Where do you Learn most about Digital Photography?
Over the weekend I had a number of social gatherings with friends and at each one the subject of photography came up (as it tends to with me).
On each occasion I asked my friends the same question (one that I want to ask you as this week’s ‘reader question’) - where do you learn most about Digital Photography?
The variety of answers surprised me a little and highlighted just how we all have different learning styles and preferences. They ranged from photography magazines, to books, to websites, to friends, to experimenting with a camera alone to doing photography courses.
While I’m assuming that DPS readership will probably be slightly biased towards ‘learning from the web’ I thought it’d be in an interesting question to ask.
Where do you Learn most about Digital Photography?
If your answer is ‘books’ or ‘magazines’ or ‘courses’ or ‘websites’ - please be specific - which ones have been most helpful to you and why?
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September 11th, 2007 at 12:27 am
In my case I have learned alot from this site, most of the information that I have seached has been websites, some books, and from flickr in the groups.
1. http://digital-photography-school.com/blog.
2. flick -> Technique group, photosop, nikon digital learning center, in general all gorups has their tricks.
3. Books like:
Understanding Exposure: How to Shoot Great Photographs with a Film or Digital Camera
by Bryan Peterson
Learning to See Creatively: Design, Color & Composition in Photography (Updated Edition) by Bryan Peterson
Understanding Digital Photography: Techniques for Getting Great Pictures by Bryan Peterson
And Google knows everything about photography I just need to ask the correct questiona :)
September 11th, 2007 at 12:27 am
I don’t feel like it’s realistic to name a single source of information. You can’t really learn anything without taking pictures (and spending time reviewing and thinking about how your images could be improved), but unless you are an extremely unique artistic savant, it’s likely that you’ll also benefit from external knowledge — looking at others’ work, reading about technique and about technical details, advice from friends and other photographers.
So I guess my answer is “everywhere”. But in the name of being specific, I’ll say that I learned the basics of aperture/shutter speed (and to a lesser degree ISO, since it was with film) from my dad long ago, and then more recently refreshed that and leared a lot about the hardware details from the glossary from the Digital Photography Review website (dpreview.com).
I’ve also found some books to be very helpful, and have particularly appreciated “Mastering Color Digital Photography” by Michael Freeman. And I’m really looking forward to reading his new book, “The Photographer’s Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos”.
September 11th, 2007 at 1:06 am
Mainly trial and error. Digital cameras make it a lot easier to learn what settings do what. Unlike film, you can see the immediate result of a change you’ve made.
September 11th, 2007 at 1:09 am
I learned you about cameras when there was only film. Yep, I learned in a darkroom my dad built in our basement. As for digital photography, to me, it’s just about the same thing except the tools are easier to use.
I’ve learned a lot about photography over the years from a few different sources. The web a little, talking to other photographers, and a lot from just see what the camera will do if I just change this setting. I’ve also spent a few weekends with the Rocky Mountain School of Photography. I think we learn best when we just allow ourselves to learn all the time. No one source works best for me.
September 11th, 2007 at 1:17 am
The most useful book I ever read about Photography is called How to take Great Photographs with any camera by Jerry White (I think). Digital and film are mostly the same, IMO. I’ve done a lot of web research when I needed to learn more. beyond that, trial and error
September 11th, 2007 at 1:22 am
Here are the things that have helped me most.
Books
- “The Digital Photography Book” by Scott Kelby
- “Understanding Digital Photography” by Bryan Peterson
- “”Understanding Exposure” by Bryan Peterson
Websites
- strobist.blogspot.com - Great resource for learning how to light with a flash/strobe.
- Forums at FredMiranda.com - There are a good deal of advanced photographers here that can be overwhelming to beginners, but I’ve really gotten some good information.
- Photo.net - I use this mainly as a back-up resource in case I can’t find the information I’m needing elsewhere.
- Digital-Photography-School.com, of course! - I’ve found this community to be one of the nicest and welcoming communities online. It’s a very good spot for a beginning photographer as well as offering solid advice for more advanced photographers.
- Lighting-Essentials.com - A good source for detailed lighting setups and post-production tips and movies.
Podcasts
- LightSource from StudioLighting.net - These guys have a nice podcast archive that’s a great place to get your feet wet with studio lighting.
September 11th, 2007 at 1:22 am
The Focal Guide to Cameras and The Focal Guide to Photographing People, both books published somewhere in the late ’70s are the best books on Photography that I’ve read.
Other than that, Photography magazines like Popular Photography, Better Photography, etc help me keep updated with the latest news and all.
