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Digital photography books?

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mcgovery

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Hey all,

I'm new to the digital photography world and I'm looking for some advice. I'm in the research process of purchasing a camera (at this point it looks like it will likely be the 8080), and I was hoping some of you could recommend some reading for me.

This isn't your typical "I'm getting into photography, tell me what I need" post. I'm a fairly intelligent person who is self-taught in a number of other activities, and I'm just looking for some literature to help me get the most out of what I hope to be a lifelong hobby. What I'm having the most trouble with at the moment is keeping up with the jargon and technical terms. I have some experience with 35mm cameras, but beyond that I'm a complete newbie.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
I'm really enjoying it, but I'm only half way through. I am definately learning (and re-learning) a lot of stuff, which is great. I'm sure that I'm going to go back and read through it a few times, because some of this stuff takes a while to sink into my skull.

Another nice thing is that it is a magazine sized book with a lot of wonderful images in it, so it would also serve as a nice coffee table book.

I'll give you an update when I'm done!

Cheers,

Wayne
http://www.pbase.com/wayne_n
(Comments and critiques always welcome!)
 
Wayne N. said:
I'm really enjoying it, but I'm only half way through. I am
definately learning (and re-learning) a lot of stuff, which is
great. I'm sure that I'm going to go back and read through it a
few times, because some of this stuff takes a while to sink into my
skull.

Another nice thing is that it is a magazine sized book with a lot
of wonderful images in it, so it would also serve as a nice coffee
table book.

I'll give you an update when I'm done!
Click to expand...
...

It looks to me that Chapters will get some business over the weekend (from me).

Good reading,
Alex.
 
mcgovery said:
Hey all,

I'm new to the digital photography world and I'm looking for some
advice. I'm in the research process of purchasing a camera (at
this point it looks like it will likely be the 8080), and I was
hoping some of you could recommend some reading for me.
Click to expand...
The problem is that books date when describing current technology.

I would look at magazine articles. Keep looking at what is on offer at your news agent.

For any particular camera, its manual is the best guide. Ask to see the manual for any camera that looks 'right' to you.

Ask yourself, what are you going to use the camera for.

If it is only for holidays and birthdays, a recent 3 x zoom compact may offer more functions than you need.

What memory card type does it use? 'Compact Flash' seems to survive, but is generally found in pro-sumer cameras. Smart Media is disappearing from the shelves. XD and SD, to name but two, are recent, therefore still expensive.

Do you want 10 x zoom? Most of them have 3 or 4 Megapixel sensors, but Nikon has just announced the Coolpix 8800, which has 8 Mega pixels.

How big are you going to print? For 6 x 4 inch ink jet prints even a 1.2 Megapixel cheapie will do.

Do you need to publish? 4 Mega pixels is ok for half a magazine page, or if you do a photo-copied newsletter (I am). With less resolution, either the printer will complain (he is used to 300 dots per inch (DPI). Anything less will show the little squares that digital images are made of.

As to intelligence, it is usually taken to equate 'education'. If your education was not in technical matters, you have to take that into account. My house partner's education finished at 15, but she finds her way around a new piece of gear quicker than I do.

Hope I am not offending.

To sum up, go for the camera that feels right for you. It may work against you, because its designer had other priorities than you have. Spend some time with camera and manual, and note the things you are not familiar with, then look for a publication - magazine or book- that covers those points.

Your mileage may vary. - My stuff is at http://www.pbase.com/hfalkner

Henry

--
H. Falkner
 
http://www.dpreview.com/learn/?/Glossary/
mcgovery said:
Hey all,

I'm new to the digital photography world and I'm looking for some
advice. I'm in the research process of purchasing a camera (at
this point it looks like it will likely be the 8080), and I was
hoping some of you could recommend some reading for me.

This isn't your typical "I'm getting into photography, tell me what
I need" post. I'm a fairly intelligent person who is self-taught
in a number of other activities, and I'm just looking for some
literature to help me get the most out of what I hope to be a
lifelong hobby. What I'm having the most trouble with at the
moment is keeping up with the jargon and technical terms. I have
some experience with 35mm cameras, but beyond that I'm a complete
newbie.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
--
Cheers,

Wayne
http://www.pbase.com/wayne_n
(Comments and critiques always welcome!)
 
mcgovery said:
Hey all,

I'm new to the digital photography world and I'm looking for some
advice. I'm in the research process of purchasing a camera (at
this point it looks like it will likely be the 8080), and I was
hoping some of you could recommend some reading for me.

This isn't your typical "I'm getting into photography, tell me what
I need" post. I'm a fairly intelligent person who is self-taught
in a number of other activities, and I'm just looking for some
literature to help me get the most out of what I hope to be a
lifelong hobby. What I'm having the most trouble with at the
moment is keeping up with the jargon and technical terms. I have
some experience with 35mm cameras, but beyond that I'm a complete
newbie.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Regardless of anything else you need to answer that question first, then base the rest on that.

For me, I am approaching photography from an artistic perspective so really any image is game but what was important for me in selecting the 8080 was a large aperature (f2.4), it's wide + zoom lens, a decent amount of manual adjustability, and available options to build upon... especially the water proof housing (although I'll probably buy an EWA unit since I need it mostly for dust protection).

