“book review”

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ALAN MURPHY’S “Guide to Songbird Set-up Photography” Mini Review

Posted by scottbourne on March 19, 2010
Posted in: Tips. Tagged: .

Yep I am a sucker for any photography book about birds. But in this case, I have a right to be. Alan Murphy is one of the premiere avian photographers in America. He’s published a book on CD Called “Guide to Songbird Setup Photography,” and it’s a good one.

It’s a step-by-step guide on how to attract and photograph songbirds – yeah songbirds. If you have ever tried to even find and get a good look at songbirds you know how hard it can be. Alan shows you not only how to find them, but how to get them on a good perch, in good light and close enough to photograph.

The book is worth the money just for the images. If you want to know what publishable bird photos should look like, this is your guide.

It’s not cheap, but it’s more than a book. It’s really a workshop on CD for those who are serious about songbird photography.

Alan is the real deal and so is this book. It’s available on CD from BIRDS AS ART.  It sells for $50 plus $3 shipping and handling to US addresses.  Shipping to Canada is $6.00. It is $8.00 for all foreign orders.
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Creative Composition: Digital Photography Tips & Techniques

Posted by scottbourne on November 15, 2009
Posted in: Tips. Tagged: , .

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Author: Harold Davis

Publisher: Wiley

Review by Conrad J. Obregon

Instructing photographers about creativity is hard. It’s not like technique where there are rules, like use a large f-stop if you want to limit depth of field, or use a shutter speed equal to one over the focal length for a hand-held shot. It’s not even like discussing composition where you can say, all things considered, it’s better to apply the rule of thirds. Instead an author has to tell a person how to see.

It’s hard to review a book on creativity, since each reader seems to respond differently to styles of particular authors. Thus even though I didn’t find this book helpful, others might.

The author is certainly an excellent and creative photographer as the examples in the book reveal. He appears to be of two different minds. Some pictures, like those of his children, favor content over form, while others seem to favor form, almost to the exclusion of content, like many images that border on abstraction. (My own style lies somewhere between these, reflecting my preference for more realistic images where the form explicates the content.) For the images shown in this book, Davis seems to prefer either macro-photography, especially of flowers, or mysterious landscapes.

Creative Composition: Digital Photography Tips & Techniques opens with a section on equipment and technique. I was perplexed by the need to include this section since it seems to me that people who have reached the stage of interest in creative composition would already have known this information. The second section is called “unleash your imagination” and it is here that the author talks about the use of visual ambiguity, photography as magic and as poetry, and abstraction. These were interesting concepts, and I frequently wished that he had discussed them in more depth. For example Davis urges seeing what is in front of you, but this raised a number of questions in my mind. Since most people believe they are seeing what’s in front of them, how can one tell if he or she is missing something? If you are missing something, how do you refine your senses for better seeing?

The third section discusses photography and paradox. Unfortunately, I found most of the section dealt with heavily manipulated images, even though there are many opportunities for paradox in the unmanipulated world. The final chapter was called “photography is design” and it was here that the author dealt with most of the standard composition rules, like the rule of thirds, and frames within frames.

As I said above, there are many approaches to creativity, and a person striving to improve creativity should search all the avenues until he finds one or more that are helpful. Perhaps this book may be such an avenue for you.
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Photo Book Review – Mastering Digital Panoramic Photography

Posted by scottbourne on November 1, 2009
Posted in: Tips. Tagged: .

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Author: Harald Woeste

Publisher: Rocky Nook

Review by Conrad J. Obregon

Aside from the obvious benefits of digital over other photography media, like greater control over exposures and post-processing adjustments, digital photography has enabled us to improve older techniques so that photographers are better able to convey their vision. Images that covered more than the normal angle of view, called panoramas, were first created in 1787, using large scale circular paintings in which the viewer was centered in the painting. Today, with very little additional equipment, a digital photographer can create very wide angle images, with great detail, by stitching together several separate images. He or she can even create virtual realities (also known as spherical projections), where a viewer can have the effect of being completely surrounded by an image. Particularly amazing is not just the angle of view, which can exceed any wide angle lens, but the resolution of the final image.