Online, I mainly check this site and several Flickr groups.
September 11th, 2007 at 1:45 am
LOTS of experimentation. I also picked up Understanding Exposure and found it to be helpful, but not indespensible. Eventually, I took photoshop and photography classes at my university, but that was after 8-12 months of shooting with a Digital SLR.
September 11th, 2007 at 1:46 am
Most of my learning comes from teaching. It’s true that you learn something much better if you have to teach somebody else how to do it. Since I’ve started photography blogging, my rate and depth of learning has seriously increased. I also pick up a lot of useful information from all the other blogs I keep track of (many of which are from the people who frequent my blog). Magazines and books come in behind all the web stuff.
September 11th, 2007 at 1:48 am
I had been a film guy until about 2 months ago, a lot of my teaching came via the internet and a lot of wasted film. Being the only person I knew that shot film in 2007, it was hard to find advice and help. I had found a site, photoSIG and it helped. Now I’m a digital shooter, I’ve been combing the internet looking for more help. I found this site a few weeks ago, and I think it’s great. I check it out everyday. My latest problems seem to be Photoshop, more posts would be wonderful. Keep up the good work.
September 11th, 2007 at 2:00 am
Hey Darren. Well I learned the most form the “radiant vista podcast” where craig m tanner talks alot about landscape photography and gives very good tips.
September 11th, 2007 at 2:13 am
Most from the web. I read several tutorials and forums like the dpreview.com
I Also found some books very usefull like the “Digital photography book” by Scott Kelby.
September 11th, 2007 at 2:33 am
I can’t say where I learn most, it’s mostly here and there something… But I’d like to point out Bryan Peterson’s books and Czech photography magazine DIGIfoto.
September 11th, 2007 at 2:34 am
I have learned the most about photography in general from my Dad, who is a good photographer imho, and my high school photo classes (were those really 8 years ago?). As far as digital, It has been mostly trial and error.
September 11th, 2007 at 2:37 am
DPS… this site has definitely helped me learn more about how to do random sundry things. I’ve found that if you ask a few focused questions in an image critique post, you’ll get some really good answers!
Strobist.com or whatever his website is: Wow. Lighting really makes a lot of shots, and now I’m learning more about using my flash *and* just lighting in general.
Flickr: I love looking at photos, and flickr’s got photos. inspiration, entertainment, and “what I don’t want to take pix of because everyone with a Canon Digital Rebel takes pictures of it already.”
September 11th, 2007 at 2:42 am
Mostly just by looking at others’ photographs and experimenting with what I’d like..
Also ofcourse this website and Lynda.com’s extensive tutorials
September 11th, 2007 at 2:55 am
I’ve learned the most by…
- reading what others have done (magazines, Net, books)
- trying to emulate pictures I like
- trying to emulate pictures I have in my mind
- learning one or two new features on my camera regularily so that they’re at my disposal when required
September 11th, 2007 at 3:31 am
I’ve never learned as much as when I’m behind the viewfinder. Not having to worry about spending rolls of film is all the freedom you need to learn.
September 11th, 2007 at 3:35 am
I learned from a combination of things:
1) Reading photo blogs such as this one
2) Re-edting old photos (mostly bad ones) in order to improve them if possible
3) Examining photographs that I most admire
September 11th, 2007 at 3:39 am
Lots of reading on the web, the occasional search on a particular subject that I have discovered. Strobist (as someone mentioned above) is great for lighting, though I disagree about the use of pocket wizards (too expensive when a canon speedlight is already wireless ready).
DPS is great too and often spurs my random searches on technique.
Teaching and discussing with friends does a great deal for my knowledge too, particularly if you go to shoot something with a friend you can compare techniques and experiment.
Friends blogs are good too, particularly asking them how they got certain photos and discussing how I might have approached the same scene from a different direction.
Experimentation is probably the biggest learning factor for me - I often try changing to manual or auto to see what I can do with it, exposure bracketing shows a lot about certain situations.
September 11th, 2007 at 4:07 am
In order:
1- Canon advenced user manual
2- PDF of Wiley Digital Photography Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks
http://www.photoworkshop.com/photo101/simplified
3- PDF of Wiley 50 Fast Digital Camera Techniques
http://www.photoworkshop.com/photo101/fast50
4- Flickr comments
September 11th, 2007 at 4:42 am
I’ve been mainly learning from the plethora of photography blogs and related sites on the web. I have learned some valuable information from books, though. Here’s a few of the ones I enjoyed the most:
The Secrets of Lighting on Location by Bob Krist
The Negative by Ansel Adams
Photojournalism by Kenneth Kobre
Lighting and The Dramatic Portrait by Michael Grecco
The Joy of Photography by The Eastman Kodak Company
September 11th, 2007 at 5:05 am
I get of my information from dps and flickr.
