5 comments about Designing With Photos.

1. This is such an amazing book on photography. It literally changed my life. I am now a professional photographer working in a field I love. I never knew that I could take beautiful photos until I began using the concepts in this book. It won't take you in depth, but it is a wonderful place to start. Can't wait to see more from the DW group.



2. I got this book mainly because I liked "Expressions" (by the same authors) very much.
   
   The photos and advice given by Ms. Tyler Jones and Ms. Smylie is very useful for the new photographer and provides some fresh ideas for a photographer who has more experience. Their photos are engaging and instructive. I liked the first half of the book (which is geared more to the nuts and bolts of photography) better than the second half of the book (which demonstrates ways of displaying photos.)
   
   It is true that this book is directed towards film photography, but good advice about how to take excellent photos is the same for digital as it is for film cameras. This book gives good, clear instruction on how to take compelling people photos.
   
   I would have given it 4 stars, except the book binding fell apart the second time I read it through, which made it difficult to read and spoiled my enjoyment.



3. because it's a little outdated with all the digital stuff out now...BUT it's awesome for fun photo challenges and how to set up a photo shoot! Great book to include in your photography library.



4. This book is definitely for the person who knows about aperture, exposure, etc. NOT for the BEGINNER. The book is made very well. Too pricey for the contents, your really paying for the quality of the book. Not as much information as I had hoped for by reading the excerpts before purchasing. If you know about cameras and you don't mind paying more for what you are getting...go ahead and purchase. I would say I was more disappointed than upset.



5. This book has basic information such as part and functions of the various parts of different types of cameras. It also has in-depth information for experienced photographers such as lighting and conducting a photo shoot. Half of the book contains a variety of creative ways to use your photographs. These projects may be geared toward more experienced photographers but the beginner can alter them to be more simple and work their way up to more advanced techniques. My favorite part of the book is the way it's put together. It is organized nicely yet fun and the language is not too technical. The illustrations and design of the book demonstrates the author's knowledge and passion on photo arts. EXCELLENT BUY if you have a vested interest in photographing children!

5 comments about Puerto Rico Mio.

1. I can't belive how Mr. Delano took this pictures in a way that it seems they are telling you a complete story. In thi book you can see how Puerto Rico had differente eras and how progress came to our Island. It was not an easy process but you can see it thru the excellent work of Jack Delano. Children, Adults, workers, farmers, everybody even poor people have part in this book because they all were part of our history. An excellent work.



2. This is an amazing book. This book allow the reader to see the different changes than our island had been thru. Excellent.



3. This book is fascinating! After spending an hour with this book I felt like I really knew what time has meant to Borinquen. Hearing family stories is one thing, but seeing pictures from when they were growing up is another. Anyone interested in Puerto Rican history should have this book.



4. I simply love this book. As a starving college student, I still haven't come up with the money to buy it, but...someday I will. I've leafed through it a million times and never get bored by it...as a native Puertorrican living abroad, this is simply my favorite photographic work on my homeland. Delano did an amazing job.



5. The pages of this pictorial opus expresses the legacy, struggle, beauty, misery, joy of Puerto Rico of days past. Second, third generation Puerto Ricans will reconnect with their roots page by page. This is surely an enlighting photo memoir of our People, the images speak louder then words. The power of photograph comes to light in these pages, and Delano did it so well. Delano saves the spirit of Puerto Rico's past, once thought to be lost with faded memories. This is a book to keep for oneself, it strenghtens one's soul.

No comments about Amateur College Men 2009 Calendar.

1 comments about Greetings from the Salton Sea: Folly and Intervention in the Southern California Landscape, 1905-2005 (Center for American Places - Center Books on American Places).

1. The Salton Sea seems to be California's dirty little secret but with the help of Kim Stringfellow's excellent book and growing interest from environmentalists and others this fascinating water and desert area is slowly getting the corrective attention it deserves. In the past this eerie area has had plenty of attention, especially from land developers.
   
   At the start of the photo section of the book there is promotional map from the Holly Corporation showing their early sixties Salton City development. A marina or two, schools, a main street and plenty of landscaped roads are shown, in fact if you look up the City on Google Earth you'll see every road has a name and even the single runway airstrip (naturally called Salton City Airport) is surrounded by curving roads with aeronautical names. You'll also see that very few dwellings were actually built and like so much development around the Sea they became victims of the various environmental and flooding problems not too mention the incredible salt content of the water.
   
   A by-product of the failed commercial developments around the shore means that there is plenty of abandoned buildings and just plain man-made rubbish everywhere, this clearly acts as a magnet for landscape photographers it seems. I first found out about Salton from Troy Paiva's book Lost America: The Abandoned Roadside West which includes about twenty dramatic photos of the area, Kim Stringfellow visited some of the same sites. The forty-five photos in her book are more of a precise visual record of abandonment, either man-made or natural. In the first twenty-nine pages she writes a very succinct history of the Sea and I was pleased to see in the back a couple of very informative web sites listed.
   
   As this is a photo book there is the usual nonsense of not having the captions with the photos, they are in the back with thumbnails of each image so readers have to constantly keep turning pages to find a simple bit of information. Needless to say the captions could have easily been included with photos if the book's designer was more professional.
   
