What Makes Great Photography


Book Description

Why are some photographs so much more effective and powerful than others? What Makes Great Photography showcases 80 outstanding photographs from the first daguerrotypes to today’s digital masterpieces and by photographers as diverse as Alfred Stieglitz, Diane Arbus, Ernst Haas and Don McCullin. Val Williams highlights the elements of each photograph that distinguishes it from its peers, such as composition, colour, texture and fidelity to subject, explaining just what it is that makes it so great. Her insightful text will open your eyes to the defining qualities of the key photographs of every period and genre, from portraiture to landscape and from photojournalism to the nude.




Good Pictures


Book Description

A picture-rich field guide to American photography, from daguerreotype to digital. We are all photographers now, with camera phones in hand and social media accounts at the ready. And we know which pictures we like. But what makes a "good picture"? And how could anyone think those old styles were actually good? Soft-focus yearbook photos from the '80s are now hopelessly—and happily—outdated, as are the low-angle portraits fashionable in the 1940s or the blank stares of the 1840s. From portraits to products, landscapes to food pics, Good Pictures proves that the history of photography is a history of changing styles. In a series of short, engaging essays, Kim Beil uncovers the origins of fifty photographic trends and investigates their original appeal, their decline, and sometimes their reuse by later generations of photographers. Drawing on a wealth of visual material, from vintage how-to manuals to magazine articles for working photographers, this full-color book illustrates the evolution of trends with hundreds of pictures made by amateurs, artists, and commercial photographers alike. Whether for selfies or sepia tones, the rules for good pictures are always shifting, reflecting new ways of thinking about ourselves and our place in the visual world.




John Shaw's Nature Photography Field Guide


Book Description

An updated bestseller, this book of extraordinarily beautiful photographs of nature contains state-of-the-art instruction on how any photographer can aim for equally impressive results every time a camera is focused on the great outdoors. Even highly skilled photographers are often baffled by the problems facing them when they work outdoors. But with this exceptional field guide in hand, every photographer—beginner, serious amateur, semi-pro, and pro—can conquer the problems encountered in the field. Using his own exceptional work as examples, the author discusses each type of nature subject and how to approach photographing it. Specific advice and information cover selection of equipment and lenses; how to compose a shot; how to get close ups; and other tips covering a range of techniques to enrich various types of nature photographs.




Chasing the Light


Book Description

Light. It's the most transformative tool at any photographer’s disposal. Whether the lens is turned to people, wildlife, or landscape, the creative use of light is often the difference between a snapshot and a powerful photograph. In Chasing the Light: Improving Your Photography with Available Light, renowned photographer, writer, and educator Ibarionex Perello shares his unique insights for partnering with natural light to create evocative digital images. He brings his palpable passion and personal approach rooted in decades of experience, and reveals his honed techniques for controlling focus, exposure, white balance, and sharpness to create beautiful and impactful photographs. In an industry so obsessed with gear, this book bridges the gap between the technical and the creative and returns to a personal, inspirational narrative about perceiving and photographing light. This book will enlighten photographers of all levels about • the elements of exposure, metering, and ISO • light’s impact on color and controlling color balance • combining brightness, contrast, saturation, sharpness, and pattern enhancing portraits with available lighting • direction and quality of sunlight and shooting in rural and urban landscapes • the power of light in black and white




The Great LIFE Photographers


Book Description

The Great LIFE Photographers is the most comprehensive anthology of LIFE photography ever published, featuring the best work of every staff photographer who worked for the famous magazine, and that of a handful of others who shot for LIFE. It was always the photographers who made LIFE great, and this is the most vivid and exciting portrait of those men and women that has ever been produced. The book offers more than 100 portfolios including those of Alfred Eisenstaedt, Margaret Bourke-White, Carl Mydans, Gordon Parks, W. Eugene Smith, Robert Capa, Ralph Morse, Nina Leen, Harry Benson, Philippe Halsman, and Joe McNally, whose work for LIFE in the aftermath of September 11 was in the finest tradition of the magazine. Each portfolio includes a short biography, offering an intimate look at the people behind the lens. Here are the defining moments of the 20th century, including MacArthur wading ashore by Mydans, Capa's D-Day landing at Omaha Beach and, of course, Eisenstaedt's sailor kissing the nurse. Here are the first pictures taken from inside the womb and the first taken from outer space. Here are powerful scenes from Tiananmen Square and from the American South during the Civil Rights movement. LIFE helped make icons of Sophia Loren and Marilyn Monroe, the Beatles and Michael Jackson, and those indelible photographs are here too. This attractive new paperback edition is an affordable way to own some of the most memorable photographs ever made, stunningly reproduced in black and white and full color.




