds of full-color photographs... read more.

Retouching

Retouching Winner

Sara Frances
Denver, Colorado
Biography: Sara Frances' extensive mix of photographic interests spans photojournalistic, documentary, portrait, architectural, and graphic art styles, generally with an alternative twist that captivates mind and eye. She holds academic degrees in visual arts, theatre and literature, as well as the professional titles of Master Photographic Craftsman, Accredited Photographic Imaging Instructor, and Associate of the American Society of Photographers. She writes photographic articles and books and teaches techniques, art philosophy, digital imaging, and manipulation. Her studio, Photo Mirage Imaging of Denver and Aspen, is a self-contained inkjet based production and presentation atelier, offering full service still and video artistry. Sara lives in Denver, Colorado.

Submission:

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Photo Effects Runner-Up

Susi Lawson
Wytheville, VA

Submission:

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Related Book:

Photoshop Retouching Cookbook
August 2005
$29.95 USD

Photoshop Retouching Cookbook for Digital Photographers tells you everything you need to know to adjust, correct, retouch, and manipulate your photographs-without making you first learn everything there is to know about Photoshop CS2. These straightforward, easy-to-follow recipes cover everything from fixing problems with exposure, color, and focus to hand-tinting, adjusting lighting, adding special effects... read more.

Sample recipes (PDF format) from the books are available online
No purchase necessary.

• Photoshop Retouching Cookbook for Digital Photographers
  Motion Blurring and Removing Skin Blemishes & Wrinkles

• Photoshop Fine Art Effects Cookbook
  The Impressionist Landscape

• Photoshop Filter Effects Encyclopedia
  Crosshatch Brush Strokes & Stylize Trace Contour

• Photoshop Photo Effects Cookbook
  Watercolor Graphic Art Effects

• Photoshop Blending Modes Cookbook for Digital Photographers
  Ultrawide Sharpening & Vibrant Mix