5 comments about How to Take Great Pet Pictures: Recipes for Outstanding Results With Any Camera.

1. Thank you for your prompt service. Your communication every step of the way was greatly appreciated.



2. I found this book really useful for taking the best pictures ever of my four legged family members. I am not a professional photographer and just used to point and shoot. Now I have an idea of how to get the best possible picture. I've produced some great shots!



3. I bought this book based on the rating's. Once it arrived i sold it as a used book on amazon within 5 minutes. If you need a book in the bathroom to keep you occupied, or if you want to see 1 or 2 good dog pictures. Then by almeans buy this book. But if you are a serious photographer then pass this on by. The best part about this book was the B&W photo of the pug. Plus i broke even when i resold it.



4. As other reviews have indicated, this book may be very good for many people who might be interested in this title. I think it gives some great tips for amateur photographers on lighting, composing pictures, etc., and the tips can be applied to a wide range of pets -- not just cats & dogs, but birds, other small mammals, reptiles, etc. If you're not sure that you "have an eye" for photography, but you know a good picture when you see one, you may be very pleased with this book. However, I think it should be emphasized that the tips are very much oriented towards photographing your own pet, or possibly a pet with its owner -- not so much "pet pictures" in general.

   Let me explain: I'm very happy with the pictures I get of my dog, and in general I have a reasonably good eye for photography. However, I've been volunteering at a local animal shelter, and I'm trying to get pictures of the animals there. Some of my dog photography skills transfer, but the cats can be a problem. I was hoping that this book would provide some specific technigues for getting your subjects to relax, catching their attention long enough to get a good shot of their faces, etc.

   Basically, I need an approach that's more "Sears portrait studio" than "downtown art gallery". Instead, the author's first two tips on animal behavior are to start them young so they get used to being photographed, and to study their individual behavior (from the book): "Wildlife photographers spend weeks, months, and sometimes even years observing their subjects in pursuit of elusive images." This is very good advice for someone looking to get pictures of their own pet, but neither of these is really an option in my circumstances.

   As I've said, for many people, this may be just the book they're looking for. However, if I find a title which better meets my criteria, I will try to add it to the "recommends instead of" field of this record. Happy photographing!




5. I've taken pictures of my pets nearly all my life, but until I read "How to Take Great Pet Pictures," too many of my pictures never captured the true spirit of my pets. After spending just a short time reading this beautifully-illustrated, well-written book, I now feel like I can finally take those great pet pictures I've always wanted, but never managed to create. Thanks, Ron, for the wonderful tips and the great inspiration!

1 comments about Surfboards.

1. For those of us in love with the surfboard, Guy Motil's book is a treasure full of photographs and comments. Never before as such a complete timeline of the surfboard been documented. The movement from longboard to shortboard and back, and in between, is clearly marked and measured. Like photographs of waves and women, the photographs of surfboards are simply beautiful.

3 comments about Life: Places of the Bible: A Photographic Pilgrimage.

1. These pictures aren't even great pictures. They could be of Ireland, South of Spain... anywhere. And they are foggy, blurry. One can really see that they were taken by a non-religious photographer, thinking only on doing his thing.
   
   On the other hand the lack of captions (as the other reviewer mentioned) is not a little minus: it's a huge minus, because I was trying to find like crazy the reference in the text of the exact location of the pictures taken but they don't even say. This is not lack of tact, this is absolute idiocy.
   
   The texts go over the Bible stories like it was the first time the reader ever read the story. No relation to the pictures at all.
   
   Awful.



2. I have to say this book is a must buy...the pictures are amazing if you appreciate bible places. the writing of the book is accurate to the places in the bible and you really can appreciate this book especially when to visit won't happen anytime soon due to the war torn situation happening to a lot of those location pictured. the only and I mean only suggestion I would give this book is for example: the photographs should of had their own caption to explain where the picture was taken, when was it taken and taken by who photographer if the pictures had more detail of their location it would of been 5+ stars!!!! but have to tell you a must have book to own in your collection ESPECIALLY ON THAT COFFEE TABLE PEOPLE WILL PICK THIS BOOK UP AND LOOK!!!!!!!!!!!



3. The book was brand new and arrived in perfect condition. Beautiful photographs and interesting text. Very pleasant viewing

5 comments about Learning to Light: Easy and Affordable Techniques for the Photographer.

1. I regard myself as a reasonably knowlegable amateur - I know all about how exposure works, and I can use my flash bounced.
   
   But I know pretty much nothing about studio lighting.
   
   This book teaches, and teaches well, all about studio lighting, what equipment to buy and how to use it. The prose is clear, and the examples are more than up to the task of teaching the beginner. I learned alot from this book. I suspect that the people who found it inadequate simply knew more going in than I did. For a complete novice to studio lighting, I'd recommend this book without reservation.
   
