Is it a surprise that the very first (and so far, only) book that I finished so far in 2008 is a digital photography book? Anyway, I thought I’d start sharing more about the books I read, so here’s a long overdue book review.
Title: The Digital Photography Book
Sub-title: The step-by-step secrets for how to make your photos look like the pros’!
Author: Scott Kelby
Pros:
- Plenty of good, practical tips for beginners.
- Inexpensive (got mine for free as a gift from Darren, but you can get this for around US$15. Less for second hand)
- Good photographic examples.
- Not a lot of jargon and not text heavy.
- Covers a few aspects of photography (Portraiture, Travel Photography, Sports Photography, etc.)
Cons:
- Too many lame attempts at humour.
- Doesn’t explain a lot of the basics that folks might want to learn about.
- Some samples are insufficient.
- Too many “expensive recommendations” (they may be ignored, of course ;-)).
Bottomline: Considering both the good and bad bits, The Digital Photography Book
Review: The book covered various topics in 11 chapters. I didn’t find the Sports Photography chapter and Printing chapter particularly useful. But, I loved some of the quick and simple tips that Scott Kelby shared in the book. It felt like talking to an annoying (but good) professional photographer. He has plenty of good tips, but some of the delivery rubbed me the wrong way. However, the best bits of the book enabled me to overlook some of the bad bits.
Anyway, if you want to get some simple, basic formulas for taking good photos without all the heavy lecture and jargon about F stops and such, then this book can be a very handy reference.
Oh, and if you’re interested, there’s already a Volume 2 to extend this book. I haven’t read that one yet, so I’m not sure what the second volume’s like. If you’ve read it, would love to read your thoughts on it.
[rating:3.5/5]
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Kari 02.23.08 at 2:30 pm
I may have to see if that book is at the local library. I am in need of some pointers!
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Shai Coggins reply on February 25th, 2008:
Kari: It is useful book to pick up. Some basic tips are really worth knowing. Let me know if you find it!
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M_Andamon 02.23.08 at 10:07 pm
Hi Shai. I agree with you about the useful tips and information Scott Kelby covered in these books aimed essentially for beginners. Albeit the “annoying attempts at being humourous”, I likewise recommend these books for beginners as they are not riddled with the ever-confusing technical jargon on photography. Volume 2 basically picks up where Volume 1 left off, so you might find it interesting as well. Though the sequel has only 9 chapters, it covers more interesting tips on using flash, shooting landscapes, weddings, travel (building on the similar chapters in Volume 1), new chapters on shooting portraits and macro, and same with Volume 1, it has a section on the photo recipes on getting “The Shot”. If like me, you are interested in the photo recipes section, you might be interested in this book , “Photos that Inspire” (2008), by Lynne Eodice (one of the books in the Photo Workshop series). Photos featured in this book would have the photographer’s comment, gear and technical data to help a beginner understand why the image works.
[Reply]
Shai Coggins reply on February 25th, 2008:
Wow. Thank you for your very useful addition to this review. Will have a look at Volume 2 a bit closer to see if it’s worth having too. And yes, those ‘recipes’ and basic tips are definitely worth reading. Thanks also for the recommendation. Will keep my eyes open for it.
Thanks again!
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