The Digital Photography Companion: Practical Photography Advice You Can Take Anywhere

by Derrick Story and O'Reilly & Associates

Book Overview

Are you ready to take photos that reflect your creative spirit, rather than just another set of snapshots? Then you want this book in your camera bag. Well-organized so you can look up topics quickly,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0596517661
• ISBN13: 9780596517663
• Release Date: April 2008
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media
• Length: 232 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.6" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

how to get the most out of your camera

Even simple point-and-shoot digital cameras offer manual control over parameters such as aperture, shutter speed, and ISO sensitivity that can turn snapshots into great photos. When you graduate to a Digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR) camera you have wasted your money unless you know how to make the best use of its sophisticated controls. This concise book does an excellent introductory job. The first 2 chapters describe and explain the many features of most cameras and how to use them. They made me aware of many controls that I didn't understand before. Chapter 3 is the most valuable part of the book. It shows how to take good pictures under a wide variety of conditions, such as portraits, group shots, kids, landscapes, sports events, museums were no flash is allowed, and architecture. It mentions many tricks of the trade to get better results, such as using sunglasses as a polarizing filter, extending the dynamic range (light-dark contrast), using pantyhose as a diffusion filter, and using your reflecting car windshield cover as a reflector to lighten shadows on a sunny day. Chapter 4 discusses what you can do after you took the pictures, such as emailing them, editing with various software applications, recovering photos from an erased memory card, and more. The final chapter briefly discusses printing options. A brief discussion of the optics of photo taking explaining how focal length and aperture affect width and depth of field would have been useful for better understanding. The Appendix has a quick reference guide for a variety of camera settings. You may want to make a copy of those pages and carry it around in your camera bag. I learned a lot from this small book and strongly recommend it as an introduction to better photography.

Digital Photography Companion

Digital cameras are great, but they won't do your thinking for you. To get beyond simple point-and-shoot, some knowledge is necessary. This new book by Derrick Story has just the right depth of information for the typical amateur. If you haven't yet bought a camera, the opening chapter has some good advice on camera selection. Among others features, face detection and image stabilization are mentioned as the hot new features to look for. The book can be read in two evenings. Mastering the techniques presented will take a good deal longer, as you gain experience with your camera. You get pointers on how to shoot portraits, landscapes, wedding pictures, architecture, panoramas, and even infrared images and video. There is a good overview of photo management software programs, including the widely-used Photoshop elements and Apple iPhoto. There are numerous tables throughout the book, which provide recommendations on camera settings, file formats, memory card capacities, and other useful information. The last chapter is devoted to printing and distributing your pictures by email or web, with recommendations on choosing a printer. The book contains five chapters in 220 pages, with an appendix and index. It is designed to be a handy reference, and is small enough to fit nicely into a camera bag.

Digital Photography Techniques Made Easy

This super book is an excellent introduction to the world of digital photography, and will appeal to readers who have had some experience with their digital camera and are ready to embark on more sophisticated uses of their hardware. The book is succinct in its approach and the author makes sure to not overload the reader with extensive, detailed material. Instead, the focus is on the most common, most likely questions asked by digital photographers, especially amateurs who use their digital camera as a hobby or for fun. This title also nicely serves as an introductory companion to Ken Milburn's Digital Photography: Expert Techniques, also available from O'Reilly.

Kudos from a beginner

I am a complete beginner at the art of photography and, regrettably, have been for some 20 years. No matter how many how-to books I read, I've never found one that I walk away from understanding the difference between an aperture and an f-stop. Until now. In his books and in his pod casts ([...]) Derrick eschews techno-jargon, choosing instead to use common language and meet his novice students and readers where they are. By choosing this approach he opens entire new worlds of possibility to neophytes like me. My favorite part of the book (for now) is Chapter 1, which gives a step-by-step guide to buying the right digital camera for your needs. It's great to make an informed purchase rather than opening the Target ad to the electronics page and choosing the camera that comes in the prettiest color. I also love the "Camera Features from A-Z" section (also in Chapter 1) because that's where Derrick demystifies all of those terms in your camera's owner's manual that give you a big fat headache. Later chapters include cool tips like how to craft a rain suit for your camera from a hotel shower cap and how to protect your camera from bad stuff like dust and condensation by using zip lock bags. Derrick doesn't stop at teaching folks how to take great photos either. He's with you and guides you through buying the best software program for your needs, getting your camera to talk to your computer and even choosing a special printer that makes it so that you can print your pix without a computer. The book itself is beautiful. Each section has accompanying color photos that effectively reinforce the written word. The size is nice and fits easily in a backpack or camera bag. Well done, Derrick!

SMILE!! YOU'RE DIGITIZED!!

Do you want to make your digital pictures look different? If you do, then this book is for you. Author Derrick Story, has done an outstanding job of writing a book that shows you the controls on your camera and ends by showing you how to produce beautiful prints that you can show to the rest of the world. Story, begins by showing you every nook and cranny on your camera. Then, the author shows you when to use fill flash; and, what slow synchro is good for. Next, he shows you more than a dozen important camera techniques: How to take great outdoor portraits; how you can shoot like a regular pro; and, how you take action shots with a consumer digital camera. The author also shows you how to master your computer the same way you tamed your camera. Finally, the author takes the mystery out of printing and how to get your work on paper. By the time you've experimented with the techniques contained in this most excellent book, you'll have journeyed well beyond your peers. But, more importantly, the pictures you take now, will not only become personal treasures, they will also be admired by others.