In Mastering Digital Panoramic Photography, Harold Woeste provides an introduction to panoramic photography. After reviewing the history of panoramas, Woeste introduces the special equipment necessary to capture the images to be used in the panorama. While a panorama can be captured using a hand held camera, better results will ensue using a tripod with a specially designed head when shooting the series of images required for a panorama. The author then discusses the computer software necessary to stitch together the images. He also shows methods of outputting the images, which includes both wide flat prints of great detail and images which must be viewed on a computer and which allow the viewer to select any direction to look, including even up and down.

An important part of the book is the description of four different panorama projects that the author worked on, moving from the initial idea for the project, through the special considerations in capturing the images, to the use of multiple software packages to maximize the quality of the image, to the final output as a print or computer file.

On the other hand, Woeste’s level of detail is at the familiarization level, not the practical level of actually taking the images or using the software. Thus, as I followed along I occasionally encountered references that I did not understand, such as control points, which were not related to the Photoshop CS4 software that I normally use, but are contained in PTGui, a more advanced piece of software that can be used for difficult situations and for spherical images. To fully comprehend what the author was saying, I had to download PTGui (there’s a free trial available) and spend several hours reading the instructions (which were not very well organized) and even process a few trial images. On the other hand, snap shooters who aren’t willing to spend the time and effort, are also not likely try their hand at panoramas, and understanding the uses of PTGui will certainly help if one encounters a problem where PTGui can provide a useful solution. I suppose I would have liked just a little more detail. For example, Woeste suggests that while PTGui is great for stitching, one can have better results if one saves the image and then blends it in Photoshop. Unfortunately neither Woeste nor the PTGui instructions mention that the stitched image must be saved as a PSD file rather then a TIFF to do this. Perhaps what I really wanted was a better PTGui instruction manual.

In any case, if you are a photographer who wants to move beyond the simple flat image capture and processing, wants to know what’s available to help you create better panoramas, and wants to see some of the possibilities available in panoramic photography, this book will provide a good introduction.

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Photo Book Review – Nikon DSLR: The Ultimate Photographer’s Guide

Posted by scottbourne on October 25, 2009
Posted in: Tips. Tagged: , .

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Nikon DSLR: The Ultimate Photographer’s Guide

Authors: Jim White and Tony Sweet

Publisher: Focal Press (Elsevier)

Review by Conrad J. Obregon

Every new Nikon digital single lens reflex camera (DSLR) comes with a detailed manual explaining the camera’s controls and capabilities. These manuals have little information on the practical application of the controls and capabilities to the capturing of images and are often quite technical. Many purchasers of these cameras, especially first time DSLR users, need more help in learning to use these cameras.

Nikon DSLR: The Ultimate Photographer’s Guide
presents a general overview of the current line of Nikon DSLRs. Chapters include basic information on exposure, digital feature selection, descriptions of the usual controls on a Nikon DSLR, descriptions of a few of the current models of camera bodies and lenses, discussion of flash photography, and an overview of Nikon’s proprietary image processing software, Nikon Capture NX 2. Profiles of some successful Nikon camera users are also included.

It sounds like a good idea to have a book for beginning Nikon users that shows how to use the camera to actually take pictures. Such a book needn’t show all the bells and whistles available on DSLRs but it should provide enough information to enable the reader to take pictures that will make them happy with their investment. Books usually are published that explain the use of each individual model but this is one of the few books to assay an overview of the manufacturer’s entire line. Unfortunately, it is not very effective in accomplishing this task.

The explanations of exposure, color space, white balance and focusing are a good introduction to those tools. However the descriptions of the cameras, lenses, speedlights and Nikon Capture NX2 just seem to be a rehash of the manufacturer’s literature, without any practical information. There is no chapter on composition, which is one of the most important areas with which a new user needs help. This is particularly strange given that author Tony Sweet is one of the great photographers of our age.

The book is profusely illustrated and some of the images are quite handsome, if small. Unfortunately few of the images have captions, and only a few are specifically referred to in the text. As a result, it is often unclear what teaching point they are meant to make.

The profiles of photographers vary in usefulness. Nancy Rotenberg explains her view of the role of photography in a way that many individuals will find useful. Other profiles merely provide a resume of the photographer’s career.

