Digital Photography: Bibliography
This is a list of all the books that I
have consulted while writing this series on creating a
micro-revenue stream using digital stock photography and
existing already-owned equipment.
By the nature of the project, this list
is incomplete. As things progress, I’ll add new titles
and maybe comments to already-listed titles.
Digital Photography Bibliography:
Digital Photography
Handbook
by Mark I. Chambers
An introductory book, several years old.
by Mark I. Chambers
An introductory book, several years old.
Photographic Composition
by Tom Grill & Mark Scanlon
A decade and a half old, with no knowledge of digital photography. However, the ideas behind photographic composition haven’t changed.
by Tom Grill & Mark Scanlon
A decade and a half old, with no knowledge of digital photography. However, the ideas behind photographic composition haven’t changed.
Epson PhotoPC 850Z User’s Guide
Kodak EasyShare CS 7330 User’s Guide
Canon Digital Rebel XT (EOS 350D)
User’s Guide
Careers as a Professional
Photographer
(Research Number 47)
by Institute for Career Research
A short bare-bones introduction to photography as a career choice, aimed at high-school or college students but chock full of information, especially where to go for more information.
(Research Number 47)
by Institute for Career Research
A short bare-bones introduction to photography as a career choice, aimed at high-school or college students but chock full of information, especially where to go for more information.
Photoshop CS2 for Windows
& Macintosh
by Elaine Weinmann & Peter Lourekas
You can try bumbling around on your own, relying on the built-in Photoshop help facility. I did, for a while. Then I saw this, caved in, and got more help.
by Elaine Weinmann & Peter Lourekas
You can try bumbling around on your own, relying on the built-in Photoshop help facility. I did, for a while. Then I saw this, caved in, and got more help.
* Photography, Eighth
Edition
by Barbara London et al
A thorough introdution to photography, both digital and film, including history, technique and technical aspects that can’t be left to even the smartest of auto-focus auto-metering digital cameras. (That said, the smarts in the automatic settings of cameras these days allow even ignorant newbies like me to accidentally take some fabulous photographs.) See also Digital Photography by Michael Wright, below.
by Barbara London et al
A thorough introdution to photography, both digital and film, including history, technique and technical aspects that can’t be left to even the smartest of auto-focus auto-metering digital cameras. (That said, the smarts in the automatic settings of cameras these days allow even ignorant newbies like me to accidentally take some fabulous photographs.) See also Digital Photography by Michael Wright, below.
The Elements of Color
by Johannes Itten
edited by Faber Birren
A short intro to color theory — important if you’re doing more than pointing and shooting. Any sort of use of a photograph in a design, including post-processing effects in Photoshop, are much easier to understand and control if you know color theory.
by Johannes Itten
edited by Faber Birren
A short intro to color theory — important if you’re doing more than pointing and shooting. Any sort of use of a photograph in a design, including post-processing effects in Photoshop, are much easier to understand and control if you know color theory.
* Understanding Comics, The
Invisible Art
by Scott McCloud
Huh? Well, yeah: I poked my nose into this to broaden my understanding of how to use words and pictures together to convey meaning. That’s useful in design work generally, in website design specifically, and in deciding what to photograph for consideration as stock by designers of all stripes. This is a terrific book that uses comics to get its message across.
by Scott McCloud
Huh? Well, yeah: I poked my nose into this to broaden my understanding of how to use words and pictures together to convey meaning. That’s useful in design work generally, in website design specifically, and in deciding what to photograph for consideration as stock by designers of all stripes. This is a terrific book that uses comics to get its message across.
Photography Reborn:
Image-making in the Digital Era
by Jonathan Lipkin
I haven’t read all the way through this one yet, but it has already provided me with an idea of how to put my flatbed scanner to a new use. For me, that’s already praise-worthy.
by Jonathan Lipkin
I haven’t read all the way through this one yet, but it has already provided me with an idea of how to put my flatbed scanner to a new use. For me, that’s already praise-worthy.
