Books & Mags Recs

[moschika]

So any recommendations on books on digital photography? Just trying to find some more info about all this, my new camera has been shipped, so seeing what I can read up on while i wait.

went to the bookstore today, and there was plenty making it hard to figure out what might be worth picking up. i have a gift card that's burning a hole in my pocket. :smilewinkgrin: wondering if those camera guides like magic lantern or similar are worth getting too. any thoughts?

also what mags, if any, are good nowadays.

[mjs1973]

There are TONS of books and mags to choose from and finding the right one can be a challenge. What types of photography are you interested in? I love nature/wildlife and just about anything outdoors so Outdoor Photography is my magazine of choice. Lots of good info and tips in there as well as the usual ads that seem to be taking over most magazines.

I have a bunch of books on photography, and to be honest, I haven't read some of them yet. I really like Scott Kelby's "The Digital Photography Book" both volume 1 & 2 are worth picking up. The are not very technical and keep things very simple and straight forward. Just about any book by Freeman Patterson is worth picking up. "Photography and the Art of Seeing" came highly recommended to me by a local pro. I have only read bits and pieces of it so far, but it looks to be a great read once I make the time to sit down and read it.

[dumpy]

From what I have seen the Magic Lantern Guides are a complete waste of paper and ink. Absolutely useless.
The one I have is essentially the owners manual combined with a very very limited explanation of basic photography (for example bigger aperture=more light and slower shutter speed) with a bit of a product catalog tossed in under the accessories chapter. Not much in the way of real information.

I have several photo books, all seem to have some bits and pieces of relevant information, one that I like as a whole is called "Perfect Digital Photography"http://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Digita...5089335&sr=8-3
Well written, lots of good tips and it covers a lot of subjects from lighting to Photoshop to compostition. I do find it to be a bit post processing heavy at times, but it's all very good info.

[moschika]

i'll check these out. i'm really looking at digital photo stuff mostly as that's a new area for me. i have several photo books, but was looking for stuff with a digital focus - something to explain limitations, histograms, etc., etc.

thanks for the heads up on the camera guides. i'm getting a new dslr and sometimes the manuals are a bit lacking or confusing and was wondering if these were better. i guess not.

[mjs1973]

Here is a great place to start as far as the histogram goes.

http://www.photographyreview.com/histogramguidecrx.aspx

[Anbesol]

histograms are easy - 1 through 255 in tonal range, 0 is totally white, its the solid line on the left, 256 is totally black and is the solid line on the right of the histogram. Keeping the exposure within the tonal range of 1 and 255 is key to getting a proper exposure. Some newer DSLRS will display not only the main histogram, but the histogram for each color channel i.e. red, green, and blue.

There is not much difference between film and digital as far as exposures go, so a book on film photography doubles as a book on digital. However, I don't think any book can do as much as the actual shooting and practice goes. If you want to read up on digital photography - read up on the printing and photoshop side of things - that I think would be a lot more practical and necessary than a book on the cameras.