Digital Photography Essentials [Hardcover]

I've always liked the DK books. They are brimming with gorgeous photographs and the main text is broken up by sidebars, captions, and more pictures. Digital Photography Essentials is amore jampacked with information than any other DK book I've read, but retains the formulaic design and makes for me what is a difficult topic understandable and even feasible to attempt.

This is not a book for one who just wants to use the scene modes and automatic. If you prefer a small compact with automatic settings, you may still enjoy this book and learn from it, but it's overkill to the extreme.

There's far more information and examples in here than a Potato Head can possibly absorb on the first read, especially when reading it cover to cover as I did. This is a good book to keep on the shelf, and whenever you need advice from your own personal pro, just pull "Essentials" off of the shelf and dig in. Want to work on aperture, or low light settings, or children's photos? Turn to that section and refresh your skills and knowledge. The author explains the rationale for his camera settings clearly and amply exemplifies the results of various settings and techniques.

It's difficult to think of something that's not in here. Ang takes one through choosing a camera, taking that great shot, post processing, and sharing. Many readers may find certain chapters redundant, but there's a little bit to learn in every chapter, even for the experienced photographer.

On the other hand, casual photographers may not care to learn about studio lighting or portable flash, or cafe culture, but every chapter is at least worth a glance, and in time one's interests may expand and evolve.

I've read at least five photography books in the past month, and this is the one I'd want to keep on my shelf.

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