The Beginner's Photography Guide: The Ultimate Step-by-Step Manual for Getting the Most from Your Digital Camera

by Chris Gatcum

The Beginner's Photography Guide, 2nd Edition is DK's bestselling manual for any novice photographer who wants to unlock the potential of their new digital camera.

Assuming no prior knowledge, this guide's easy-to-follow, step-by-step layout makes it accessible as it takes you through every technique you need to create stunning images, from exposure to flash to image enhancement. Handy checklists provide a quick rundown of the equipment and camera settings for each technique, and at-a-glance comparison images show how camera settings can produce remarkably different results. Hundreds of inspirational images provide even more motivation to reach your goal.

Fully updated to reflect all the latest developments in technology and creative trends in digital image-making, The Beginner's Photography Guide, 2nd Edition will empower you to achieve your full potential as a digital photographer.

Genres: Photography, Nonfiction, Reference, Art, Self Help

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent introduction to digital photography.
The book is very picture heavy (of course).
I got the kindle version but read it on PC which worked out great.
I took a look at it on a tablet kindle app and it was still very usable but I preferred reading it on the PC.

[Aruna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read book for anyone who wants to learn Digital Photography. What I liked about the book was that it did not limit itself to DSLRs but covered bridge cameras as well. It is not too heavy on technical details and explains techniques in a very lucid manner with plenty of examples.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wouldn't have minded a few more pages on types of cameras and choosing the right one for what I want. Other than that, this was exactly what I was looking for. Basic, background level, easy to read.

[Tina Panik · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic guide filled with practical tips and explanations for new and old photographers alike.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really helped me understand my Canon a little more. This it's my first camera that's not a point and shoot.

[Notael Elrein]

This was so simple and full of stuff I intuitively picked up from using my phone, just taking photos and editing blindly. A lot of stuff feels obvious, and it’s just that I don't have a camera that any of it feels new. I don’t know what I expected from picking this book up. Perhaps this is how school textbooks felt, but I don’t remember them at all to tell the tale. There were some casual photos of zoo aquariums and hunted animals which are not vegan and it is so baffling that they just casually threw them in like it’s the most untriggering thing ever. We need photographers exposing slaughterhouses and hunting, but this was not it. I was half asleep when I read it and not sure if I was genuinely just sleepy or if this was just that not interesting.

[Brandon Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lives up to its name

Having limited experience about a decade ago (I took a digital arts course in high school), I was pleased that this book features all the important concepts and techniques that someone new to the artform should know. From deciding which type of camera to use, to editing pictures in post production, and everything in between, this guide has it all and does so succinctly and with plenty of step-by-step instructions with pictures (of course). In many ways it is an encyclopedia to beginner's photography. I found the chapter on exposure the most useful as I never really understood it prior.

All in all, this guide makes for a perfect introduction to digital photography. 5 stars, would recommend.

[David Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book for beginners and gives you the basics that you need to know in order to understand how to get the most out of your new DSLR. If you're a beginner that doesn't know the difference between focus, shutter speed or aperture; then this book will help you tremendously on your way to figuring out how to use these settings to produce the picture that you want.

This book won't make you an expert (only time and practice will do that), but it will definitely give you confidence in making manual adjustments to your camera.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published in 2013 this book is now slightly dated in the digital photography world. Yet, I found it to be an informative read that assisted in the transition from auto to manual. A few additional readings and YouTube videos were needed to supplement but overall the book was a great guide in transitioning to manual. Take some time in reading as the new concepts can be heavy if you don’t take the appropriate time to digest the information.

[Cradle2ACasket · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book for someone who is familiar with photography and has some experience, as well as someone who has just picked up a camera. I had a good handle on most of what was in this book, but I appreciated the simplicity a d user friendly way this book was put together. I also loved that they added a little bit of editing basics in the back. A great book for more in-depth knowledge on how to use your camera and take photos as a beginner.

[Kimberly D Lopez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned so much!

This book was worth so much more than the cost. I now understand concepts and abbreviations that were keeping me from utilizing my expensive camera. What every user guide actually aught to be.

[Nicole Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent for a beginner

I love how easy this book is to follow. You can follow along with your camera as you learn each step. The examples included are excellent. Highly recommended.