6:30am
by Robert Wingarten
This book is the result of a controlled experiment. The photographer shot a set of (film) photographs across Santa Monica Bay towards the coastline near Los Angeles Internationl Airport from his patio at 6:30 am every morning for a year, using the same settings (except for exposure length, to compensate for changing light conditions). The chromatic range is extraordinary and expressive — but for someone looking to monetize digital photography by creating saleable stock while providing illustrations for other projects, rather beside the point beyond the minimal lessons on lighting and composition.
by Robert Wingarten
This book is the result of a controlled experiment. The photographer shot a set of (film) photographs across Santa Monica Bay towards the coastline near Los Angeles Internationl Airport from his patio at 6:30 am every morning for a year, using the same settings (except for exposure length, to compensate for changing light conditions). The chromatic range is extraordinary and expressive — but for someone looking to monetize digital photography by creating saleable stock while providing illustrations for other projects, rather beside the point beyond the minimal lessons on lighting and composition.
* eBay Photography The Smart
Way
by Joseph T. Sinclair & Stanley Livingston
The prose styling is often clunky, and the text could have benefited from being run through spellcheck, but this book delivers on its promise to tell you what you need to create “create great product pictures that will attract higher bids and sell your items faster.” If your particular goal in monetizing digital photography is product photography in support of an eBay business, this is your book. It may also be helpful for those (like me) interested in object stock photography, although the author emphasizes low-end digital cameras that are more than adequate for the low resolution of computer monitors. For object stock photography, you can scrape by with a 3 MP point-and-shoot such as what the authors recommend for eBay product photography, but you’ll sell more copies of your object stock photos at a higher resolution, especially if you include a cutting path.
by Joseph T. Sinclair & Stanley Livingston
The prose styling is often clunky, and the text could have benefited from being run through spellcheck, but this book delivers on its promise to tell you what you need to create “create great product pictures that will attract higher bids and sell your items faster.” If your particular goal in monetizing digital photography is product photography in support of an eBay business, this is your book. It may also be helpful for those (like me) interested in object stock photography, although the author emphasizes low-end digital cameras that are more than adequate for the low resolution of computer monitors. For object stock photography, you can scrape by with a 3 MP point-and-shoot such as what the authors recommend for eBay product photography, but you’ll sell more copies of your object stock photos at a higher resolution, especially if you include a cutting path.
* Digital Photography
by Michael Wright
Similar to Photography by Barbara London et al (above), this book ignores film photography and concentrates wholly on digital photography. There are lots and lots of photographs, and lots and lots of step-by-step descriptions of what to do and how to do it. If you’re not interested in the history of photography, or film photography, this book is the one for you despite some annoying typos that shouldn’t have survived the scrutiny of a copyeditor.
by Michael Wright
Similar to Photography by Barbara London et al (above), this book ignores film photography and concentrates wholly on digital photography. There are lots and lots of photographs, and lots and lots of step-by-step descriptions of what to do and how to do it. If you’re not interested in the history of photography, or film photography, this book is the one for you despite some annoying typos that shouldn’t have survived the scrutiny of a copyeditor.
* Canon EOS Digital Rebel
Digital Field Guide
by Charlotte K. Lowrie
I am not the first, now will I be the last, to praise this how-to book. The section on still-life photography gave me the solution to one problem; the section on white balance solved another problem. And that was only the first time I used it. I recommend the book for anyone who owns a Canon digital Rebel XT.
by Charlotte K. Lowrie
I am not the first, now will I be the last, to praise this how-to book. The section on still-life photography gave me the solution to one problem; the section on white balance solved another problem. And that was only the first time I used it. I recommend the book for anyone who owns a Canon digital Rebel XT.
Stock Photography:
Professional Techniques and Images
by Ulrike Welsch
This books showcases a lot of Ms. Welsh’s photographs, taken either on assignment as a photojournalist or on “photo safari” as a freelance stock photographer. Each photograph is reproduced in full-page format on a righthand page. Ms. Ulrike’s commentary is on the facing page. The commentary includes a description of the assignment, or the setting, or what makes the photograph interesting, intriguing or appealing — plus technical details such as equipment used and composition considerations.
