Photography book recommendations please!

[MrsLittle]

I've spent many hours reading articles and watching You Tube videos, now I want something that I can go to bed with at night and am hoping yawl can help me with a perfect photography book to learn even more. What's one book every photog should have? Also, what's the best book of portrait/family poses?

I would also like to know what watermark software is best to use. Thanks.

 

[MLeeK]

Books... Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. The Moment it Clicks by joe mcnally. Photography (I think we are on 10th edition) by London Upton and Stone.
Software photoshop cs5 would be the ideal. Photoshop Elements 10 is Damn good for under $100.

 

[KmH]

Uh, what part of photography (technical or artistic), and what kind of photography?

Mastering Photographic Composition, Creativity, and Personal Style

The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos

The Photographer's Mind: Creative Thinking for Better Digital Photos

The Complete Guide to Digital Photography, 5th Edition (A Lark Photography Book)

Light Science and Magic, Fourth Edition: An Introduction to Photographic Lighting

The Hot Shoe Diaries: Big Light from Small Flashes

Minimalist Lighting: Professional Techniques for Location Photography

Professional Portrait Retouching Techniques for Photographers Using Photoshop (Voices That Matter)

 

[MTVision]

Books... Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. The Moment it Clicks by joe mcnally. Photography (I think we are on 10th edition) by London Upton and Stone.
Software photoshop cs5 would be the ideal. Photoshop Elements 10 is Damn good for under $100.

WHAT!

Did you just recommended Understanding Exposure as a good beginners book?

You must be on Petersons payroll or you're trying to drive your number of posts up!

------------------------------------------------

I'm kidding. I agree with all of MLeeks' suggestions! Understanding exposure is a great book. Elements 9 an 10 are both really good!

 

[MrsLittle]

I would say a little bit of both with an emphasis on artistic. I have an idea of how I want to photograph people, but having examples handy while on a shoot would be nice too. I will be getting Elements 10 and I would love to own at least one Joe Mcnally book. Thanks for the recommendations, I will check them out.

 

[MrsLittle]

Which addition of Understanding Exposure are you referring to? I could use a little boost in that department.

 

[Tee]

If you're looking for some "fall asleep" reading without requiring too much mathematical brain power, I like the Joe McNally books that are listed above.

 

[KmH]

The most recent one.

 

[JAC526]

The "Art of Photography" by Bruce Barnbaum. Very in-depth. I'm not through it yet but so far it has been thought-provoking.

I swear I just posted this in a different thread. I guess I'm just spamming to up my poast count.

 

[MLeeK]

Which addition of Understanding Exposure are you referring to? I could use a little boost in that department.

Whatever the current is. I think it was JUST revised again not very long ago.

Yep, boosting those posts up!!! I have to get where my number of posts reflect my knowledge...

 

[Kerbouchard]

I really enjoyed Rick Sammon's Digital Photography Secrets He has an infectious enthusiasm for photography...really a must read.

On a more technical note, Light Science and Magic was amazing.

Digital Photography Masterclass by Tom Ang isn't exactly a curl up and read kind of book, but if you want more of a classroom type of introduction, complete with assignments and critique, it's a great resource.

 

[KmH]

I would also like to know what watermark software is best to use. Thanks.

Any raster graphics editor. There is no one best application. Watermarking is sa pretty basic task.

GIMP, Photoscape, and Paint.net are freeware. There is Corels Paint Shop Pro, or Adobe's Elements, Lightroom or CS5. Lightroom is a database manager and a parametric Raw converter, not a raster graphics application, but you can use it to watermark photos.