Are you stuck on the auto mode on your camera? Frustrated by the fact that you know you own a great camera but are unable to use it to capture the photographs you’ve always wanted and that you “see” in your mind but can’t get the camera to take? Did you purchase a new camera or receive one as a gift, excited about the wonderful possibilities of creating amazing photographs, only to open the camera manual and find yourself overwhelmed at all the technical information in front of you, thinking there is no way I can do this? In this book, I am going to get you out of “auto” mode and on your way to creating the incredible photographs you’ve always dreamed of! This book will take you from automatic to full manual settings in a new and easy to implement way, giving you the control you need to capture images the way you desire. “Photography Demystified—Your Guide to Understanding Photography, Gaining Creative Control and Taking Amazing Photographs!” has been designed to resolve your frustrations and photography difficulties. This book will give you the tools, education and practical applications needed to understand how to take great pictures! PLUS, a section entirely dedicated to assignments has been included! Video tutorials are also available at no charge! Along with my wife Ally, I own McKay Photography Academy. Leading hundreds of photographic tours around the world, I have taught over twelve thousand people just like you how to excel in photography. Having earned my Master of Photography and Photographic Craftsmen degrees from Professional Photographers of America, the leading photography organization in the world, I have been a full time professional photographer for over twenty nine years and am passionate about teaching others how to achieve great results in their photography. My motivation is to see that everyone can enjoy photography and take the frustration out of the process! Beginning photographers, camera buffs, photo enthusiast, and many others who struggle with understanding photography concepts, exposure, and their camera manuals have already experienced my proven methods of teaching beginner’s photography. This book will do the same for you! • Terry L from Santa Cruz, CA “Taking someone off automatic settings to manual settings can be daunting at times. Fortunately, I have had the experience of learning from David McKay. David has taken me further into the world of photography than I could have ever imagined.” • Keith W from Austin, TX “David is one of those rare individuals that combine passion, extensive knowledge and a laid-back style in teaching photography. What else can I say; it is refreshing to learn from someone this talented.” • Steve of Steve Scurich Photography in Santa Barbara,CA “The ability to take decades of complex photography knowledge and boil it down into concepts that are clear, understandable and easy to implement, is David’s gift to the world. Personally, I am forever grateful for the inspiration and encouragement he’s given me.” • Denise Mann from San Antonio, TX “David McKay is passionate about photography and equally as passionate about teaching it to those eager to learn.” • Jeff G from Sacramento CA “David McKay is a great photographer—not every photographer can be a great educator, David is! David is able to take complicated topics and break them down to something easy to digest and practical to implement—you are inspired to go out and use what you just learned!” • Kara from San Jose, CA “You can’t help but to feel his love for photography and his passion for teaching.
I'm a fiction reader by heart but wanted to dip.my feedback into the world of non fiction study so I could master my dslr. This was such an easy an informative read with great example photos. The writer addressed problems I didn't realize I was having clearly and provides solutions and tasks to help newer photographers accomplish their goals.
I have attended their photography class many years ago and learned a lot. This book builds to reinforce the class. Lots of useful information for a novice photographer and even an expert photographer. The exposure triangle, the light meter, the histogram are all very well documented. Love this book for advice on everything photography - camera, lens, flash, exposure and even memory cards. I was already shooting in manual mode and in Raw format but this book made me change to raw + jpeg. The actions after every chapter is very useful and I urge every reader to judiciously follow through with the actions. If you do what is recommended by David, I assure you you too will never shoot in the Auto or scene mode and take full control of your camera. A resounding recommendation for this book by a user who has taken Ally and David's class and read this book cover to cover. Thank you David! Enjoyed reading this book and can't wait for the next one or more!
I am a fairly experienced photographer but I wish I'd had this book when I started! The content is clear, well written and arranged in an easy-to-read format. Mr. McKay has found a balance in presenting both the creative and the technical skills necessary to create a good photograph and the exercises he asks the reader to complete stretch the photographer both ways. Personally, I found that by actually doing these, even though I knew many of them, I learned and re-learned all sorts of things about my cameras as well as some new creative techniques. All in all, I can honestly recommend this book to almost anyone seeking to improve their photography. I think you'll enjoy it!
Several years ago I attended a photography workshop in the Sacramento area with David and Ally. I left the workshop totally committed to applying all I'd learned and I had photographs of the presentation slides to guide me. And, LIFE got in the way and I lost momentum and I forgot the words that went with the slides.
This book is a great resource and it provides the words to put me back on track.
This was one of the best books I read when I first started getting into photography. Most beginner books are absolute garbage, but you will gain a solid foundation from this quick read and be able to get out of auto in no time.