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.
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Maggie Taylor’s Landscape of Dreams
By Amy Standen
Those photographers who also use their work to create collage &
montage images will really like this new Photoshop Master Class
book. The cover image is merely a prelude to the photo
manipulated works inside. They are extraordinary, when you
find out that everything in those finished images are a combination
of photos and scanned items put together to come up with these dream
like effects. This is not a how-to, Photoshop step-by-step,
instruction book, but there is one section which includes a group of
images that shows each with their progression from beginning
to end. The other sections of this book have detailed text on the
artist and her work, as well as informative pages on the work of
some other artist. This book will be a great addition for
those with this same kind of "dream like, visionary mind".
This soft cover book is about 9x9 inches, with 163 pages, retails
for US-$40.00 – and is distributed by Peach Pit Press at:
www.peachpit.com
I Rate it: A
(Reviewed December 2007)
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The Magic of Digital Nature Photography
by Rob Sheppard
Here is a new book for those who now use digital, or are about to
use digital cameras to shoot nature images. Digital is a lot
different from film in many ways, and if you have any questions
about what you need to know to make good/great digital nature
images, this new book has the answers. It not only covers the how-to
of shooting nature images from the authors experience, but included
throughout the book are sections by other well known nature
photographers, such as Jack Dykinga and George Lepp, to add to your
knowledge. This great digital nature book would be worth it at twice
the price.
This soft cover book is about 9x11 inches, with 207 pages,
retails for US$19.95 – and is published by Lark Books and
distributed by:
www.sterlingpub.com
I
Rate it: A+
(Reviewed Feb. 2007) |
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The Magic of
Digital Printing
by Derek Doeffinger
Once you know how to create those great images, be it on film or
digitally, you need to know what to do with them, and here is a new
book for the printing end of the job. Even a great image is useless
if the print you make from it is poor, but here is a book that will
show you how to eliminate that problem. From set-up and color
management to final output, its nine chapters take you through each
step that it takes to product top level prints, be it color or B&W.
There is even a creative project section to give you ideas for new
and different ways you can use those prints. All of that and a real
nice price too!
This soft cover book is about 9x11 inches, with 160 pages, retails
for USD$19.95 – and is published by Lark Books and distributed by
www.sterlingpub.com
I Rate it: A
(PF)
(Reviewed May 2007) |
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MAKE: technology on your time, is a new
publication produced by O’Reilly Publishing. It is a quarterly
subscription soft cover book filled with tons of digital tips,
tricks, and other how-to info. There are even building plans for
making such things as your own magnetic bar code readers, or how
about a $14 video camera stabilizer. Build a photo platform on a
kite to create aerial images. Projects range from simple ideas to
detailed wiring plans for a 5-in-1 network cable. If you are good
with your hands this publication could save you thousands. Check it
out at
www.makezine.com
I Rate it: A+
(Reviewed June 2005)
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Mastering Black and White Digital
Photography
by Michael Freeman
Here is a new book for everyone who uses digital cameras and wants
to add B&W images to their work files. No matter if you want to
shoot straight B&W, find a second use for color images that are not
all that good in color, or just shoot color first so that you have
the ability to have both color and B&W from the same file, this book
is for you. It covers everything from the first straight shot to
converting it from color and adding extra
finishing touches like toning the image. It includes the digital
tools needed and screen captures of the settings used to do each
job. This new book is worth getting just for the ideas you will get
out of it, but wait till you see the quality of the B&W images you
too can create with what you learn from it.
