One of the first books that I bought on the topic of Digital Photography was Ben Long’s Complete Digital Photography. It’s currently in it’s fourth edition (I bought the third originally but have since seen the latest edition and will base this review upon it).
Book Rating: 4.5 out of 5
I bought it on the recommendation of a friend who told me that it was one of the most comprehensive books that he’d written on Digital Photography and that while there are many ‘light’ and ‘fluffy’ books on the topic out there (light and fluffy were his words) that Ben’s book was a much more comprehensive introduction and exploration of the topic.
I’ll be honest here, my first impressions of Complete Digital Photography were not great, when the book first arrived from Amazon I pulled it out of the package and my first thought was ‘text book’. This is not the sexiest looking digital photography book going around (note, the new version has some improvements in this).
However I resisted judging the book on it’s cover and began to read. I’ve not stopped reading it since.
As my friend said in his recommendation – Ben Long has put together a very comprehensive guide to digital photography.
The information contained in this 576 page epic is solid and very helpful. It covers everything from talking readers through how a camera works to how to buy one, to shooting tips (composition, sharp images etc) through to post production and photo editing.
Ben has the ability to explain some of the more complicated aspects of photography simply and more importantly in a way that readers will be able to apply as they explore their hobby.
I would especially recommend Complete Digital Photography for anyone transitioning from film to digital – Ben explains a lot of ‘digital speak’ into a language that film photographers will understand. I guess it’s first edition was written primary for this audience. (more…)
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