Books about Basic Techniques of Photography

The basic techniques contained in a strictly non-exhaustive list of books, which have become real cornerstones for anyone who wants to explore the world of digital photography. The list ranges from “multimedial” authors as Scott Kelby and Joe McNally, to other more institutional but equally enlightening authors as Michael Freeman and Bryan Peterson. For those who are really at the beginning and do not know where to start, I would recommend the following triptych: the first volume of Scott Kelby (“The Digital Photography Book, part 1“) for a simple and immediate approach to the first photographic experiences; then a classic like “The photographer’s Eye” by Michael Freeman; finally an extraordinary stimulus to grow your creativity and avoid the “snapshots”, thanks to “Learning to See Creatively” by Bryan Peterson. Below is a list of books not to be missed. For each book there is a short review, in addition to the link to Amazon’s store and to the digital versions on iTunes and Google Play, if available.

The Digital Photography Book, part 1 by Scott Kelby Digital photography explained with simplicity and practical examples from the great photographer and Photoshop guru Scott Kelby. It talks about the basics about exposure, then about the more advanced techniques, with a special focus on post-production as a fundamental part of the whole process of editing images. Little theory and much practice is the winning recipe of Kelby and it is with this book that many aspiring photographers have started to learn how to take the first photos with their DSLR camera.

The Digital Photography Book, part 2 by Scott Kelby Second volume of the successful series of books by Scott Kelby about Digital Photography: as in the first volume, the approach is very practical and little theoretical (like “if you want to achieve this effect, you need to do this and that. That’s it.”), but topics become less generic. All this is topped by the usual irony of Kelby, which furthermore makes the book very pleasant to read.

The Digital Photography Book, part 3 by Scott Kelby In the third volume of the series “The Digital Photography Book” there are 200 new “tricks” suggested by Kelby with his usual ironic and very practical style.

	The Digital Photography Book, part 4 by Scott Kelby The fourth volume of the work of Kelby, with the same approach as the previous volumes, proposes new techniques and shooting situations more and more professional, covering such topics as the studio photos and the lighting systems.

The Digital Photography Book, part 5 by Scott Kelby It is not only the fifth chapter of the successful series: the exact title is in fact “The Digital Photography Book: Photo Recipes”. The “photo-recipes” are in fact the way all 4 previous books ended. In this case however the entire book consists of photo-recipes: in each recipe Kelby offers a final image and then explains step by step, not only the “behind the scenes” of the shooting, going well beyond the simple EXIF data, but also throughout the post-production process that it was necessary to get the final result.

	The Photographer’s Eye by Michael Freeman A cult book for the approach to the world of photography, but also for already experienced photographers. With examples of truly extraordinary images, the book focuses primarily on composition techniques and the benefits of an effective positioning of the elements in the frame of a picture.

The Photographer’s Mind by Michael Freeman Although conceived as a sequel of “The Photographer’s Eye” (at least because of the structure of the title), this book has a nature far more theoretical and less practical. The main argument is the photographic composition and the way in which this influence decisively the communicative power of an image. An effective image is always born in the mind of the photographer, even before the actual shot.

The Photographer’s Vision by Michael Freeman In the “Photographer’s Vision” Freeman became deeply involved in the analysis and interpretation of the works of great masters such as Elliott Erwitt, Walker Evans, Richard Avedon and many others. This exercise of interpretation is very useful to learn important lessons. As you can imagine, the book is full of amazing images that have shaped the history of photography.

Capturing Light: The Heart of Photography by Michael Freeman The title says it all: the light is the essence, the most important part, the necessary condition of existence of photography. Learning to wait for the right light, to follow it, to “help” and finally to capture it. In this book Freeman teaches us to organize the photographs according to predictions on the behavior of light, in dealing with transient or constantly changing lights and change the light as needed through the right tools, on the field or in post-production.

The Moment It Clicks di Joe McNally Tutti i segreti di uno dei pi˘ famosi fotografi del mondo. Storicamente legato alla rivista americana Life, Joe McNally ha realizzato straordinari servizi fotografici per magazine come National Geographic, Time e Sports Illustrated. Molto celebre il suo lavoro “Faces of Ground Zero” con ritratti di oltre 200 persone fra vigili del fuoco, volontari e sopravvissuti legati alla tragedia dell’11 Settembre. In “The Moment It Clicks” McNally racconta la sua esperienza e i “trucchi” imparati durante la sua lunga carriera, corredando i racconti con esempi dei suoi pi˘ celebri lavori.

Learning To See Creatively by Bryan Peterson A truly enlightening book, which explains how to “go beyond the commonplaces” and make the photos more interesting and pleasant. Various examples of how it is often just a small change of perspective or composition to transform a banal image into an really creative and eye-catching image.

	Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson The basics of the exposure, explained with practical examples by Bryan Peterson. Recommended to start to get familiar with the 3 variables that determine the correct exposure (shutter speed, aperture and ISO).

Understanding Shutter Speed by Bryan Peterson Essential complement of “Understanding Exposure”, this book focuses on the shutter speed, explaining with concrete examples how to best use this variable, depending on the subject being photographed, both for “correct” exposures and for more “creative” shots.

Go back to the list of sources or explore other related pages:

– Books about Advanced Techniques of Photography

– Books about Post-Production Softwares

– Photo Books and Great Masters of Photography

– Links About Digital Photography

– Links About Microstock

– Web Sources for Microstockers

– Software for Microstockers

– Apps for Microstockers

– Apps for Digital Photography

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Marco Rubino

Expert in Marketing and Communication in a major company of the Italian FMCG market, traveler by vocation, passionate photographer, contributor at all major international microstock agencies, founder of Marcor$tock, a blog focused on Microstock Market and Digital Photography.

 

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