This soft cover book is about 8x9 inches, with 160 pages,
retails for US$27.95 – and is published by Lark Books and
distributed by
www.sterlingpub.com
I
Rate it: A+
(Reviewed Feb. 2007)
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Mastering
Digital Black and White:
A Photographer’s Guide to High Quality Black and White Imaging and
Printing
by Amadou Diallo
Black & white photography is in a class all by itself, and when you
see a quality B&W print you know why. Digital B&W is a whole new
process to get those same results, but it is now easier and faster
and the quality is now just as good. Here is a new book that will
teach you how to get those results with your digital B&W images. No
matter if you shoot the original image in B&W or convert it later on
from color, this book covers it all and then some. The book is full
of illustrations and step-by-step info on how to do it all. Screen
captures and before and after shots add to the ease of the work. I’d
say that if this book does not have the information you need to work
in digital B&W, then I don’t know where you’d get it from.
This soft cover book is about 7x9 inches, with 371 pages, retails
for US-$39.99 – and is published by Thomson Course Technology and
can be ordered from
www.courseptr.com
I Rate it: A+
(Reviewed July 2007) |
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Mastering Digital
Color: A Photographer's and Artist's Guide to Controlling Color
by David Saffir
Here is a great, new book for the serious color digital photographer.
It not only covers how color works, but what you need to know to use
it to your best advantage. This isn’t a “how-to shoot color
pictures” book. It is a color course on how color works in the
digital workspace, how you can use it, how to correct and manipulate
it, and finally, how to store it in order to work with again later
on. This is a great guidebook for both photographers and artists
alike. It covers a lot of what you do not find in many other
digital photo books.
This soft cover book is about 7x9 inches, with 258 pages, retails
for US$39.99 – and is published by Thomson Course Technology and can
be ordered from
www.courseptr.com
I Rate it: A
(Reviewed Jan. 2007) |
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Mastering Digital Nude
Photography:
The Serious Photographer’s Guide to High-Quality Digital Nude
Photography
by Roderick Macdonald
I like this book a LOT more than other books of the same subject.
This book thoroughly covers each section, and the illustrations are
professionally done in a fine art manor, and not as snapshots. It
deals with everything digital from color setup, to finished output,
and does not skimp on the information needed.
This soft cover book is about 7x9 inches, with 374 pages, retails
for US$39.99 – and is published by Thomson Course Technology and can
be ordered from
www.courseptr.com
I
Rate it: A
(Reviewed July 2007)
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Mastering Digital Photography
and Imaging,
by Peter K. Burian
Here is a very informative new book that
covers all of the how-to items for working with digital photography,
and not just the usual software programs. It is filled with expert
advice and techniques from Burian, who is also the coauthor of the
National Geographic Photography Field Guide, so you know you will be
getting all of the facts you will need to make great digital images.
This 8x10 inch book has 272 pages and retails for US$29.99.
I Rate it: A
(Reviewed April 2005)
Both of these books are published by SYBEX
and can be ordered at
www.sybex.com
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Mastering
Digital Scanning, with slides, film, and transparencies
by David D. Busch
Here is a new book for those who have not fully turned to digital
yet, but still need to scan their images if they want to work on
them with Photoshop. Getting the best possible images for output
means having to make the best possible scans, and this new book will
show you how to do just that. It fully covers the process from
beginning to end, in easy to understand chapters. It does get pretty
technical, so beginners might have some problems with it, but even
amateurs will learn a lot of what they will need to know in the future as
they become more advanced.
This soft cover book is about 7x9 inches, with 310 pages, retails
for US$39.99 – and is published by Thomson Course Technology and
can be ordered from
www.courseptr.com
I Rate it: A(PF)
(Reviewed June 2007) |
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Mastering Digital
Wedding Photography
By James Karney
With the state of the photo world today I would guess that just
about every wedding photographer is, or is about to, use digital for
their jobs. If you are just starting to use digital, or plan to,
here is a great new book with everything, and I do mean everything,
you will need to know to do the best job. Its 19 chapters cover
everything possible, short of going along on the honeymoon. It even
shows you how to help the family best plan for both the shoot and
the wedding itself. It also shows you how to solve a lot of the
problems you are going to run into on a job. The info in this
book will make and save you a lot of time and money, and maybe even
make for some happy in-laws.
