Book Review – Read this if you want to take good photographs

I picked this book up when I was at the NGV, visiting an exhibition….and yes, it was the title that caught my eye!

I have to say I like a title that gets straight to the point….and this one does, albeit a rather long one…”Read this if you Want to take Great Photographs”!

OK…I will!

I am the sort of person that doesn’t read instructions…I just jump straight in…THEN I read the instructions if something isn’t working as it should.

And I have been the same with my photography…I tend to just experiment, and learn from my mistakes.

Thank goodness for the invention of digital cameras!

However, this book is just what I needed to fill in the gaps in my knowledge….Henry Carroll uses no fancy graphs and jargon, and just gives the facts…pure and simple!

The introduction contains the comment that no matter how expensive or fancy your camera is, it is still just a box with a hole in it…don’t let all the technical stuff get in the way of of training the most important part of your kit…your eyes!

Very wise words…..

The book is divided into five chapters, covering composition, exposure, light, lenses and seeing…plus an appendix that includes troubleshooting.

The topics within each chapter include an example from a professional photographer…in fact, there are 50 photographers represented in this book, all with their own styles and techniques.

For a newbie like me, it is great to see each point demonstrated in an actual photo!

I have struggled to get my head around aperture and shutter speed, and Carroll has set it out in such a way that I finally now understand…this diagram is worth the price of the book alone for me!

This book is perfect for people wanting to take the jump from a camera phone, to a more complex DSLR…it would also be handy for anyone wanting to go back in time and use a vintage film camera as much of the information can be applied to pre-digital cameras.

I am a proud owner of a Fuji X100s which I absolutely adore….most of the photos on this blog have been taken with this camera…but it has been a big learning curve as this camera is fully manual and not very forgiving…no easy auto settings here!!

This book will enable me to step up to the next level in my photography, and assist me to get the best out of my camera as well as learning to “see” properly!

“Read This if you want to take Great Photographs” by Henry Carroll is available from good book stores and online.

I bought my copy from the NGV shop for AUD$24.95.

Please note: this is not a sponsored post! My opinions are, as always, totally my own!