September 11th, 2007 at 5:13 am
Right here … as a mater of fact :)
September 11th, 2007 at 5:34 am
took a few classes to learn the basics, read a few books, particularly liked the ones by John Hedgecoe, spent a few afternoons at borders and barnes and noble, browsing through the books in their photography section.
other than that i continue learning from looking at other photographers works, i maintain a daily photo blog, and visit a number of photo blogs every day. receiving and providing feedback to other phlogers on their daily posts has been an educating as well as a fun activity.
September 11th, 2007 at 5:35 am
o, and i forgot to mention, i visit DPS every day as well :)
September 11th, 2007 at 5:35 am
In addition to this website (a good, inspiring resource) there’s:
Photos (especially those describing the technique) online at Flickr and similar sites.
Photo “idea” books, photographer- and subject-specific “coffee table” volumes, Bryan Peterson’s entertaining guides.
September 11th, 2007 at 5:43 am
I have learned alot from the Lynda.com tutorials. Especially Chris Orwig - http://www.chrisorwig.com - he is a pro photographer based in Santa Monica California and he teaches at the Brooks Institute of Photography. I also have learned alot at http://www.thedigitalphotographyshow.com - it’s a great podcast hosted by amatuer photographers that interview the pros - so the questions being asked are questions that me, as a amatuer, would ask.
My favorite books are any that Scott Kelby writes!
Hope this helps,
Laurel
September 11th, 2007 at 5:50 am
trials and errors. and taking examples from other photographers.
September 11th, 2007 at 5:54 am
The vast majority of my learning has come from taking pictures, posting them online, and seeking out critiques, as well as studying the work of more experienced photographers. While I’ve taken classes and read plenty of magazines, online articles, etc., I find that these are best for learning the basics–refining them and integrating them into how you take photos is a matter of practice.
September 11th, 2007 at 8:17 am
I’ve learnt a vast amount from this site - indeed Pentax owe you a debt of gratitude as without this site my fleeting interest may not have become a full-blown hobby!
Other than this I learn a huge amount by looking on Flickr. There are some amazing shots out there and sometimes you can get to the exif data to see the details of how they were shot (not everyone makes it available/can make it available). One of the best techniques i’ve tried in Flickr is to find someone who has taken a brilliant shot and then look through their ‘favourite’ shots (i.e. shots they’ve favourited). Often these people have an ‘eye’ for photography and so favourite some of the better shots too. I guess this is much like the whole interestingness thing from Flickr but it lets me jump around subjects/styles quite quickly.
I have a couple of books (Scott Kelby one -won in a comp here!, and a £1 one from a bookstore sale forget the name). I read them and found them interesting but i’m now more interested in composition ‘theory’ (for want of a better word) and how objects relate to each other in shape/texture/size etc.
September 11th, 2007 at 9:37 am
Mostly the web, and magazines. Or in particular, the Digital Camera Magazine (http://www.dcmag.co.uk).
As far as web goes, it’s mostly this site, a few Flickr groups and strobist.com. There’s probably a few other sights I visit once in awhile, but those are my main resources.
September 11th, 2007 at 9:59 am
Books (John Shaw, Galen Rowell, Ansel Adams)
Photo Techniques and Outdoor Photographer magazines
http://www.photo.net
My dad
September 11th, 2007 at 12:02 pm
I learnt most about photography from websites and forums. Its just much more convenient to read while at work :P
1. Digital-Photography-School.com of course!
2. Flickr groups
3. Clubsnap.com
The only photography book I’ve read:
1. “The Digital Photography Book” by Scott Kelby - Great Book!
September 11th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
I’ve been listening to Tips From The Top Floor podcast for about 9 months. I also, of course, read DPS, and fiddle with my camera when I’m bored.
September 11th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
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September 11th, 2007 at 8:16 pm
I learn a lot from DPS, Flickr and other various websites.
September 11th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
From my point of view, though I’ve had a Digital SLR for four years and been “doing” photography since the early fifties, I find I am learning from everywhere. Everywhere in this case means across the Web, sites like yours, Flikr, Images on iGoogle, nasa, anything is grist to the mill. I also feel that we all have a natural bent in photography so I am looking to widen my scope by looking at other people’s work to see how it relates to mine or could widen mine. Something new every day regardless of age and how long you’ve been looking.