This soft cover book is about 7x9 inches, with 410 pages, retails
for US-$39.99 - and is published by Thomson Course Technology and
can be ordered from:
www.courseptr.com
I Rate it: A+ (PF)
(Reviewed October 2007) |
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Mastering Flash Photography,
by Susan McCartney
Mastering Flash Photography is
a “must have” new book for everyone interested in using a flash to
light his or her images. I have looked at many books on this
subject, and just about all of them were lacking in one way or
another, but this one is as complete as you will find. Its 144 -
8x11 inch soft cover pages cover flash lighting of just about
everything you can think of. The cover here shows a good example of
what I mean: a single subject lit by flash while the rest of the
image is a bold silhouetted background. This is the kind of book
that you want to take along on every photo trip, to make sure you
will know how to do the job right.
The subjects covered here range from small
flower close ups to a distant gorilla with fill flash added. It also
includes all of the information you will need to know what equipment
to use, and how to use it. Even the captions are better than usual,
with a lot of extra info included.
This book retails for US$24.95, and is
published by AMPHOTO Books at:
www.watsonguptill.com
I Rate it: A+++
(Reviewed Feb. 2005) |
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Mastering Nature Photography,
by John Kieffer
Mastering Nature Photography, by John
Kieffer is a new how-to reference book for any serious nature
photographer. With 271 pages of information, there is not much you
cannot find out from it. Its 30 chapters cover everything from
shooting to selling your images. It is mostly reference info with
few illustrations, but when you need to find out how to do
something, you don’t need a book full of pictures. At 6x9 it is also
a handy size soft cover book to carry in the field, and it even
comes with a bonus CD for both Mac and Windows users. Retailing at
US$24.95. Published by Allworth Press at
www.allworth.com
I Rate it: A
(Reviewed Jan. 2005)
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The Meaning of Trees
Botany – History – Healing - Lore
by Fred
Hagender
Here is a great new book for anyone who likes trees and
photographing them. It is not a how-to book that will show you how
to photograph trees, but it is a super book to learn all about the
major trees we all see, or know about, and it is very interesting
far beyond the photography part. It is basically a
reference/educational book, but there are many great images in it,
and some that are truly amazing, like a Baobab tree in Africa that
is 45 feet in diameter. Trees that one could spend an entire day
shooting nothing but it, and the book also gives many locations of
special trees around the world. The pages are full of interesting
facts to learn each trees history, lore, and how they were also used
for medicines.
This soft cover book is about 9x11 inches, with 224 pages, retails
for US-$19.95 – and is distributed by Chronicle Books at:
www.chroniclebooks.com
I Rate it: A+
(Reviewed August
2007) |
Order it right now from
Amazon.com
About the Author:
Dominic Smith
grew up in Sydney, Australia and
now lives in Austin, Texas where he received an MFA in fiction and
screenwriting from the James A. Michener Center for Writers at the
University of Texas at Austin. His fiction and essays have been widely
published, recently with The Antioch Review, Carve Magazine, Gulf
Coast, and Mid- Atlantic Review. His work has been nominated
for a Pushcart Prize and he has a story forthcoming with The Atlantic
Monthly. After taking a university photography class, he became
engulfed in the fascinating history of the daguerreotype. His awards
include the Dobie Paisano Fellowship from the Texas Institute of
Letters, the Sherwood Anderson Fiction Prize, and the Gulf Coast Fiction
Prize, in addition, he has been a finalist for the Faulkner Society Best
Novel Prize.
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The Mercury Visions of Louis Daguerre
by Dominic Smith
We’ve never reviewed a work
of fiction before in Apogee Photo Magazine, but this time we make an
exception. The book is The Mercury Visions of Louis Daguerre,
written by Dominic Smith and published by Atria Books. Like other books I’ve
reviewed here, this volume was a serendipitous find. Looking for a novel to
read late one afternoon, I opened the door to a delivery service driver
holding a box from a publisher. Inside was a treasure--an historic novel
about the “father of photography”, Louis Daguerre. Such synchronicities are
not to be ignored, so I sat down in the late afternoon light and began a
most delightful read.
