travel

I only just started reading this book about a month ago, and instead of reading it all the way through cover to cover, I've been dipping into it here and there at random. I've discovered that no matter where I start reading, Norton offers valuable advice that will be useful to relative neophytes such as myself as well as the more technically experienced photographer.

Soon I will read the book from cover to cover, after which I'll write another more comprehensive review. For now, I just wanted to echo the other reviewers' comments here and say this is an excellent book that is well worth the money, considering it's only about ... ... ... It's definitely the best of 3 or 4 books I've bought recently on the subject of outdoor photography.

Norton's Outdoor Photography: Techniques for the Advance Amateur and Professional sounded like just the book for me. I didn't want another how to. I know how to manipulate the camera and what happens when light hits film. That's for the beginning photographer. What I wanted was something that went beyond technique to the point where technique becomes discovery. What I wanted, to quote Norton, was "a more methodical, precise approach to capturing the essence of scene or subject.

Norton's first chapter got me really excited. He talked about making the technical choices that bring order out of chaos. For example, he suggested that this involved "the tough process of isolating and arranging the picture elements." That certainly sounded like he was on the right track.

But then the book went down hill. I got the usual discussion of light metering, the differences between lens lengths, the elements of composition - in short the usual set of instructions for just beyond beginning photographers. Oh, the instructions were accurate and beautifully illustrated. But they didn't tell me how one could take the elements of composition beyond a list of elements and into "art".

Now maybe I expected to much. After all, if creating art was easy enough to put into a 152 page book, Art Wolfe wouldn't have a job. But I blame Norton (or his publishers.) They put on the catchline "Techniques for the Advanced Amateur and Professional". And then they gave me the same stuff as many another photography book writer. For my money, I would take John Shaw over Norton any day. At least he makes no bones about what he's teaching.

In summary, as a manual for photographers who know how to properly expose film, this is as good a book as any. But for the advanced amateur and professional who wants help in creating art, look elsewhere.

The sub-title of the book says "Techniques for the Advanced Amateur and Professional." Hardly. This is simply one of many generalist photography books geared to beginners and "non-advanced" amateurs. Don't expect to find anything that isn't in dozens of similar books. The photos are average, and aren't helped by the lacklustre quality of the printing.