New Nikon DSLR users need information on using their cameras beyond that contained in the manufacturer’s manual. This book does not provide it.
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Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw and Lightroom

Posted by scottbourne on October 11, 2009
Posted in: Tips. Tagged: , .

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Author: Bruce Fraser

Publisher: Peachpit Press

Review by Conrad J. Obregon

I consider myself a fairly competent user of Photoshop (PS), Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) which is a plug-in that comes installed in PS, and Lightroom (LR), but one area where I didn’t feel post-processing in my bones was image sharpening, which is the process of adjusting images to both overcome the image softness inherent in digital photography and to make artistic adjustments. I’d read the first edition of this book, and understood the difference between capture, creative and output sharpening, but wasn’t always sure what those sliders in Unsharp Mask were doing for me. Since that first edition, Adobe had improved the sharpening facilities in ACR and LR. It seemed like visiting the second edition was in order.

After explaining what sharpening is and why images need to be sharpened in Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw, and Lightroom, Schewe, building on the work of the late Bruce Fraser, explains multipass sharpening and the somewhat different approaches taken by the main PS, ACR and LR software. The author then describes each of the tools available and their effects. He then shows the application of each of the tools to a digital workflow in each of the three softwares, and finishes up by showing how to speed up the processes by using actions and presets. Along the way, he also discuses digital noise and its reduction, an area that is intimately linked with sharpening.

This is not a subject for the photographer new to post processing. A description of the tools involved may be quite intimidating to the tyro, but ultimately every image processor has to face up to sharpening. Luckily, it seemed to me that Schewe had improved on previous explanations, and he incorporates several graphic techniques that make it clear. If the reader really wants an appreciation of the sharpening tools, create the test file presented in chapter 4 and follow along with the author on a computer. When I had finished the book this time I not only had a much better feel for sharpening but I also had several pleasant surprises.

As Schewe explains, capture and creative sharpening require the use of several different PS tools for effectiveness, and understanding what each does is important to understanding the process. But LR and ACR combine these processes and ultimately make capture sharpening much simpler. Similarly, output sharpening is much more cut and dried, with the sharpening to be applied a matter of factors, like original and final image size, all of which are virtually formulaic, and which my image processor of choice, LR, applies on the fly. Creative sharpening (if needed for artistic reasons) still requires an export to PS, but is much easier if one is not being confused by capture and output sharpening.

To test my knowledge and good luck, I reprocessed and printed several pictures from scratch (i.e., the RAW file). Following Schewe’s guidance I was happier with each of these images than, or at least as happy as, I was with my old prints. I think I finally have a handle on sharpening.

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Mini Book Review – The Best Camera is The One You Have With You

Posted by scottbourne on September 29, 2009
Posted in: Tips. Tagged: , , .

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(EDITOR’S NOTE: Usually I rely solely on our tremendous in-house reviewer, Conrad Obregon for book reviews – which we publish every Sunday. Conrad is better at this than I am, but once in a while a book comes out that I feel the need to comment on. I assume Conrad will also review this title at a later date. Look for his reviews every weekend.)

I just had a pleasurable two hours glancing through Chase Jarvis’ brilliant little book The Best Camera Is The One That’s With You. It’s published by the New Riders Press and just came out this week.

I have to say that if you’re at all tempted to pass on this book because you heard it’s nothing but iPhone pictures, you’d be making a big mistake. There’s a great deal to learn from this book. In fact, there are so many lessons that this review couldn’t possibly do justice to them.

But in the short run, here are a few things to consider.

I often get asked how to become a better photographer. The simple answer is to look at lots of pictures. This little book is full of hundreds of photos. Plenty to look at and contemplate here. Chase has a great eye and you can learn from even his iPhone pictures. Moreover, you can learn to dump all those excuses you have for not getting out there and getting great photographs. Looking at this book will cause you to have to stop making up reasons to fail. So let’s get a checklist going.

1. I can’t shoot great photos because I don’t have a pro camera – check this one off. All these photos are made with an iPhone camera.