   But the book is seriously showing its age. There's far too much discussion of film and it's uses, and the lightmeters that it discusses aready look a little... old. Hence the four star rating. If you can find another book on amazon for the complete beginner that actually handles digital issues instead of film, then consider buying that instead. I didn't, and I'm happy with my purchase.



2. I'd give this 2 1/2 stars. It has a lot of very basic information in it, maybe what I'd call the FUNDAMENTALS of lighting which can be helpful. But it's pretty parsimonious in the information it provides. Since most buyers will probably be amateurs, I think the authors have short-changed the reader in areas like the meaning & effects of color temperatures or the various types of tungsten lighting & associated code keys. I don't think that's asking too much more for a book of this price (& title). The final impression I get from this book is that the authors are saving the good stuff for the next... book.



3. this book has sections on everything you can imagine-- I won't get into them all here, but I will say it has an excellent, excelent first section on just equipment: what the different types of lights are, how they're used, sample photos that show the unique characteristics of that light, etc. it also goes into scrims, gobos, snoots, light meters, and allllll that other weird stuff you will need to know about as you get better at lightign. tons of sample photos make this a great reference AND learning guide.



4. As an advanced amateur, I find this to be one of the very best books in my collection. It has given me clear answers to more questions that formally puzzled me, and introduced me to more new techniques, than any other book. I own several other standard books on lighting and feel strongly that this title is tops in the category, and can't resist alerting others to it.

   The authors discuss all sorts of lighting equipment, but also cover light meters, back-drops, reflective surfaces, and household lighting sources such as desk lamps. A final section covers a wonderful variety of projects from low-key portraits to photographing windows.

   The many photographs are perfectly chosen and are subordinated to illustrating the points discussed, rather than being just a show-case for fabulous pictures, as they are in the average photography book. A clear diagram accompanies the description of each lighting approach.

   The one negative Amazon.com review mentions the problem of buying equipment "slowly"... as I develop a basic set of lighting equipment, slowly, I will be glad to have this resource to guide me.




5. I bought the book because I thought the "Easy and Affordable Techniques" would be clever and insightful, which they were not. The author's ultimate advice is to buy the standard lighting equipment, but slowly. While he does explain how/why the standard studio lighting equipment works, so does virtually every lighting book. I prefer the Pro Lighting Series for better photos, better diagrams, and better writing.

5 comments about The San Fernando Valley: America's Suburb.

1. During my stay in the United States more than a year and half ago, while doing my errands, I happened to arrive at the end of the MTA Orange Line bus on its westbound extremity, in a station called "Warner Center". I jumped out of the bus and started strolling with no specific purpose in mind. Seriously, this place I've arrived at has absolutely no touristic appeal at all. Not much people walking around, traffic wasn't intense (I guess this was because it was around 10 in the morning - the rush to work was over), green yards, large boulevards and peacefulness all across. Definitely, this was not a typical Los Angeles neighborhood like Hollywood, Echo Park, Eagle Rock and Venice, much less like South L.A. and Watts. What I saw was a world apart not so far away from the "original L.A." mess, though this was also a Los Angeles neighborhood, with a different atmosphere, aiming constantly to reach perfection.
   
   Even missing that touristic appeal, I thought this was the best spot I've been in during my Southern California trip. No kidding. Laugh at me if you want to. Even the paradisiac beaches which were so close to me wasn't that special. The impact of being at SFV hit hard on me. I know this place has the typical problems that any other major area also has, but it's still enchanting. This fascination led me to purchase this book so I could learn more about it.
   
   Just finished reading the book and my advice is:
   
   This book is simply a "must-have" for every Southern California native or lover who wants to know about the history of San Fernando Valley. Kevin Rodnick did an excellent job describing nicely and in chronological order the happenings that made this once empty space where Spaniards settled in the 1700s the most representative icon of the America's suburb and a - why not - peaceful refuge in the so-troubled Los Angeles area today.
   
   Get it!



2. A great book on the history of the valley. For those of us that grew up in the 60s and 70s this book lacks pictures and stories of that time. If you are looking for memories this book will not bring them back.



3. Very enjoyable. I grew up in the west end of the San Fernando Valley; Van Nuys to Canoga Park. A good friend's grandfather was William Paul Whitsett. She would tell me interesting stories about him. It saddens me to see the condition of the Valley now. I remember the orange groves and horse ranches, but now nothing but houses, houses, houses. Can't go home again, but this book takes me back to a better time and place.



4. As someone who was born and raised in the valley, this book is a great look at the history of the San Fernando Valley from the pioneers who settled it on to modern day. Contains many wonderful photos as well. A fine read for anyone living here who would like to discover a little of it's past and for those of us born and raised here it is an essential look back on the place we call home. Much of the photos will make you say " I remember that!" It did for me upon seeing Lucy and Desi in their home which was located at Devonshire and Tampa and is now a gated housing complex. I grew up in the Porter Ranch area and that home and land are always part of my memories of the area.