The Life of a Photograph


Book Description

The renowned National Geographic photographer and educator presents a host of his acclaimed photographs, organized by theme, accompanied by personal anecdotes, explanations, and behind-the-scenes stories of each picture.




The Digital Photography Book


Book Description

Learn how to take professional-quality photographs using the same tricks today’s top photographers use (surprisingly, it’s easier than you’d think)!

This is a completely, totally updated version of the #1 best-selling digital photography book of all time! It’s the award winning, worldwide smash hit, written by Scott Kelby, that’s been translated into dozens of different languages.

Here’s how Scott describes this book’s brilliant premise: “If you and I were out on a shoot, and you asked me, ‘Hey, how do I get this flower to be in focus, with the background out of focus?,’ I wouldn’t stand there and give you a photography lecture. In real life, I’d just say, ‘Put on your zoom lens, set your f-stop to f/2.8, focus on the flower, and fire away.’ That’s what this book is all about: you and I out shooting where I answer questions, give you advice, and share the secrets I’ve learned just like I would with a friend—without all the technical explanations and techie photo speak.”

This isn’t a book of theory—full of confusing jargon and detailed concepts. This is a book on which button to push, which setting to use, and when to use it. With over 200 of the most closely guarded photographic “tricks of the trade,” this book gets you shooting dramatically better-looking, sharper, more colorful, more professional-looking photos every time.

Each page covers a single concept that makes your photography better. Every time you turn the page, you’ll learn another pro setting, tool, or trick to transform your work from snapshots into gallery prints. If you’re tired of taking shots that look “okay,” and if you’re tired of looking in photography magazines and thinking, “Why don’t my shots look like that?” then this is the book for you.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Pro Tips for Getting Sharp Photos
Chapter 2: The Scoop on Lenses
Chapter 3: Shooting Landscapes Like a Pro
Chapter 4: Shooting Travel Like a Pro
Chapter 5: Making Portraits Like a Pro
Chapter 6: Making Portraits with Flash Like a Pro
Chapter 7: Shooting Weddings Like a Pro
Chapter 8: Shooting Sports Like a Pro
Chapter 9: Shooting Other Stuff Like a Pro
Chapter 10: Pro Tips for Getting Better Photos
Chapter 11: How to Print Like a Pro
Chapter 12: Photo Recipes to Help You Get the Shot




Within the Frame


Book Description

Within the Frame is a book about finding and expressing your photographic vision, specifically where people, places, and cultures are concerned. A personal book full of real-world wisdom and incredible images, author David duChemin (of pixelatedimage.com) shows you both the how and the why of finding, chasing, and expressing your vision with a camera to your eye. Vision leads to passion, and passion is a cornerstone of great photography. With it, photographs draw the eye in and create an emotional experience. Without it, a photograph is often not worth—and can’t capture—a viewer’s attention. Both instructional and inspirational, Within the Frame helps you on your photographic journey to make better images of the places and people you love, whether they are around the world or in your own backyard. duChemin covers how to tell stories, and the technology and tools we have at our disposal in order to tell those narratives. Most importantly, he stresses the crucial theme of vision when it comes to photographing people, places, and cultures—and he helps you cultivate and find your own vision, and then fit it within the frame.




The Travel Photography Book


Book Description

Learn how to take professional-quality photographs when you travel, using the same tricks today’s top photographers use!

If you’ve ever dreamed of making such incredible travel photos that when your friends and family see them they say, “Wait a minute, this is your photo!? You took this?” then you’re holding the right book.

Scott Kelby, award-winning travel photographer and author of the best-selling digital photography book in history, shares all his secrets and time-tested techniques as he discusses everything from his go-to essential travel gear, to camera settings, to how to research before your trip, to the travel photography techniques that will help you capture truly captivating images on your trip.

Among many other topics, you’ll learn:

    • What makes a great travel photo (including what to shoot and what to skip).
    • Which lenses and accessories will get you the best results (including when to use them and why).
    • How to post-process your images in Lightroom or Photoshop to get incredible results.
    • Tips for getting great portraits of the locals and even how to get them to pose for your shots.
    • When it makes more sense to use your cell phone’s camera instead.
    • Travel photo recipes that show you the ingredients for creating specific types of travel shots.
    • How to compose your travel images, how to keep your gear safe when traveling, and a ton of killer tips to help you create better travel images, and make your entire trip that much more fun.

It’s all here—Scott doesn’t hold anything back in this groundbreaking book that will help you take the type of travel images you’ve always dreamed of. There’s never been a travel photography book like it!




The Decisive Moment


Book Description

One of the most famous books in the history of photography, this volume assembles Cartier-Bresson's best work from his early years.




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