Photo Book
Reviews
Alphabetized by Title
| A-Ad | Ad-An | Ar-Au | B | C-
| A-Ad |
Ad-An | Ar-Au |
B | C- Co |
Co-Cr | D-Di
| Di- Dy | E
| F | G |
H-Hi |
| Hi-Ho | I-J
| K-L | L(2) M |
N | O |
P-Ph | Ph
| Ph(2) |
Ph(3) | Ph(4)- Pr |
Q-R |
|S-Sp | Sp-Su
| T | UV |
W | XYZ |
Apogee Photo Home Page
All Reviews are by Paul W Faust unless otherwise noted as Michael Fulks (MF)
and Elizabeth Powis (EP).
To purchase any book or to find out pricing information, click
on any of the book images.
 |
The Confused Photographer’s Guide to On
Camera Spotmetering
by Bahman Farzad
Last month I reviewed another Farzad book about the zone system, and
this new book is what you might call the master course for advanced
metering. Spot metering has always been the tool used to get a more
exact exposure reading, and this new guidebook will teach you
everything you need to know to do it right, and in an easy to
understand way. It is richly illustrated in every section including
all of the charts you will need. You will be wishing that it came in
a pocket size to take with you everywhere you go. It is another of
those books that will pay for itself the first time you use it, and
think of all of the much better images you will also end up with
when they are better exposed.
This soft cover book is about 9x11 inches, with 192 pages, retails
for US$19.95 – and can be ordered at
www.simplifiedzonesystem.com
I Rate it: A
(Reviewed Oct., 2006)
|
 |
The Concise Focal Encyclopedia of Photography
Michael R. Peres, Editor-in-Chief
Last year, the Focal Press published the fourth
edition of The Focal Encyclopedia of Photography. This is the
concise version of that book, although it offers a huge amount
of information on the topic of photography. (See
our review.) Both books look at
photography as an image making field and discuss the variety of
theories and applications within this complex topic. This
representation of the 4th edition includes three parts:
History and Evolution of Photography, Major Themes and
Photographers of the 20th Century, and Contemporary
Issues. The purpose of this shorter version is to offer a
smaller book to those who don’t want or need the entire
encyclopedia. - Paperback: 320 pages
- Publisher:
Focal Press
(www.focalpress.com)
(September 28, 2007)
- ISBN-10: 024080998X
- Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6
x 0.8 inches
-
Retail Price:
US$29.95
I rate this book A+++
(EP)
(Reviewed October 2007)
|
 |
The Confused Photographer’s
Guide to Photographic Exposure and the Simplified Zone System
by Bahman Farzad
Using the zone system for getting the best exposures has always been
like understanding a foreign language for many photographers, but
many will try it if they can find an easy way to learn, and that way
is here in this new book. The simplified zone system here is fully
explained, with more than just one illustration and caption for
each lesson, so there will be little reason why anyone could not
understand it. The author is a photography teacher at the University
of Alabama, and his students work with this system everyday, so here
is an easy-to-learn, college level technique for everyone else as
well.
This soft cover book is about 9x11 inches, with 290 pages,
retails for US$29.95 – and can be ordered at:
www.simplifiedzonesystem.com
I Rate it: A
(Reviewed Sept. 2006) |
 |
The Crafter’s Complete Guide to Collage,
by Amanda Pearce
The Crafter’s Complete Guide to Collage is a new book
that will give you step-by-step instructions on how you can use your
images for all new creative projects. It has 16 projects for
imaginative artwork that you probably never thought you could do.
Some are not for photography, but other family members could learn
and use them for something they would like to make, or start up a
whole family project that everyone can work on. This 9x11 inch
hardback book has 144 pages, and retails for US$24.95. It is
published by and can be ordered from
www.watsonguptill.com
I rate it: A
(Reviewed July 2005) |
 |
Create Your Own Photo Blog
by Catherine Jamieson
First came information web sites, and then business web sites, and
on to personal sites, many of which were designed to showcase
photographer’s images they had for sale. Many of those were created
as photo portfolios to promote their work. Now the new kid on the
block is “blogs” which can also be used for photographers to present
their works. Even if you already have your own web site, but would
like to add to it with a sister blog site, this new book will show
you how to do just that. This award winning blog author gives you
all of the tools to create your own pro site in this easy to follow
guide that takes you from design to promoting the finished site.
