Advice needed on what book to buy

hello. my lack of skills with graphics programs is my weak link. I see interfaces like the ones used here and on ww.realityslip.com and www.baddtraxxalexx.com and they just blow me away.

i want to buy a book that will teach me photoshop 7 basics. i also want to read about practical applications because examples are important for learning. (I may even need 2 books who knows!)

I realise hard work and trial/error is a big part of learning but I need a solid book or 2 that will teach me the fundamentals along with real world examples.

I want to do stuff like design my own buttons and interfaces and works of digital art like the background at realityslip where many layers are blended. can anyone give me a kick start with some good recommendations because I am raring to go!

Ok, first off, I would always recommend the "Bible" series of books, they are fat (literally, not surfer slang) and contain detailed info about every aspect of a program.

I'd also recommend any books by Friends Of Ed, but they aren't normally as broadly ranged as the Bibles and are more expensive when you compare book size to book cost, but they are usually more advanced.

Also remember that books can only teach you so much, play around with everything, I can't stress this enough, if you just try every little feature in a kind of trial and error system, you will eventually have a very good grasp of a program.

I think the bible books are good for reference, but I wouldn't recommend them for someone trying to learn. They are just too overwhelming and technical. A smaller more basic book would probably be better. I don't know of any off-hand, because I didn't read any photoshop books to learn. I know Friends of Ed has really good books on just about all subjects though.

http://www.friendsofed.com/