I enjoy walking/camping/backpacking, and I enjoy photography, so I thought it might be interesting to get some insight into how other people manage the balance of carrying photo gear with them, and not collapsing under the weight :-)

To that extent, this book is fine. There are some useful ideas about how to go out on a photo trip, what kinds of gear to carry, and so on. The problem is that half the book is taken up by a discussion of the author’s own “chroma-zone” way of working out exposure, which is somewhat dependent on getting hold of the proprietery cards needed for it. It also ignores the idea that the photographer chooses the exposure, rather than just selects the correct exposure.

Basically, I think this book is in need of a re-write. Camera technology has moved on, exposure meters are accurate now, and fewer people go walking with bright orange clothes.

This is a photographer’s book – and a very good one. I really strive for impact in my work, although I often find it hard to pin down what it is about a photo that gives it that impact, moreso for my own work. Here, a photographer whose work I greatly admire is setting out how he thinks about his work, and what he looks for for impact.

It’s another good inspirational book, with many strong images to mull on, and some examples of the ones that weren’t so good, to see how he has developed a scene whilst working on it. There’s some discussion of photographic technique, but only where it is relevent for the subject of the book, viz the impact of the image.

Excellent for photographers trying to learn how to make stronger photos, especially those with a fairly graphical style.

I love National Geographic magazine, both for the fascinating articles, and for the truly amazing photography. Lots of people grow up wanting to be National Geographic photographers :-)

This book is a collection of some of the best photos in NGM – mostly fairly recent work though. It gives a good flavor to the kinds of things that they shoot a lot, and is broken in to sections – Europe, Asia, Africa & the mid east, America, The Sea, and space.

Although all the images are stunning, there doesn’t feel like there’s much cohesion in the book as a whole – it’s a collection of individual pieces, whereas in The Art of Seeing, it all flows together somehow. Can’t quite put my finger on it.

Recommended, especially if you like NGM photography.

Another excellent book – this one is a very good read before you go off on “the holiday of a lifetime” – the author discusses photography in general, and all the basics, and then goes into some detail about a number of special types of scene that might come up – sunsets, towns, locals, sacred places and on and on.

I’ve actually got the older edition, the one linked here is the new one that discusses digital cameras, otherwise the text seemed very similar.

Lots and lots of inspirational photos in here as well – good ideas for your own work. Recommended for photographers who want some ideas before going on a Big Trip, or for new photographers who want to learn about photo fundamentals before going on a Big Trip.

This book is entirely about the lighting (the series is actually called pro-lighting), and it does that very well. It’s really an “ideas book” – there’s not so much discussion about the photographer’s decisions, but there are detailed notes about the light setup, and good full-page images.

Well worth a look if you’re interested in lighting techniques for studio work.

I’ve decided to write some reviews of the books that I’ve found helpful in developing my photographic technique, in no particular order. So here we go…

I really like this book. Shaw talks in some detail about the way he approaches an image, and the technical choices that he makes to get the image that he wants. His discussion of exposure is particularly good, with the clear explanation of there being no “correct” exposure, merely an artistic choice as the the exposure that you want.

There’s lots of discussion about the effect that different lenses will have on a photo, which was already familiar to me when I bought this book, but his discussion of the way that he’d choose to deply them was still of interest.

Highly recommended for photographers who would like to learn how to shoot nature (landscapes and “critters”).

Writing about: Testing out the anti-shake & digitqal zoom, 14/02/05, Steve’s blog

The discussion in the post I’ve referenced here made me start reflecting on how using a digital camera has affected my photography – the way I approach an image. The argument is that shooting digitally allows one to not worry about how much film one’s getting through, take more chances etc. This is true, but it comes at the risk that because you don’t need to think about film, you don’t think about the image, and that is dangerous.

I’m usually quite careful with images that I make – I’m not a fan of bashing out a load of film and hoping for the best. I do burn a lot of film, but every shot is considered – the thing that usually takes up quite a lot of film for me is bracketing (varying the exposure a little bit for a series of exposures, so you end up with at least one that you like) Bracketing is something that I simply don’t do when I’m shooting digitally because I can immediately assess the exposure of an image once I’ve taken it.

Using a digital cam there’s a temptation to just press on and shoot a lot because you can, rather than because the images that you’re shooting at have any potential merit in their own right. The images that I take that I end up liking have all been previsualised, and usually I’ve worked for some time to find the shot that I actually like. It doesn’t help to take the pic I don’t want really.

When I’m shooting candid “people photos”, I don’t think that it makes much difference whether I’m shooting film or digital – there’s still only one chance to take the shot that you’ve seen, the “decisive moment” and all that. When taking people photos, you’ve got to take a lot of chances to get anything that you like, and that hasn’t really changed with the addition of digital capture to my arsenal.

So, my notes to myself on what’s using digital I guess would be something like:

• Remember to think about the image. Just because you can shoot it doesn’t mean that you should.
• If you’re shooting something dynamic, don’t review shots as you go, otherwise you will miss the next shot while you’re looking at the last one.
• Be critical about exposure. It’s still possible to use exposure creatively with a sensor – think about what you’re doing. That’s what the spotmeter is for!

• Don’t be too harsh about deleting images on the fly. It would probably be better to leave all images until you’ve left a scene, to make a more sensible comparison. Unless of course there’s something horribly wrong with one.

  That’s my take on it, anyway.