Photography books

icassell · Sep 2, 2009

I'm not familiar with the other book.

HeY iTs ScOTtY · Sep 2, 2009

heck yeah books are freakin expensive, i rented a lot from the library bought 3. 2 of which are just picture books (they are awesome by the way "the photo book" isbn# 0714844888 and "street world: urban culture and art from five continents" isbn# 9780810994386. the one learning book i bought was a on sale book at barnes and noble and is "the ultimate field guide to photography" its not a bad book but not wonderful its isbn# is 9871426204463.

icassell · Sep 2, 2009

Another good argument for frequenting your library is that you should spend alot of time just looking at images. It's great looking at them online, but some of the big coffee-table books of noted photographers can give you a great education.

avilamillar · Sep 3, 2009

I'm not familiar with the other book.

Thats ok, thanks

heck yeah books are freakin expensive, i rented a lot from the library bought 3. 2 of which are just picture books (they are awesome by the way "the photo book" isbn# 0714844888 and "street world: urban culture and art from five continents" isbn# 9780810994386. the one learning book i bought was a on sale book at barnes and noble and is "the ultimate field guide to photography" its not a bad book but not wonderful its isbn# is 9871426204463.

Yeah the are expensive but i think they have very good information, and i feel i learn more by reading a book that in internet. thanks for the recommendations

Another good argument for frequenting your library is that you should spend alot of time just looking at images. It's great looking at them online, but some of the big coffee-table books of noted photographers can give you a great education.

I agree with you

pharmakon · Sep 3, 2009

Hi, I recently read a few of the books you are interested in. Understanding Photography by Bryan Peterson, and vols 1 and 2 of Kelby's The Digital Photography Book.

My favorite of the three was Understanding Photography. I think it was a great overall guide, covering exposure, composition, technique, basic principles of design/art, Lighting, equipment, and a bunch of other tips. There were also some exercises in the book to help you get up close and friendly hands on action with your camera and teach you to "see creatively."

I really liked the first of the Kelby series, it has lots of good tips, and is very to the point, skipping out technical details you probably learned online already or in your previous reading (if not you can always google things you don't quite understand). The second book was good too, but it had a large amount of studio and wedding content that really isn't of much interest to me (just a hobby, no aspirations of making this a business) but it was still educational and i'm sure most of the readers really appreciate those chapters. I like Kelby's style, and just started reading one of his cs4 books.

On another note I also read "The moment it clicks" (was recommended by kelby in the end of one of his books). It was a nice book, interesting stories, great photos, some pro tips, and insight into the life of a photojournalist, but not really a good book for learning the basics of photography. I still liked it though. (I think what actually "clicked" when I read this book was "holy geez this could get reeeeally expensive, reeeally fast!")

Hope this helps, best of luck to you!

Derrel · Sep 3, 2009

A lot of these new digital photography books are very recipe-oriented,and will become rather outdated as soon as new software or new equipment comes onto the scene.

Have you gone to your local library or a large bookstore on-line, like Amazon or Powell's dot com,and looked for the old Time-Life Library of Photography series of books?

That series of books builds understanding of the photograpy process across many different areas, and is not a mere "recipe" book or a cookbook on photography, but more like the experience of hundreds of photographers sharing decades' worth of experience. These are not one-man books passing on one man's narrow experience; these are books written by groups of people with vast experience at the top levels of photography.

icassell · Sep 3, 2009

Derrel said:
A lot of these new digital photography books are very recipe-oriented,and will become rather outdated as soon as new software or new equipment comes onto the scene.

Have you gone to your local library or a large bookstore on-line, like Amazon or Powell's dot com,and looked for the old Time-Life Library of Photography series of books?

That series of books builds understanding of the photograpy process across many different areas, and is not a mere "recipe" book or a cookbook on photography, but more like the experience of hundreds of photographers sharing decades' worth of experience. These are not one-man books passing on one man's narrow experience; these are books written by groups of people with vast experience at the top levels of photography.

I agree with the first comment .... alot of these books are very repetitive as well ..

As for the second ...

When I moved, my wife gave away my complete Time-Life set thinking that they were just 'old books' .... grrrrrrrr! That was a great series.

avilamillar · Sep 3, 2009

Hi, I recently read a few of the books you are interested in. Understanding Photography by Bryan Peterson, and vols 1 and 2 of Kelby's The Digital Photography Book.

My favorite of the three was Understanding Photography. I think it was a great overall guide, covering exposure, composition, technique, basic principles of design/art, Lighting, equipment, and a bunch of other tips. There were also some exercises in the book to help you get up close and friendly hands on action with your camera and teach you to "see creatively."

I really liked the first of the Kelby series, it has lots of good tips, and is very to the point, skipping out technical details you probably learned online already or in your previous reading (if not you can always google things you don't quite understand). The second book was good too, but it had a large amount of studio and wedding content that really isn't of much interest to me (just a hobby, no aspirations of making this a business) but it was still educational and i'm sure most of the readers really appreciate those chapters. I like Kelby's style, and just started reading one of his cs4 books.

