Best book to read on D SLRS?

[BoldAsLove]

title?

I am just starting out, and upgrading from a point and shoot to an XTI most likely.

 

[Brainonska511]

I'm going to an XT myself (budget constraints and the XTi doesn't bring much more to the picture, no pun intended). I've been reading sites like dpreview.com and stevesdigicams.com to learn the basics and other more detailed info about the world of DSLRs.

 

[BoldAsLove]

up

 

[Zenmervolt]

Photography and the Art of Seeing by Freeman Patterson. It was written in 1979, but it will give you great pointers on photography. As for how to use the technical features of your camera, the owner's manual will take care of that.

Get the camera, shoot photos, test, try, learn. That's the way.

ZV

 

[virtuamike]

Photography, by Upton.

 

[ghostman]

For a nice, simple, picture-filled read, try Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. His other books aren't as good.

 

[BoldAsLove]

yea I heard understanding exposure is pretty good...but does it focus on a variety of aspects of the camera and how to use them effectively?

 

[ghostman]

Originally posted by: BoldAsLove
yea I heard understanding exposure is pretty good...but does it focus on a variety of aspects of the camera and how to use them effectively?

I read 3 of his books and I have them all mushed together in my head now. If I remember correctly, he teaches you how to expose your pictures properly (where to point your camera to meter your shot) and goes into a bit of photo composition. He then supplies several examples in his own works.

It's aimed at people new to photography, but it's not a book about "How to use a DSLR" (though he does simply some photography concepts). He'll tell you that you can use a large aperture to get a narrow depth of field, to use a slow shutter to show motion, to use a wide-angle lens to give a storytelling image, but he expects you to know HOW to put your camera in those settings.

In any case, it's a good book. I did a TON of online reading about photography in the months prior to buying my XTI, but I still found the book to be very helpful. Whether it fits what you're looking for or not, it's cheap and a quick read, so I'd say to read it anyway. I borrowed it from the library. Or go to Amazon, check out the "Inside this Book" section and click on "Surprise Me!" to get random pages from the book.

 

[AndrewR]

Originally posted by: Brainonska511
I'm going to an XT myself (budget constraints and the XTi doesn't bring much more to the picture, no pun intended). I've been reading sites like dpreview.com and stevesdigicams.com to learn the basics and other more detailed info about the world of DSLRs.

Save money on the book and read the websites. A good place to go for some tutorials is The Luminous Landscape (www.luminous-landscape.com) as he has some great basic information and more advanced stuff as well. I have a couple books, but I've found most of the information was available somewhere on the web.

I am tempted to buy a National Geographic book about digital photography (one of their Field Guides), but I haven't done it yet. Just spent $80 on military history books so I'm taking it easy on the books for awhile.