2. There’s nothing to shoot where I live – check this one off since Chase shows you that your everyday, mundane world is as interesting as you want to make it. With the right heart and the right eye you can make good photos anywhere with any camera.

3. I don’t have time or money to go to all the cool places that Chase goes. See number 2.

In short, this book should be important to every single serious photographer out there. It shows you how to see, what’s possible when you try to see, and what you can do with minimal equipment.

I am far from a Chase Jarvis fanboy. His style is a bit out there for an old war horse like me. But it doesn’t mean he isn’t a great photographer. He is indeed. I don’t buy or listen to rap music, but I can still recognize the gifts and talents of the rap artists. Likewise, while I am not a fan of every Chase Jarvis photo, I can and do recognize the gifts and talents he shows off in this little book and elsewhere. And even though I don’t like every photo in the book, I am pretty sure I learned something from every photo in the book and in the end, that’s what counts.

I’ve already heard a few comments about this book that might at first blush appear negative. Does this book (or one like it) get published if Chase Jarvis isn’t the author? No – not a chance – and that’s the only bad news. You have to be Chase or someone as famous as he is to get this opportunity. But it doesn’t matter. The rest of us can learn lots here. I plan to look at these photos again and again. Any time I doubt my surroundings or circumstances’ ability to provide me with a good photo opportunity, I’ll look at this book and recognize what a talented young guy did with nothing more than a cell phone camera and a good eye. Then I’ll stop dropping excuses, get off the couch and go get me some!

This is a very important little book and I am glad Chase took the time to share it with the rest of us.

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Photo Book Review – Living Landscapes: Creative Visions of the Wild

Posted by scottbourne on September 20, 2009
Posted in: Tips. Tagged: .

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Living Landscapes: Creative Visions of the Wild

Author: Andy Rouse

Publisher: Argentum (Aurum Press)

Review by Conrad J. Obregon

Andy Rouse is one of the greatest wildlife photographers in the world. His pictures have been honored by most of the important world competitions. The best are stunning and breathtaking. Both lovers of wildlife and photographers spend many moments being enthralled by his work.

In “Living Landscapes” Rouse strikes out in a new direction. Instead of concentrating on filling the frame, the photographer has stepped back and tried to include more of the landscape so that we can get a deeper understanding of the subject.

The book is divided into an introduction and a conversation with photographer and editor Eddie Ephrams, and chapters on habitat, snow geese, patterns, and the Galapagos. Some of the pictures are quite stunning, particularly the two-page spreads. The two pagers usually show a panoramic landscape with either the subject or subjects on one side, or large groups of animals spread across the landscape. Amongst my favorites is the picture of a group of king penguins against an ocean-filled sunset in the Falklands.

Now comes the “but”. And I realize that my “but” is a matter of aesthetic judgment, probably reflecting my own shooting style, and that others may love the pictures to which I was less attracted. For me many of the pictures included a little too much of the environment. It was not clear whether the subject was the wildlife or the landscape so that a viewer might be conflicted or confused when exploring the picture. From the text I deduce that Rouse would be pleased to force the viewer to do some work to engage the picture and decipher the message, but I fear some will avoid the challenge. That would be a shame, for there certainly is much to engage a viewer willing to do the work. An example is the photo of an abandoned temple in the jungle in India. One has to search the frame carefully to discover the tiger who blends in so well with the orange and black walls. Once one has found the cat the picture takes on a completely different feeling that makes the image far more exciting on a second viewing.

I was also less delighted by some of the snow geese images where Rouse has created more impressionistic, slow-shutter-speed work to capture the movement of the birds. For this genre, the pictures are quite good, but I much prefer the crisper shots like the head-on view of snow geese landing.

Rouse is to be commended for his efforts to expand his style. That’s a tough thing to do for an artist, especially when his old style was so successful. All photographers can benefit from his example (and probably non-photographers too!)

Thumbnails of the images are provided in the back of the book where one can usually find technical information about the picture, but here Rouse is as uncompromising as he is with his images and provides only generalized shooting information.

I must confess that on first reading, I was a little disappointed with the images, but as I worked on them, I began to appreciate the pictures more and more, and even to be inspired to try some new directions with my own work.

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