In his well-written debut
novel, Smith creates a character that cannot be ignored, especially by those
of us who are descendents of his passionate pursuit of the permanent fixing
of light. Set in a turbulent time in Paris in the midst of revolution and
the other mayhem of the middle 1800’s, the scene is quickly compelling.
Along with a supporting cast of believable and often endearing characters,
we meet Daguerre, now 58, mortally ill from being poisoned by mercury, the
very chemical essential to Daguerre’s process for producing lasting images.
The same metal that launches his fame and wealth is stealing away his life
and mind.
Perhaps influenced by the
millennial fervor sweeping the continent around that time or as a simple
result of the damage being done to his brain, Daguerre becomes convinced
that the world is going to end. Thus, he creates his “Doomsday List,” a
collection of ten subjects he must photograph before the final day. The list
includes both one portrait of a nude woman and another of Isobel Le
Fournier, his first and last love to whom he has not spoken for half a
century.
Through a skillful
interweaving of flashbacks, we learn about Daguerre’s early life and two
transforming experiences he had during an illness he suffered when he was
only twelve. On that fateful day, he fell in love with the young maid,
Isobel, who had been assigned to take care of him. He also discovered the
magic of light as it streamed through the curtains of his darkened sickbed
room. The result of these two events provides the unifying theme we pursue
throughout the book.
Thereafter, we follow
Daguerre’s search for both the method of fixing an image on his plates and
his love. He solves the first problem long before the last. He discovers
that mercury can act as a fixing agent, preventing an image that has been
etched onto a copper plate by the sun from fading. His breakthrough is both
a gift and a curse. The ability to take photographs propels him to fame and
fortune, while slowly poisoning him with constant exposure to mercury.
Through his doomsday list,
he finally succeeds in finding Isobel and expressing the passion he has felt
for her. He is helped by a young, jaded prostitute he has paid to model for
his nude portrait. The way this happens is another expression of how fate
plays with our lives, at times thwarting our dreams while simultaneously
creating the circumstances whereby they can be fulfilled. We’re not sure if
Daguerre’s doomsday is symbolic of the events in Europe or the actual ending
of his life, but through the author’s masterful storytelling, we learn about
the connectedness of all things.
I won’t spoil the rest of
the tale for you. Suffice it to say, as a man who is approaching Daguerre’s
age in the latter part of the book, I couldn’t help but identify with his
life and passions. I also couldn’t help but admire his grace when he faces
the losses of his mind, his love, and his life, at a time when his life
finally has meaning.
After I finished reading
this book that appeared unexpectedly at my door, I ruminated over it for
days. Even now as I write this review, more realizations about the
interconnectedness of our lives, our search for love and the meanings of our
lives surface, much like an image that gradually appears on photographic
paper in the darkroom. The picture doesn’t suddenly materialize. It takes
time for the image deepen and become fixed.
(Reviewed Feb. 2006)
The Mercury Visions of Louis Daguerre
By Dominic Smith
Atria Books Hardcover
February 7, 2006
ISBN: 0-7432-7114-9
Price: $24.00
Chosen for Barnes and Noble’s Discover Great New Writers Program
Finalist--Faulkner Society Award for Best Novel
Selected for Ingram Book Group’s Premiere Picks Series
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Mei Mei, Little Sister:
Portraits from a Chinese Orphanage
by Richard Bowen
Call it a documentary, or a social record book; it is a beautiful
collection of images of young girls from a Chinese orphanage. From
cute images of innocent curiosity, to those of mistrust learned way
too young. One thing you will notice is that few of the children are
smiling and only sit for their portrait as a matter of obeyed
conditioning. They do not look ragged and neglected, even in cloths
that do not come close to fitting, but they also do not look like
they have had many days of play either. The images are almost as
beautiful as the little faces, and this is one book that will be
appreciated by everyone with a heart.