At this point, I've been focused (pun intended) on shooting scenery & macro's. If I wanted to shoot moving subjects I'd likely switch to a DSLR for faster response (shutter lag, lenses, & fast raw write speeds).

Based on that, I decided to get a good general/all around photography book for some basic knowledge and a book more specific to the type of shot's I wanted to take.

I wanted info on both the digital process as well as the film process.

For my general book I picked up one that talks about pretty much EVERYTHING!!! From lens design/engineering to using flash strobes for portraiture, etc. ( I don't remember the name of this book as it's at home & I can post it later if you want).

I also picked up a book more specific to the kinds of shot's I'm focused on right now. I selected a book from National Geographic. It has info on how they capture their images. They have chapters from various photographers who give their own tips on just about everything you could think of to be able to take the shots they do. They talk about getting recognized in publications, getting a job as a photographer, researching an area before shooting, going onsite and what to bring (besides your photo gear), then of course they also describe the gear, and then of course, how to capture the shots.

Another note on these books. By default most photography books have alot of pictures (unless it's a true "analytical" text book written by some phd) which is good for me because the book wouldn't have lasted one minute if it was most text.

HTH.
--
: Olympus C-8080WZ :
 
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1008&message=9766115 I like "the new manual of photography". Our local costco had them a while ago, I don't know if they still do.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1008&message=8890247 I posted a bunch of links that have helped me or been referred to by other forum users.

Check out your local library. Don't forget the 'friends of the library' bookstore, a friend just bought an old New York Institute of Photography course for a few dollars. Old but still very useful for basic photography technique. Also, don't forget to look at the kids books on photography. National Geo. has one and there are others that actually do a good job at covering the bases. If you are like me, it helps to learn the same info in many forms to get it to sink in. I've been reading some of the kids books with my daughter and we can both learn.

The National Geographic Photography field guide has been somewhat helpful but not nearly as much as the first book listed above.

If you get into post processing with Photoshop - the photoshop CS book for digital photographers by Scott Kelby is EXCELLENT.
Here is one example of what I learned from the book:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1008&message=9800655 Here is another post on it, I'm glad I learned about it from Terri. http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1008&message=9674939

Have fun. Photography is a great hobby and digital (after the initial purchase) makes is so easy to try many, many things and really practice to learn new skills without extra costs. Of course, you WILL want more things, like an external flash, more flash cards, etc. but they aren't essential.

--
Lucinda
8080 & Metz 54 MZ-3
http://lucinda.smugmug.com
 
Thanks, all bookmarked and printed!
Yes, I find I am starting to covet...I want PS soooo bad, but can't afford it :(

I definitely will get the Kelby book. Thanks for doing all this for me, i am truly grateful:)
Feeling very EMPOWERED...
jona
Lucinda said:
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1008&message=9766115 I like "the new manual of photography". Our local costco had them a while ago, I don't know if they still do.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1008&message=8890247 I posted a bunch of links that have helped me or been referred to by other forum users.

Check out your local library. Don't forget the 'friends of the
library' bookstore, a friend just bought an old New York Institute
of Photography course for a few dollars. Old but still very useful
for basic photography technique. Also, don't forget to look at the
kids books on photography. National Geo. has one and there are
others that actually do a good job at covering the bases. If you
are like me, it helps to learn the same info in many forms to get
it to sink in. I've been reading some of the kids books with my
daughter and we can both learn.

The National Geographic Photography field guide has been somewhat
helpful but not nearly as much as the first book listed above.

If you get into post processing with Photoshop - the photoshop CS
book for digital photographers by Scott Kelby is EXCELLENT.
Here is one example of what I learned from the book:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1008&message=9800655 Here is another post on it, I'm glad I learned about it from Terri. http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1008&message=9674939

Have fun. Photography is a great hobby and digital (after the
initial purchase) makes is so easy to try many, many things and
really practice to learn new skills without extra costs. Of course,
you WILL want more things, like an external flash, more flash
cards, etc. but they aren't essential.

--
Lucinda
8080 & Metz 54 MZ-3
http://lucinda.smugmug.com
Click to expand...
 
jonalisa said:
Yes, I find I am starting to covet...I want PS soooo bad, but can't
afford it :(
Click to expand...
For excellent prices on Photoshop (may still be too expensive) try enrolling for a class (any class) at a local community college and buying photoshop in their bookstore using your student discount.

If you really want to be "frugal" about this, drop the class after the 1st day.
--
: Olympus C-8080WZ :
 
I am fortunate enough to live in a somewhat sizeable city with a wonderful library system. I have a stack of books currently checked out related to photograghy and digital photography.

One that I really like is "Secrets of the Digital Darkroom" Relates mostly to Photoshop, but suited to other editing programs as well.

I have requested Kelby's book on Photoshop CS for the Digital Camera as well. Others here mentioned it is excellent, and apparently so, as all copies are checked out.

Tom Ang also has several books that I like. The Digital Photography Handbook is one, and another is Silver Pixels, if I remember the titles correctly.

I hope I got the titles all correctly, just trying to rememebr them without going upstairs. Lazy in my ol' age.

Pear
 
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