September 11th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
I learn a lot from Kenb Rockwell over at http://www.KenRockwell.com and from The Strobist at http://strobist.blogspot.com/
Books such as Bryan Peterson’s wonderful, “Understanding Exposure” and “Understanding Digital Photography” have also been primary sources for me. You can see reviews of these at my site. There’s a link on my name above.
This site is also great and I have picked up a lot here as well. Finally, I have a good friend who has been making photographs for about 40 years. He’s been a great resource.
September 11th, 2007 at 10:43 pm
Not to butt-kiss or anything but I have learned most about practical things from this site-the articles and tips.
I have developed an EYE for photography with the help of several professional photographer blogs. They don’t have tips, just their photographs and visiting them often, I have developed a better sense of a picture and bit of technique.
September 11th, 2007 at 11:16 pm
friends, DPS, trial and “error,” DPS, old photography teachers, DPS, dad(amature photographer), DPS, co-workers husband. prof. photographer, DPS, walking in photo studios and talking to photographer if they will talk.. and they love to share
cheryl
September 11th, 2007 at 11:53 pm
I was a film phoitographer since the early 50s. I have been a pro and semi pro since then. I only went digital in the past December. My Photo Bible was Graphic Gaphlex Photography. ( I started with large format) and while working as a medical photog I consulted with Kodak on specific topics. While working as a portrait Photog for Life Touch directories their critiques were very good about portraiture
September 12th, 2007 at 12:14 am
I took a class from Bryan Peterson on-line (Understanding Exposure at PPSOP.com) who really opened my eyes about what my dslr could do and the kinds of pictures I could take. I’ve learned a lot from this site and from Flickr. I’m also doing a correspondence course from New York Institute of Photography, which is excellent and very thorough.
September 12th, 2007 at 1:06 am
I’ve learned about photography from a few different sources,over the years.talking to other photographers,my brother frequentily, the web and a lot from just taking pictures and seeing what the camera will do if I change the setting.So I’ll say that I learned the basics(aperture/shutter/ISO) from my brother and also beeing curious and visiting sites about photography.I wish I could have acess to sites like DPS,Flickr,Woophy…in portuguese language,so I could learn and understand even more.
September 12th, 2007 at 1:10 am
Hi
My strongest photo learning sources are on the Internet.
Hardware:
- dpreview.com
- outdoorphotographer.com
- Thom Hogan’s site: http://www.bythom.com
- kodak.com
- photography.about.com
- nikonistas.com
- nikoncafe.com
- imaging-resource.com
- outbackphoto.com
- KenRockwell.com
- brands sites: Gitzo, Manfrotto, Nikon, Sigma, etc.
Photo technique:
- outdoorphotographer.com
- DPS
- photography.about.com
- outbackphoto.com
- KenRockwell.com
- Some professional and amateur photographers webpages
Software
- outbackphoto.com
- DPS
- KenRockwell.com
- photography.about.com
- brands sites: Adobe, Corel, , etc
Of course I read some books to:
- Bryan Peterson’s
- Michael Freeman’s
- Scott Kelby’s
- Thom Hogan Guides
- etc
Magazines:
- FotoDigital (Portugal)
- Outdoor Photographer
September 12th, 2007 at 1:15 am
I forgot to say that I receive, every day, the Digital Photography School email updates
September 12th, 2007 at 1:41 am
I do most of my learning through websites, but am taking my first photography course beginning next week.
1. Via RSS feed: http://digital-photography-school.com/blog/
2. Just found this one today: http://www.aguntherphotography.com/projects/tutorials.htm (I’m more interested in his photography tips than his PhotoShop tutorials.)
September 12th, 2007 at 1:53 am
I can’t say one place that sticks out more then any other but I feel I learn the most by looking at other peoples art and reading about how they setup and/or the techniques they used to take the picture.
September 12th, 2007 at 2:42 am
http://www.pixalo.com -Very friendly place
http://www.fredmiranda.com - Good reviews
September 12th, 2007 at 10:10 am
Mostly? A lot of trial & error, with feedback on the DPS forums.
Online:
* dpreview.com - surprisingly, I learned a lot from just reading their very detailed reviews of the cameras I have; much more thorough and easier to read then the actual manual that comes with the camera.
* dcviews.com - information & tutorials.
Books:
The Kodak Library (15 books) & The Photographer’s Manual by John Freeman, although to be honest, I get a lot more out of the DPS forum than I do out of the books.