5. For those who grew up in the Valley, this book provides a wonderful mix of 'answers-to-trivia-questions' and a solid background in many aspects of its history. For those who've never lived in the Valley or never been there, Kevin Roderick's book will tell you that your culture is far more shaped by the Valley and the people in it than you ever knew.

4 comments about Paris From Above.

1. The images in this book are first rate and very vivid. Paris is of course a gorgeous city and making her look good is not that difficult, but this book does show her at her best. It's easy to forget at street level how green Paris is and how many parks and private green spaces the city possesses, when viewed for the air you see how brilliant Haussmann, Napoleon III's prefect of the Seine, redesigned the city. It was said he designed the grand boulevard so that the Emperor could easily get troops in in the event of politcal unrest, but whatever the reason it makes for a spectacularly beautiful city. I highly recommend this book to anyone with a love for Paris, and frankly who could not love this singular city.



2. I loved this book. It is one of my favorites (and I have many) about Paris.



3. Beware, there are two hardcover versions of this book.
   
   A small approximately 5" X 10" 78 pp hardcover edition at half the price of a larger(more pages and larger size) more expensive hardcover version.
   
   I know, I bought the larger more expensive version after buying the smaller version, I knew I had to have the larger one.



4. I am writing mostly in response to the comments from Dr J E Robinson (Jack in Toronto). I share Jack's general appraisal that this is a "wonderful" book and "the photos are stunning."

   However, I felt that Jack's references to the book's size/length ("short book...not big....all too short") might unduly discourage potential buyers. This is a magnificent book, over-sized, with many double-paged, marginless photographs. The page count, 183, is not great but this is not a "small" book. It comes in on my postal scale at 3 1/2 pounds! I could easily see this book priced at $... As long as Amazon continues to offer it at $..., it is aa terrific value.

   An extra feature of this book that I particularly enjoy is the color, satellite image on the endsheets (front and rear). This is a great image for keeping yourself oriented. I give it an enthusiastic five stars, both in absolute terms, and in acknowledgement of what seems to me an excellent value.

2 comments about Patterns Of The Earth.

1. This photography in this book was amazing! It lets you see the beauty in our world from a different perspective.



2. It is hard to believe that the photos in this book are real earth photos and not paintings. My only regret is that the book is too small to really appreciate the incredible detail and massive scope of the pictures. It would be a good idea to list the overall size of books, espically art-type books such as this one.Patterns Of The Earth

3 comments about Slide Show: The Color Photographs of Helen Levitt.

1. I'm a big fan of Helen Levitt's work & I would love to give this book a 5 star review. Unfortunately her excellent photography is not presented well due to a poor print job. It seems that something went wrong in the scanning or pre press phase. All the photos are too light & the colours are washed out. This is not how Kodachrome should look. Some of the same images are printed in the German book titled 'Helen Levitt' & the difference is significant. The photos in the German book are much more accurate. Unfortunately this publication is no longer in print & hard to come by.
   
   I already knew that this book 'Slide Show' had poor reproductions as I had a chance to view a copy in the library. I bought it anyway because it is the only way to see some of her photos. I can't think what went wrong as Powerhouse seems to be a quality publisher & I own other photography books by them where the printing is fine.



2. The photos in this collection portray working people and poor people, people who are poorly dressed, people without air conditioning on hot summer days, people with ugly pets. The collection is oddly timeless; many photographs of New York can be dated to within a few years by looking at store awnings and, clothing styles, and haircuts, but not these. The people whom Levitt photographed are wearing clothing that was shapeless, ugly, and impossible to date in 1960, 1970, or 1980. With the exception of a couple of photos that show movie theater marquees in the background, nothing here can be dated.
   
   The photos are all the more remarkable because they flatter nobody. Did people give permission to be photographed, knowing how they would look? Had they given up long ago?
   
   Some of the photos give their subjects dignity, but not all. The book is sometimes cruel, sometimes funny.
   
   As an aside, I'd love to know where these photos were taken. Some look like East Harlem, but not a single photo shows a street sign, and I can't identify any of the stores.



3. This collection of Helen Levitt's brilliant color photographs is a treasure. I grew up in the city, and looking through this book, I was immediately transported back to the sights, smells, sounds and feelings of my childhood. These sensitive street scenes are wonderful social documents and pure poetry.

1 comments about 50 Sad Chairs.

1. This book is a hilarious and creative follow up to Milk Eggs and Vodka by
   Bill Keaggy. His humor in the titles shows his creativity and made me laugh over and over. Artistically I am drawn to many of the images, as well and he really made me look at objects that I would drive by and rarely notice.
   Even my kids enjoyed the book. Very Fun!

2 comments about Natural Patagonia / Patagonia natural: Argentina & Chile.

1. Photos are so, so... after visiting Patagonia live, just awesome, its people and gastronomy superb, definitely recommended, book and visit!!



2. When I think of Patagonia, I think of the Natural Wonders of a place that has seen little human intervention. This book has magnificent pictures and in interesting text about the geography and wildlife of Patagonia.