[lauraღ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Neat. I do have a few ideas of cool photos I want to take now.

[Joe Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best beginner books you can get on learning how to operate a camera. Goes through every step and detail, and learned from this book than any other beginner photography book.

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the simple way this book explained photography techniques. There were samples of how to improve your photography in easy to understand language.

[Stina Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of useful information

[VIKAS SHUKLA · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best photography for beginners with examples and lessons.

[Howard Lenos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic resource packed with practical information, even for experienced photographers. Would consider purchasing a reference copy.

[Courtney Woodward · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book for a photography project, sadly I didn’t get that much information out of it but it was still a good read for if you’re starting out.

[Jideão · Rating 5 out of 5]

Livro excelente e bem didático para ensinar o básico de fotografia. Foi bastante útil.

[Daniel Hollands · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice introduction to owning a digital camera, and what it can do.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book.vwry helpful and I especially live the illistrations.it helps to understand what is being said

[DJ Dorsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative and pretty easy to understand. Plenty of pictures with explanations and concepts.

[Emma Hancock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish it had more descriptions on camera and lens types, but overall, very good information.

[Glynis Rosser · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great, easy to follow, how to guide of the basics. It assumes no prior knowledge.

[Winifred]

Good book for learning about photography. I found it very helpful.

[Rachel Smalter Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is awesome! I looked at a lot of books about learning photography, and this was by far the most useful to me. This would be great for ANY beginning photographer who wants to get straight to the good stuff without wading through tons of excess info, opinions, and theory.

It's divided into 8 or so chapters that cover all the fundamentals of photography, and each chapter is divided into short "mini-lessons" that provide really straightforward explanations and concrete how-tos. And every single dang section immediately improved my results with photography with one new little setting or trick to try.

This book didn't really go into composition or inspirational photo prompts or anything, it just stuck to basic technique which is exactly what I wanted. LOVED. IT.

[Libby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have an embarrassingly rubbish A level in photography from almost 20 years ago; I’m ashamed to say not only did I not even try one little bit while I was studying, I have also forgotten the few things I actually learnt. One of the problems of teaching is that creativity becomes stifled, so I thought I’d try photography again. I learnt more in the hour it took to read this book than I did in two years of college sessions. Probably as I wasn’t too busy flirting with the blonde boy on my table this time around.

The book is simple, the photos included make perfect sense and I am excited to put some of these new techniques into practice.

[Audrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

My photography skills fr needed this

[Kathrynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

For starters, this book uses 2 camera's for examples: Nikon D3200 and Canon EOS 6D. I own the Canon Rebel EOS 6i, so all the better!

Excellent examples and each picture also has a guide as to what was done with a camera to achieve that particular look. Everything is in full color except for the example black and white photos.

The book is divided into 7 Parts:

1. Equipment
This part explains the various types of cameras: cameraphone, basic compact, advanced compact, bridge/superzoom, CSC and DSLR. This section also talks about camera equipment, bags, tripods, lenses, flashes, how to properly hold a camera--and examples of improper holds in a multitude of standing, sitting, and laying down positions. JPEG or RAW is also discussed here.

2. Exposure
This is the bulk of the book and my favorite section. This portion explains basic and advanced techniques for a multitude of scenes. First, shutter speed, ISO, aperture and more. Scene modes on most cameras--with picture examples.

3. Focusing (manual and auto)
Reframing, point of focus, tracking a moving subject, high speed subjects. (very short section)

4. Lenses
Great example of focal length; wide angle lenses (indoor and outdoor), telephoto lenses for portraits and distant subjects, MACRO...

5. Available Light
Great section showing how pictures look in various sun positions as well as indoor lighting problems and how to correct. Neat Kelvin scale on light color, white balancing, using reflectors, diffusers, creating halos, silhouette, lens flare and much more

6. Flash
Sync speeds and guide numbers are explained with excellent pictures--labeled--as examples. How to bounce the flash, using a flash at night

7. Image Enhancement
The smallest section and gives examples, using Photoshop elements of how enhance pictures: cropping for impact, correcting exposure, adjusting contrast, boosting color, converting to black and white, toning an image, enhancing crisp details

Nicely done and one of my favorites!