On another note I also read "The moment it clicks" (was recommended by kelby in the end of one of his books). It was a nice book, interesting stories, great photos, some pro tips, and insight into the life of a photojournalist, but not really a good book for learning the basics of photography. I still liked it though. (I think what actually "clicked" when I read this book was "holy geez this could get reeeeally expensive, reeeally fast!")

Hope this helps, best of luck to you!

Thanks, i have only read bryan peterson books, and i want to read some by kelby, and how is the CS4 book? because i want to buy the lightroom one.

A lot of these new digital photography books are very recipe-oriented,and will become rather outdated as soon as new software or new equipment comes onto the scene.

Have you gone to your local library or a large bookstore on-line, like Amazon or Powell's dot com,and looked for the old Time-Life Library of Photography series of books?

That series of books builds understanding of the photograpy process across many different areas, and is not a mere "recipe" book or a cookbook on photography, but more like the experience of hundreds of photographers sharing decades' worth of experience. These are not one-man books passing on one man's narrow experience; these are books written by groups of people with vast experience at the top levels of photography.

I haven't looked for any, could you recommend me one? thanks

Derrel · Sep 3, 2009

Powell's Books - Life Library of Photography the Camera by Time Life Books

The Camera-$5.00 used. A great book that teaches you all about the many types of cameras.

Documentary photography (Life library of photography) b - eBay (item 330355207912 end time Sep-25-09 03:16:13 PDT)
DOcumentary photography, $4.50

LIFE LIBRARY OF PHOTOGRAPHY - 14 books - eBay (item 360185358902 end time Sep-08-09 16:48:49 PDT)
his eBay item is 14 of the Time Life Books for $39.95. Includes The Camera, The Studio, Photographing Nature, The Art of Photography, Frontiers of Photography, Photography As a Tool, The Print, Light and Film, Color, Caring For Photographs, Special Problems, Great Photographers,Photojournalism, and Great Themes. I have read each and every one o these books many times, except for Caring For Photographs.

I think my favorites would be Color, The Camera, The Studio, Special problems, and Light and Film. The Great Themes is also quite good, as is Photojournalism.

These books are often found in used book stores. If you read several of these books, you learn about the nuts and bolts and the underlying principles of photography,as well as a lot abut the historical developments in the field.

If I had to suggest only ONE book, it would be "The Camera". Reading it will give you an understanding of how the camera has evolved. How to use a camera. How lenses work. How lenses impact actual photography. And so,so much more. Again, these are not like modern "recipe book" books that try and tell you exactly how to do something; no, these books are learning tools, designed to immerse you in the subject and give you a universal grounding in how cameras and light actually work. These books are subject-specific, not merely chapter-specific.

avilamillar · Sep 3, 2009

Powell's Books - Life Library of Photography the Camera by Time Life Books

The Camera-$5.00 used. A great book that teaches you all about the many types of cameras.

Documentary photography (Life library of photography) b - eBay (item 330355207912 end time Sep-25-09 03:16:13 PDT)
DOcumentary photography, $4.50

LIFE LIBRARY OF PHOTOGRAPHY - 14 books - eBay (item 360185358902 end time Sep-08-09 16:48:49 PDT)
his eBay item is 14 of the Time Life Books for $39.95. Includes The Camera, The Studio, Photographing Nature, The Art of Photography, Frontiers of Photography, Photography As a Tool, The Print, Light and Film, Color, Caring For Photographs, Special Problems, Great Photographers,Photojournalism, and Great Themes. I have read each and every one o these books many times, except for Caring For Photographs.

I think my favorites would be Color, The Camera, The Studio, Special problems, and Light and Film. The Great Themes is also quite good, as is Photojournalism.

These books are often found in used book stores. If you read several of these books, you learn about the nuts and bolts and the underlying principles of photography,as well as a lot abut the historical developments in the field.

If I had to suggest only ONE book, it would be "The Camera". Reading it will give you an understanding of how the camera has evolved. How to use a camera. How lenses work. How lenses impact actual photography. And so,so much more. Again, these are not like modern "recipe book" books that try and tell you exactly how to do something; no, these books are learning tools, designed to immerse you in the subject and give you a universal grounding in how cameras and light actually work. These books are subject-specific, not merely chapter-specific.

I really appreciate your help

ill check them. thank you

pharmakon · Sep 6, 2009

... how is the CS4 book? because i want to buy the lightroom one.

So far I like it. Photoshop is such a powerful program that it's kind of intimidating, but this book really helps me learn the features that I will need to use. Like the other Kelby books I've read it's easy to follow and to the point. I don't have anything else to compare it to, but I would say it was worth buying.

mickdaniel · Sep 23, 2009

Scott Kelby's Digital Photography Book trio have the best tips and are the best-selling books for beginners. I have read vol 1 and 2 and really liked them both. Kellby has a very straightforward writing style. But if you're looking for an all-inclusive textbook-style book, Photography by Barbara London may be the best choice if you can afford the price. I also find bestphotographybooks.com to be a good resource on the most popular photography books at the moment.