September 12th, 2007 at 2:56 pm
I’m new to this photography field and i would like to say i haven’t become a ameture yet. well, by reading some of the technical aspects in http://www.digital-photography-school.com and some demos on photography in youtube.com i’m picking up my skills. yet another website is http://www.canon.co.in/ where in they have explained some of the techniques in brief with animation also. I also look some of the great pictures in flicker.com and try to study how the picture has been taken.
September 12th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
National Geographic Field Guide series, magazines, books. Recently I came across Photography, compiled by Ken Leonard. It has links to almost everything about photography in it. :) Hopefully, I’ll get to finish it before the year ends.
The Lisa Show
September 12th, 2007 at 4:00 pm
I started in highschool with film.
from the knowledge I gained in that class.
photoshop was simple to use.
gee the tool names are the same terms used in the dark room.
gee I wonder what it does…
and playing around.
the more advanced skills I learned from magazines.
Practical Photography(imported from england to my localbook store). and photoshop mag(I forget the exact name.)
and from Treklens.com
the photographers there have had been a great help.
my favorites photographers are not there anymore, there was a rebellion and a lot of accounts got suspended.
but in that site you can do workshops on each others photos and post what/why/how you did to their photo to make it better.
September 12th, 2007 at 8:57 pm
1. This site
2. Flickr.com
3. kenrockwell.com
4. trying and failing
September 13th, 2007 at 7:20 pm
ah, I learn most by screwing up shots and having to re-take them… from friends, from you, Darren.. DPS mainly.. a couple of magazines..
September 14th, 2007 at 10:08 am
While I am an experienced photog in film, digital is still a relatively new experience for me. Most of my learning comes from experimenting with tried&true film techniques for digital, talking/sharing photos with other photographers and reading the tips on DPS, which even if I already know them, start my little grey cells into action.
September 14th, 2007 at 10:14 am
Mainly by learning from my mistakes, but every now and again i use a few select sites. These are my favorite ones.
http://www.fredmiranda.com - Good reviews
http://www.your-digital-photography.com - Good For Amateurs
September 14th, 2007 at 7:46 pm
Well i learn About Photography through Wesite,I do used to do alot of googling untill i found some really good site to get my Photography more sharp then before,earlier ,i did not even knew how to handle a camera, but i can say Cheese to anyone to capture him!! Thank you very much for providing this wonderful help!
September 14th, 2007 at 11:38 pm
I’ve learned the most from http://www.Strobist.com.
David Hobby gives lots of examples from when he was a full-time photographer at the Baltimore Sun (he’s now on a one-year sabatical to maintain the web site and produce a DVD.)
Although the lessons can be used with any off-camera lighting (which is the focus of the site,) it is targeted mainly at those of us who carry around the flash units most often used on-camera, such as the Nikon SB-800 (down to the SB-24) or the Canon hot-shoe flash series.
The amount of great light that he is able to produce with ’speedlights’ is incredible.
If you use a camera, you owe it to yourself (and those who will look at your pictures) to visit Strobist.com.
I visit lots of other places as well, but Strobist is one that I visit every day (along with the Flickr discussion and photo group.)
September 17th, 2007 at 4:12 am
First of all, I have to admit I learned allot by… pretending to photograph. Really. I had no camera but I teach my eye to see creatively.
Then I got a camera and I preferred to rather discover what it does than reading in some book ( i applied the “learning from mistakes” principle). I let others critic my pics during I surfed for “best images”.
Currently, I got accepted in a photography forum that has strong rules about who posts there: a 4 very good photos candidature is needed. Why am I mentioning this? Because I believe it matters allot in what kind of photography group someone is. It’s important to look at the best and talk with the best. As higher as you look, as higher as you get.
As for links, this is a good one: http://www.morguefile.com/
September 17th, 2007 at 4:16 am
One more thing: when I said - surfed for “best images” - I was referring at things like Nation Geographic. I really love to get inspired by such pictures.
September 17th, 2007 at 4:17 am
I work with Lau at her blog, helping her with the design and promotion.
I’m not to much into photography but I’ve got some passion.
I must recognize I’ve learned a lot from http://www.photoaxe.com/
Some of my photographs I have made after I learned from Lau are posted on my blog here (it’s a Romania blog and the link goes to the photography category).
September 17th, 2007 at 6:47 am
I learned on the job as a ski hill photographer. They gave me a few pointers and sent me up to the scenic overlook and said shoot. Through trial and error I perfected my photography techniques.
October 13th, 2007 at 12:20 am
I’ve learned from this website and some books like Shaw’s and Peterson’s. The most important one is experimenting taking pictures yourself.