photo essays

I am an amateur with experience in film and digital photography. I got interested in digital imaging because powerful tools are more affordable than their film counterparts. However hard I tried to take good photos, 99.9% of them came out bad When I bought a new digital camera I decided I was going to learn "how to take good pictures". So I headed down to the book store and spent another hour looking through their selection. Of about 30 books, I found two or three that covered differing aspects. One for using a digital camera, one for retouching techniques, one for photographic techniques. I have been frustrated by recent titles on digital photography. Half of the books out there are essentially dictionaries. The other half are "me too" books on Photoshop tips and tricks, rather than digital photography. The book includes both a solid theoretical background and lots of practical (how-to) information. It discusses in great details those techniques that are unique to digital photography, showing you how to get more from the tools you already know.

This book is amazing : it covers every aspect of digital photography, from camera choice to photographic techniques to sports photography and portraits. One thing I love are the "tips from the pros" sections.And its packed full of stunning full color photos.

This is the perfect book not just for digital photographers but all persons wanting to get more out of their camera. The writing is friendly and clear, the illustrations are outstanding, all in color. Some books are so good that, after reading them, you want to share the experience with others. That's exactly what happened with Mastering Digital Photography, and why I am posting this review.

This is a gorgeous book, full of inspiring color photos and great techniques. I like the approach, I like the content, and I like what I've learned from reading it. There are a ton of digital photography books out there, but this one is by far the best.

Many of the digital photography books I've seen either don't have enough about real photography (and emphasize the gadgetry instead) or seem as if they are ordinary photography books with "digital" inserted here and there. This one covers photography in depth, but also pays a great deal of attention to the special needs of digital cameras. For example, the author explains the problems we encounter with shutter lag when taking sports pictures, then clearly shows how to overcome those problems using a couple tricks he developed. That section is worth the price of the book alone! He also explains why digital cameras collect more image "noise" with long exposures or with higher ISO ratings, and uses his own fireworks pictures to show what can be done. There's a trick in there about taking a "blank" picture at a high ISO setting, and then using it as a "filter" to cancel out noise that I haven't seen anywhere else.

This is the first digital photography book I've seen that not only covers ways to use multiple lights with a digital camera to achieve professional-looking lighting effects, but includes all the lighting diagrams you need to position those lights for broad-lighting, short-lighting, glamour effects, and other setups. Why aren't other books this complete?

I think this book is suitable for beginners and intermediate photographers, because the techniques shown are professional in quality, yet still explained in an easy to grasp way. Even veteran photographers are likely to pick up a few tips. All in all, an excellent book that I recommend highly.

I purchased a Canon Digital Rebel and this book on the same day. I had only used a point-shoot type camera before, and wanted to upgrade my equipment and skills at the same time. Although the book does not deal with SLR cameras as such, its fundamental photographic approach applies to every type of picture taking. I learned a lot about photography and digital shooting from this book. I don't think professional photographers are out there buying books on how to take pictures. If they didn't already know how to use their cameras they couldn't call themselves professionals. This book is for the 99 percent of us who are just amateurs or business users of digital photography who want to improve their capabilities. The clear instructions and beautiful full color pictures show exactly how to do that. Thank you.