Read This If You Want to Take Great Photographs

Photography is now more popular than ever thanks to the rapid development of digital cameras. Read This If You Want to Take Great Photographs is for this new wave of DSLR dabblers and amateur snapshooters. It contains no graphs, no techie diagrams and no camera-club jargon. Instead, it inspires readers through iconic images and playful copy packed with hands-on tips. Split into five sections, the book covers composition, exposure, light, lenses, and the art of seeing. Masterpieces by acclaimed photographers including Henri Cartier- Bresson, Sebastiao Salgado, Fay Godwin, Nadav Kander, Daido Moriyama and Martin Parr serve to illustrate points and encourage readers to try out new ideas. Todays aspiring photographers want immediacy and see photography as an affordable way of expressing themselves quickly and creatively. This handbook meets their needs, teaching them how to take photographs using professional techniques. 

Introduction Start by ignoring everything Composition Leading lines / Landscape or portrait? / Framing / Foreground interest / Close-ups / Symmetry / The rule of thirds / Working the frame / Visual weight / Breaking the rules Exposure Modes / Shutter speed and shutter priority / Slow shutter speeds / Tripods / Fast shutter speeds / Aperture and aperture priority / Shallow depth of field / Deep depth of field / ISO / Manual / Exposure compensation Light Hard light / Soft light / Natural and artificial light / White balance / Inbuilt flash / Fill flash Lenses Lenses made easy / Wide angle: short focal length / Telephoto: long focal length / Standard focal length / Prime lenses / Macro photography Seeing Decisive moments / The dangers of perfectionism / What is beauty? / The art of seeing / Get physical / Tough love / Take your time / Be specific / The importance of intrigue / The X factor / Shoot a project Conclusion The secret to taking great pictures