   Apart from the caption aspect (so four stars) I thought this was a fascinating book about a slightly known area of the Golden State and if you want to know (a lot) more check out the Salton Sea Atlas a beautifully produced book of maps and general background material.
   
   ***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

2 comments about The Art of Flower & Garden Photography.

1. Although slight, this book is very entertaining. There are tips throughout, and I certainly thought "Hey, I should try that!" more than a few times, but it's definitely not a manual as much as a select culling of some of the author's favorite shots with his own words explaining them. A chapter on using color in backdrops, for instance, does show a color wheel, but mainly features close-up photos against colored backdrops with comments on how they work; a chapter on "abstracts" shows examples of some abstracts he took and tells you how he came up with the ideas; a chapter on "People" includes pictures of his own kids and tips on how he kept them occupied. Also, although he does make a few comments on shooting in bright sunlight, he definitely is working in England-- not all of us have a lot of overcast, moist days! That said, I don't think this book pretends to be a manual, or anything more than what it is, and I found it really enjoyable to look through, the pictures were simply stunning, and I definitely learned some things I didn't know (I am VERY much a beginner).



2. I purchased this book with an idea that it has more practical value to
   budding garden photographer like myself. After all the name Clive Nichols says it all. Most of everything in garden photography. The photographs in this book are drop dead gorgeous, but I was not looking for coffee table book but for instructional one. Unfortunately I got neither. There is hardly any practical info except for stuff that is widely known even for the beginner. I recommend Paul Harcourt Davies 'Photographing Plants and Flowers' as better how to book.

1 comments about Shadow Catcher: The Life and Work of Edward S. Curtis.

1. This is an excellent biography of Edward S. Cutis. It is a clear look at his life and work. The author writes in a easy reading manner about the ups and downs of the man's life. It contains samples on almost every page of his photos. Since Curtis extensively studied American Indians, this is also a good reference for several rarely talked about tribes!

No comments about JH Engstrom: Haunts.

No comments about Barcelona Then and Now (Then & Now Thunder Bay).

1 comments about Luxury Houses City (Luxury Houses).

1. I really loved, "Luxury Houses: Country," by the same publisher, but was disappointed with this book. I expected more diversity of city design. What I found was alot of pictures of the same thing...no excitement...no uniqueness. Where is the creativity that is found in the Country volume? They missed the mark in this one, :( Spend your money elsewhere. Sorry.

5 comments about The Basic Darkroom Book: compl GT Processing ptg Color Black White photogs for Beginners thru Experts.

1. Finally, after thirty year' hiatus from the darkrook, now I get the technical facts of how to do film processing correctly. Too bad this book is out of print. I am so glad that someone who was in the know suggested it.



2. This book, is so hard to read, i don't know how any one could possibly turn a book that i, a darkroom hobbist my self could have wirtten in perhaps two hundered pages into a 464 page snooz fest. he includes all this unessiccary stuff aout how the film works and summerizeds stuff hes going to explain before he explains it... WHO CARES!!?? if i wanted to know how film works id buy a book on film! If you want to set up a drak room, eihter take a class, or buy a diffent book, thats not so hard to read, its basicly a text book. is it a bad book? nay, but don't expect to use it as a instruction manual, it has about fifty pages of nonsense between the actaul process of making a god damn darkroom!



3. This book by Tom Grimm is by far the most comprehensive and practical handbook on darkroom information and procedures that I have yet read. I have been involved in photography since the early 1950's and this is one of the best books on this aspect of photography that I own. I believe it surpasses that excellent book "Enlarging" by Jacobson and Mannheim that I also own and still use (1975 edition). I just do not understand the previous criticism made that the book requires "a degree" to understand it! The only criticism I would make is that products listed by the author are not always available to UK photographers, as it has, naturally, an American bias, however, even with that small defecit, the book is well worth the price!



4. This is one of the best photography books around, in my opinion. Very very detailed coverage of most all aspects of B&W and color photography. The author does not assum that you have your very own private dark room and makes sigguestions as to how you can use things you probably allready have around your house instead of expensive photography equipement. For instance, the author sigguests that you might use a fish tank and heater to control the temperature of color chemicals! And I tell you what, that is a lot less expensive compared to buying a rotary processor from Jobo.
   
   The author gives detailed explinations of how processos work, and some hostory behind them. He also lets you just jump ahead to the quick and simple overview. This lets you learn about what your doing, if you new to the area, or get a quick review if you're not sure your quite remember how to do something.
   
   Truly a great book, or even textbook for college classes.



5. I am writing this review in order to warn new-comers to the field of photography against buying it. Although the title specifies, "for beginners through experts," this book almost requires a degree to comprehend it. Techniques discussed are not for beginners! The book insists you need to spend vast amounts of money and time to develop prints; this is untrue. In fact, a beginner would need to read 6 chapters of the book, which are extremely confusing, before being able to develop a black-and-white print. The process could quite easily be explained in less than a page.

   In short, I do not recommend anyone buy this terrible book.