This soft cover book is about 7x9 inches, with 301 pages, retails
for US$24.99 - and is published by Sybex, an imprint of Wiley at www.sybex.com
I Rate it: A
(Reviewed Aug. 2006)
|
Click on the above image to find out current pricing
or to purchase this book from Amazon.com
|
Creating a Newsletter in InDesign,
by Katrin Straub & Torsten Buck
Creating a Newsletter in InDesign
is a new release that is a quick, visual way to learn how to design
and create your own newsletter for business or just for fun. With
six chapters and 121 pages, this soft cover book retails for only
$12.99 from
www.peachpit.com I have seen a lot of how-to books and have
not seen any that is this easy to learn from, and at such a low
price. I Rate it: A+
(Reviewed Dec. 2004) |
 |
Creating Photomontages with Photoshop, A
Designer’s Notebook, translated by William Rodarmor
This one is a collection of photomontages
created by eight leading French artists. Each piece of work is fully
illustrated and shown step-by-step how it was done. That includes
which Photoshop tool was used and its settings. This 8.5x9.5 soft
cover book is a great reference for anyone wishing to do this kind
of photo imaging work. There are eight lessons on 96 pages, and it
is published by O’Reilly Media, retails for US$24.95 and can be
ordered at
www.oreilly.com
I rate it: A+
(Reviewed July 2005)
|
 |
The Creative Digital Darkroom
by Katrin Eismann and Seán Duggan
Every
photographer, no matter the equipment, who wants quality images can
benefit from darkroom skills. In this book, the authors explain the
classic techniques of photography using Adobe Photoshop and
Photoshop Lightroom. Many photography techniques and concepts are
explained in detail and how they can be applied to perfect fine art
photography. There are many fine images created by the photographers
that not only show examples of digital creativity, but help explain
the topic or concept. There are a lot of step-by-step instructions
and images to show the reader exactly how to use Photoshop to create
the desired end results. Most of the techniques are post-processing
guides to enhance, fix, or organize digital photographs. This book
is ideal for the fine art photographer wanting to enhance their
photographs to the next level of creativity.
Paperback: 429 pages
Publisher:
O'Reilly Media,
Inc.; 1 edition (January 11, 2008)
ISBN-10: 0596100477
Product Dimensions: 9.8 x
7.9 x 1.1 inches
RATING
Text:
A
Layout:
A
Photography: A+
User:
Intermediate to Advanced Photographers
(Reviewed by EP March 2008)
|
Click on the above image to find out current pricing
or to purchase this book from Amazon.com |
Creative Digital Photography,
by George Schaub
Creative Digital Photography is a
new AMPHOTO book that both beginners and advanced digital
photographers will learn from. This book is not just about the
standard kind of images you take everyday, but how to use your
camera, image files, and other tools to create images that are
beyond “normal.” This is a soft cover book with 160 pages, and
retails for $24.95 from
www.watsonguptill.com. It is richly illustrated with both
photo examples, and camera and software settings that were used. It
will also give you a lot of ideas for new images to create.
I Rate it: A++
(Reviewed Dec. 2004)
|
Click on the above image to find out current pricing or to
purchase this book from Amazon.com |
Creative
Digital Photography,
by Michael Busselle
Creative
Digital Photography is one of several,
more than interesting, recent books from AMPHOTO Books. This 160 page,
soft-cover book is full of very nice illustrations and great ideas for your
creative side. No matter if you are making new images, fixing existing ones, or
combining others together, this book tells you how the author created the ones
he presents in it so that you can do the same with yours. The quality of each of
them will show you that he certainly knows what he’s doing, and soon you will
too. Retails at $29.95
(Reviewed Feb. 2004)
|
 |
Creative Landscape Photography,
by Neall Benvie
Creative Landscape Photography is a new AMPHOTO Book for the
creative minded photographer. Like many recent AMPHOTO books, this
one contains many images from the English countryside, and other
areas around Europe. I like that because it is a refreshing change
from all of the American images I see most often in these kinds of
books. The photos are also of the above average quality that has
become a standard with AMPHOTO. Although most of what this book
covers is landscapes, there are also many other image subjects that
some may not consider true landscapes, such as clouds and rocks.
That doesn’t bother me a bit considering how good all of the 200
images on the 160 pages of this book are. This is not a technical
book, although there is a great deal of information in it, and every
image has nice captions with each, and a lot of personal info on how
they were made. At 9.5x10 inches, it retails for US$29.95.