This hardback book is about 9x9 inches, with 144 pages, retails for
US$35.00 – and is distributed by Chronicle Books at
www.chroniclebooks.com
I Rate it: A++
(Reviewed March 2007) |
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Michael Freeman’s Top Digital
Photography Tips: You Can Think and Shoot Like a Pro with the
Secrets of One of the World’s Top Professional Photographers
by Michael Freeman
This book has a wide range and
variety of tips for the digital photographer. The images and
diagrams of equipment are very impressive and helpful for
understanding processes. The book is organized into sections,
including Basics, Exposure, Technical aspects, Color, Composition, and
more. Under each section are quite a few subtitles to cover the
topic. For example, the Color section includes subtopics of Unified
Color, Custom White Balance, and Color Target. For such small book,
this manual provides a lot of information on the topic of Digital
Photography.
Paperback:
176 pages
Publisher:
Lark Books
http://www.larkbooks.com
(October 7, 2008)
ISBN-10:
1600594182
ISBN-13:
978-1600594182
Product Dimensions:
8.9 x 8.2 x 0.8 inches
Text: A+
Layout: A+
Photography: A+
User: Beginning to Intermediate Photographers
(Reviewed by EP Nov. 2008)
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Click on the above image to find out current pricing
or to purchase this book from Amazon.com |
Micro Art
by Roberto Dabdoub
Micro Art is a nice little (7"x10") photography book from
Pelican Publishers. Unlike "macro" photography, which is better known as
"close-up" photography, micro photos are images taken through a microscope.
Micro Art is mostly a picture book. Other than the standard introduction, the
only text in this book is an image index at the end identifying each image
shown. There are 117 images in this hardback book that includes everything from
Coca Cola to a 3,000 year old piece of mummy wrapping. Images that are rich in
pattern and color, most of which are on the extreme side of abstraction. This is
not a how-to book, but a very nice addition to any coffee table collection, and
for only US$19.95.
(Reviewed May, 2004)
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Click on the above image to find out current pricing or
to purchase this book from Amazon.com |
Microsoft OFFICE for Mac OS-X 2004,
by Steve Schwartz.
Any
photographer, who uses their work for more than just their own personal
pleasure, will have a lot of writing to do also, especially if their
work involves a business. If you use Microsoft Office, then you should
check out this quick and easy guide book. These are not your normal
manual type lessons, but it uses pictures to learn from, and it will
have you up and running in no time. With 27 chapters on 437 pages, it
covers everything you will need to know to create written pages for
whatever your needs may be. From a simple business letter, to creating
your own online newsletter, or catalog, it shows you the tools and how
to use them. If you take pictures, then you probably want to show them,
and this book will show you how to use Microsoft office to do that. This
soft cover book is also a nice size to handle, 7x9, and almost an inch
thick, and all for only $21.99-US. I have used many kinds of training
books and I find these visual quickstart guides to be the best.
Published by PeachPit Press at
www.peachpit.com.
I rate it:
A+
(Reviewed Sept. 2004)
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Minnesota’s North Shore
By Craig Blacklock
Craig Blacklock's most recent photography book covers just one
location - the north shore areas of Lake Superior. Whenever I
heard the name Lake Superior, all I ever thought of was a lot of
cold and a lot of water. Goes to show you just how wrong one
can be! I was as wrong as I was amazed by what I learned.
This area has an incredible variety of photographic opportunities -
from coastal cliffs to incredible mountain waterfalls, from quiet
harbors to fern covered forests. The photos depict some of the
most beautiful rocky coastline that I have ever seen. I would
say this book is a “must-have” for anyone planning a photo trip to
that area. Coffee table or picture books, whatever you want to
call them, this is one great new photo book for any library.