Professional Techniques and Images
by Ulrike Welsch
This books showcases a lot of Ms. Welsh’s photographs, taken either on assignment as a photojournalist or on “photo safari” as a freelance stock photographer. Each photograph is reproduced in full-page format on a righthand page. Ms. Ulrike’s commentary is on the facing page. The commentary includes a description of the assignment, or the setting, or what makes the photograph interesting, intriguing or appealing — plus technical details such as equipment used and composition considerations.
* Learning to See Creatively:
Revised Edition
Design, Color & Composition in Photography
by Bryan Peterson
Much to my amusement, the photograph of caged birds on page 103 of this book appeared in a short article on composition (specifically, on using diagonals) in recent article in Popular Photography by the same author. I really enjoyed this book, and plan on reading it again — and again. Mr. Peterson’s cleanly composed photographs remind me of Tana Hoban’s children’s books, which Ms. Hoban illustrated with her own photographs. I am working to strengthen my own composition skills in a similar manner.
Design, Color & Composition in Photography
by Bryan Peterson
Much to my amusement, the photograph of caged birds on page 103 of this book appeared in a short article on composition (specifically, on using diagonals) in recent article in Popular Photography by the same author. I really enjoyed this book, and plan on reading it again — and again. Mr. Peterson’s cleanly composed photographs remind me of Tana Hoban’s children’s books, which Ms. Hoban illustrated with her own photographs. I am working to strengthen my own composition skills in a similar manner.
Photographic Composition:
Guidelines for Total Image Control Through
Effective Design
by Tom Grill & Mark Scanlon
This is a good book for technical niceties, but it doesn’t get me excited the way Mr. Peterson’s book does. Sort of the difference between following a pre-flight checklist on a commercial jetliner versus jumping on board a barnstorming biplane. I think both are valuable, but if you want a kick in the kaboodle to get you out the door and clicking, Mr. Peterson’s book is the right choice.
Guidelines for Total Image Control Through
Effective Design
by Tom Grill & Mark Scanlon
This is a good book for technical niceties, but it doesn’t get me excited the way Mr. Peterson’s book does. Sort of the difference between following a pre-flight checklist on a commercial jetliner versus jumping on board a barnstorming biplane. I think both are valuable, but if you want a kick in the kaboodle to get you out the door and clicking, Mr. Peterson’s book is the right choice.
Tao of Photography:
Unlock Your Creativity Using the Wisdom of the East
by Tom Ang
Thankfully, the author doesn’t impose too heavy a load of Eastern mysticism on the reader, relying on Tao mostly to emphasize working creatively with limitations rather than beating against them, and maintaining a serene equilibrium based solidly on a technical proficiency that should never turn into ugly dependence. There is another book of the same title (different subtitle) and similar intent by Philippe L. Gross and S.I. Shapiro that was published about a year after. Of the two books, I prefer Tom Ang’s.
Unlock Your Creativity Using the Wisdom of the East
by Tom Ang
Thankfully, the author doesn’t impose too heavy a load of Eastern mysticism on the reader, relying on Tao mostly to emphasize working creatively with limitations rather than beating against them, and maintaining a serene equilibrium based solidly on a technical proficiency that should never turn into ugly dependence. There is another book of the same title (different subtitle) and similar intent by Philippe L. Gross and S.I. Shapiro that was published about a year after. Of the two books, I prefer Tom Ang’s.
Composition in Portraiture
by Sidney Allen
Sadakichi Hartmann, an early 20th-Century poet, art critic and bon vivant, wrote this analysis of portrait composition under a pseudonym. The analysis is trenchant, but the production values are shoddy by current standards. Reproduction of artwork used as examples is all muddy black-and-white. Explanatory diagrams seem amateurish in execution while displaying important information. The edition that I read, a 1973 reprint reproduced from an existing library copy, may not reflect the production values of the original 1909 edition, unavailable to me.
by Sidney Allen
Sadakichi Hartmann, an early 20th-Century poet, art critic and bon vivant, wrote this analysis of portrait composition under a pseudonym. The analysis is trenchant, but the production values are shoddy by current standards. Reproduction of artwork used as examples is all muddy black-and-white. Explanatory diagrams seem amateurish in execution while displaying important information. The edition that I read, a 1973 reprint reproduced from an existing library copy, may not reflect the production values of the original 1909 edition, unavailable to me.
