Photoshop Tutorials and techniques!

So i love messing around in photoshop and creating pics but i want to try doing a little more to them. Like adding depth to a photo, adding shadows and light. I've seen a few really nicely done stuff on flickr but i have no clue how there done and not sure what to look for. I've tried going through some of the photoshop tutorials out there but i'm again not sure what i'm looking for and most of the ones i've found don't really seem like they'd be relivant.

So i'm asking a little help from all you photographers out there, where did you learn from. Which tutorials sites did you use and if you used courses can you suggest any free ones.
Same with adding light and depth to photos in SL have we any tutorials on the web that teach you that.

Thanks kindly
Aine xoxo

Here are a couple that I bookmarked recently but haven't tried out yet:

http://rezzable.com/blog/rykerbeck/tutorial-adding-background-creating-drop-shadows

http://rezzable.com/blog/rykerbeck/tutorial-removing-green-screen-photoshop-or-gimp-0

Lots of photoshop experience hangs out in the textures forum.

You can take some really great shots even without going into photoshop..
Granted photoshop is great and i love it and would be willing to help if you like with some of the basics that would get you started..

but really with the right lighting set around you and region settings you can take some really great shots that would have you thinking they were done in photoshop..

i guess it depends what you really want..are you wanting to place your avatar in places where you would change the background or are you wanting to really make it look real 3dimensional?

I could give you some quick pointers if you like..just give me an IM in world..today is sunday so i have the day off and really all i do is play with builds or hang listening to the music most of the time in world lol

Ceka is right......a lot depends on the composition in-world (just like RL photography, the basic elements apply....lighting, subjects, depth, composition....and so on)

I use the windlight settings to enhance my shots and get the ambiance I want with a photograph. I LOVE my photoshop, but I try to keep the integrity of my pics in tact. On the other hand.....since I've been doing photos in SL I have learned soooooo much about editing. Basically I just mess around with the program (I have PSE 5.0) until I figure things out....But....there's tons of free plug-ins that you can grab and add to your PS that will allow you to create some fun & amazing effects very easily.

FlamingPear.com is a great site for free filters (you can buy them but they offer some free packs) I often google free filters or free brushes to look for interesting effects to add to my PSE5...... but learning by doing has always been the best way for me. Tutorials make my eyes cross LOL

Also....if you've got a flickr account, there's a LOT to be gained from folks there. Being a part of some of the SL flickr photo groups has taught me a lot. (so much so, in fact, that it has transferred into my RL work) And there's a photo editing program associated with flickr that's free to use on the web (picnik or something...the link is on the flickr site)

Thanks for the links Skell, those are some good tips on there

I've had a little flick through the textures forum but not found what i'm looking for. Alot on there is just mainly to do with clothing, skins etc. I know most of the basic stuff in photoshop, i can use layers, alpha channels, dodge and burn tool, change my layer types and i recently started to really make use of the filters and some other bits.

Ceka, i pretty much know the basics of photoshop, i've been dabbling with it for awhile now and i used to mess around and make clothing for my Sims when i had the Sims 2.
To be honest i'd love to do a little of both. I'll post a few examples below of the kind of things i'd like to have a go at doing. Not saying i'll be able to do them straight away but something that could maybe lead up to me being able to do them

http://www.flickr.com/photos/riven_altney/3752865077/in/pool-tutorialsforsl
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonjasi_rau/3726999179/in/pool-tutorialsforsl
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiotaringa/3749110725/in/pool-tutorialsforsl
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24797313@N08/3732918459/in/pool-tutorialsforsl

Oh and i'd appriciate a few pointers for inworld, i'm still pretty sucky with the enrivomental settings lol.

Milla - I have the flaming pear filter and a few others i've been playing with plus i've been using the photoshop filters aswell. I have a flickr account aswell though never heard of this picnik, i'll have a look into it.

I don't have links, but adding techniques for High Dynamic Range to your skill set will vastly improve your lighting and shadows (hard, but not impossible with a single source photo)

It sounds like you're doing just fine Aine.....it really just takes practice.

I knew nothing about photo editing until a few years ago when a friend gave me a fantastic edit program which I have since lost.....the CD got wiped out. But....when I got my first digital camera and started messing with photo/art I found a new passion. My dad was an amazing photographer.....as were both my peternal and maternal grandfathers. It was in my genes but I didn't get the connection until the digital age LOL

Now....I have become an absolute fanatic with my camera both IRL and in SL. I was afraid to attempt skins for the longest time and then one day it all just sort of clicked and I grabbed Eloh's & Splendor's free templates and hit the ground running. For the most part......I just 'do' until I 'learn'. I'm guessing you're the same.....just keep at it....keep exploring and experimenting.

Are you able to use the windlight settings? I discovered that we can create some pretty amazing photo effects in-world just by messing with the environment editor. Something, sadly, we cannot do IRL but it makes for a great tool for honing photography skills and bringing what we've learned into RL.

Robin Sojourner, has some great tutorials here:

http://www.robinwood.com/

HTH as I am useless when I fire photoshop up lol I must find time to work on the tutorials