It even comes with a bonus DVD movie.
This hardback book is about 12x13 inches, with 175 images, and
retails for US-$60.00 – and is published by Blacklock Photography
Galleries and can be ordered from:
www.blacklockgallery.com
I Rate it: A+
(Reviewed December 2007)
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Moose Peterson’s Guide to Wildlife
Photography Conventional & Digital Techniques
By B. Moose Peterson
The name Moose Peterson and the word “wildlife” seem to go together
and this new how-to guide proves that fact. Just looking at the
cover shows you what kind of images he produces, and this new book
tells you how you too can do the same. This book isn’t just for one
format though as it deals with how to handle shooting wildlife
situations with both film and digital equipment. The information
in this book is complete, and so easy to understand that it is more
like the author is right there next to you telling you everything
face-to-face.
This soft cover book is about 9x11 inches, with 192 pages,
retails for US$24.95 – and is published by Lark Books and
distributed by:
www.sterlingpub.com
I Rate it: A+
(Reviewed Feb. 2007)
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MORE SURREAL Digital Photography
by Ben Renow-Clarke
This new book is an addition to an earlier one for
anyone wanting to create Photoshop special effect images like that
shown on the cover. Each section covers a different effect that can
be created with Photoshop. You can be creating new images with
almost every page. These are not your everyday effects done with a
filter or two, but highly involved images like the cover, which can
be achieved even by Photoshop beginners. A couple examples are; turning
a round auto tire into a square one, and turning a girl into a fairy
and putting her inside a bottle. This will be one book well worth
getting for those who want to go way beyond what everyone else is
doing.
This soft cover book is about 8x9 inches, with 192 pages, retails
for US-$29.99 – and is published by Thomson Course Technology and
can be ordered from: www.courseptr.com
I Rate it: A
(Reviewed Sept. 2007)
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Mountain Ranges of
Colorado,
by John Fielder
Mountain Ranges of Colorado is
one of the finest picture books I have seen in years. It is also the
largest, and heaviest book I have ever looked at. (You could press
clothes with this one) At 13.5x12.5 inches, the images in it are
almost 9x11 inches and those are not even the largest ones. Many
images are printed in full two-page spreads which measure 10x23.5
inches, and there are so many of them that I lost count half way
through the book. The areas of the Colorado Mountains presented are
divided into sections, with a state map in the front that includes a
transparent overlay of the chapters shown. This hard cover book is
also one of the best bound books I’ve seen and I can only say that
you have to see and hold it to believe it. The book has 232 pages
with some of the best mountain & scenic images you can find, and
they are reproduced as close to an actual photograph as you can get.
The retail price is US$75.00, but I would not sell my copy for twice
that much. It is published by Westcliffe Publishers and can be
ordered at
www.westcliffepublishers.com
I Rate it: A+++
(Reviewed May 2005)
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MUENCH American Portfolios,
Three Wilderness Portfolios by David & Marc Muench.
This is yet another in a long list of fine
art photography books by the master landscape photography, David
Muench, but this one includes an additional portfolio by his son
Marc. In many cases when you say, “Like father, like son” it is just
a way to describe someone, but in this case, and when the father is
David Muench, it lets everyone know exactly what kind of quality
work this son produces. In fact with most images in this book, if it
weren’t for the fact that they are divided into separate portfolios,
it would be hard to tell where one leaves off and the other begins.
This hardback book measures 12x12 inches, has 168 pages, and except
for the two-page spreads, almost that many images. Images that are
printed here as good as printing gets, but then nothing less would
be expected from this photo family. The images range from all over
the US, and all over the natural world. There are a few I have seen
before, but most will be new to most viewers, so that is yet another
bonus. American Portfolios retails for just US$39.95 and is
published by BrownTrout. You can order it at:
www.browntrout.com
I Rate it: A+++
(Reviewed June 2005) |
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