Available from
www.watsonguptill.com
I Rate it: A++
(Reviewed Jan. 2005)
|
 |
Creative
Photoshop: Digital Illustration and Art Techniques
By Derek Lea
This book is for those who
already have a familiarity with Photoshop and are ready to use it as
a creative tool to manipulate their images. It is organized by
different styles desired, such as graffiti art, antiquing, retro
style, surrealism and more. Each chapter starts out with a very
specific image and then the steps are thoroughly described and
illustrated as to how to create the specific effect. The difficult
part would be to take the demo and apply it to your own photograph,
which is why a background in the program would be helpful. The
layout of the pages is very organized and easy to understand; images
of specific program windows are next to an example of the image at
that particular step. You can flip to a random page in the book and
immediately get a feel for the specific technique being explained.
This book is designed for the Photoshop user needing a manual for
using Photoshop as a tool to create unique digital images.
Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Focal Press;
Pap/Cdr edition (July 23, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0240520467
Retail Price: US$39.95
I rate this book A++++
(EP)
(Reviewed Sept. 2007) |
Click on the above image to find out current pricing
or to purchase this book from Amazon.com |
Creative Nature & Outdoor Photography,
by Brenda Tharp
Creative Nature & Outdoor Photography
is another AMPHOTO book for learning how to do serious nature
photography. As with all AMPHOTO books, this one is top quality in
material and in the photos used to illustrate that material. It’s
eleven chapters on 160 pages and is crammed full of the best pro
techniques you will find anywhere, and the images you will want to
take out and frame for your walls at home. I have several of
Brenda’s books, and will be keeping them long after many of my other
books are long gone. Her books go beyond the standard how-to
information, and includes the feeling of how to add your
interpretation to what is in front of you. It retails for $24.95-US
and you can check it out at www.watsonguptill.com
I Rate it: A++
(Reviewed Dec. 2004)
|
Click on the above image to find out current pricing
or to purchase this book from Amazon.com |
Creative Photo Printmaking
by Teresa AireyI have read, used, and
reviewed several of Airey’s books and found every one of them to be
the best you will find. Well written, richly illustrated, and pages
full of top quality images of every kind of photo technique covered
are contained in each book. This particular book covers manipulated
images, infrared, toning, liquid emulsions, and transfers, to name a
few. One of the best things found in her books is a section on
troubleshooting. This is something you usually only find in tech
manuals for software programs and is a chapter I hope other authors
will take note of and start putting in their books. This book covers
everything you will need to do the processes covered, and the info
on how to do them. Her books are always a welcome addition to my
photo library. With 160 pages, 241 color and B&W photos, and
retailing for just $29.95-US, this 9 x 11 inch soft cover book is
worth twice the price. Published by AMPHOTO. It and others can be
checked out at
www.watsonguptill.com
I rate it: A+++
(Reviewed Nov.
2004) |
 |
Creative Photoshop Lighting
Techniques
by Barry Huggins
This new revised edition is updated for Photoshop CS2 and is one of
the best, and most complete, how-to books I have seen on dealing
with whatever lighting problems you may have in an image. Every step includes the tools
used and their settings, with before and after images to show you
what happens with each image. I can’t think of a single situation
that is not covered in this book, and then some. It not only shows
you how to remove unwanted reflections from some object in an image,
but also how to add a reflection to another object, such as in
sunglasses. Add a drop shadow near a subject that is flat looking,
or how about taking a daylight street scene and turning it into
night shot and then adding the glow from a street light. Those are just a
few of the lighting effects you can learn, and this is one book that
is not going on my bookshelf. It will be right next to my
workstation where I can get at it in seconds.
This soft cover book is about 9x10 inches, with 192 pages, retails
for US$29.95 – and is published by Lark Books and distributed by
Sterling Books at
www.sterlingpub.com
I Rate it: A+++
(Reviewed Dec. 2006) |
Click on the above image to find out current pricing
or to purchase this book from Amazon.com |
Creative Thinking in
PhotoShop
by Sharon Steuer
This one is a different kind of PhotoShop book than
all of the others you see reviewed here. Most of the work in it
starts out as photographs, but end up in a painted form, so this
book will be of special interest to photographers who are also
painters. There is a lot of work with layers, and some special
effects, and a lot of the techniques shown will make for some great
pieces of work. Any photographer who uses their images for other
types of creative projects will find a lot to use in this new
release. At 8 x 10 inches, with 224 soft cover pages, it is fully
illustrated with both photos, and the software settings used to
create the finished work, and retails for $45.00-US. Published by
New Riders, it and others can be checked out at
www.peachpit.com
I rate it: A
(Reviewed Nov. 2004) |
|
|
|
Apogee Photo Home Page
|
Advertise with us
|
