Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs of Places

by Henry Carroll

From the author of the bestselling Read This If You Want To Take Great Photographs series, this jargon-free introduction covers all aspects of photographing places, including landscapes, cityscapes, architecture, and interiors. Whatever your camera, whatever your interest, whatever your level, this indispensible guide gives you all the essential techniques and demystifies the work of acclaimed photographers. Packed with practical tips and iconic images, this accessible book will arm you with the know-how you need to take meaningful pictures of the places that matter to you most. Featuring 50 master photographers, including Alec Soth, Martin Parr, Robert Adams, Todd Hido, Rut Blees Luxemburg, Julius Shulman, Rinko Kawauchi, Thomas Ruff, Tim Hetherington, and Joel Sternfeld.

Genres: Photography, Nonfiction, Art, Reference, Art and Photography, Design, Collections

128 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 20, 2017

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

Will up my rating if I take great photographs of places

[Thomas Hillring · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very basic, but a lot of good things to think about when it comes to photographing places. The images he's chosen do a good job of illustrating his points.

[Brendan Monroe · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good primer for learning how to take great photos, with some wonderful examples.

[gab · Rating 4 out of 5]

basic primer

[Dolf Patijn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book in the series that I bought as a reference guide, especially for when I'm helping others who are just starting off as this series is aimed at beginning photographers. That being said, there's nothing wrong on reading up on the basics again, looking at the given examples and learning how to best phrase the practices in the book when teaching/helping beginners. I'm already a well-seasoned photographer but sometimes find it hard to explain to others something that has become second nature and sometimes you just forget why you do something. This book explains all the basics very well with clear examples.

If you would like to see my photography, you can see some of it here: https://digitaldolfphotography.wordpr... and here: https://www.facebook.com/digitaldolfp...

[M. Lars]

Not yet finished, but I truly love this book and it is PRECISELY what I needed as a beginner. Clear cut, simple, instructive and pulls on concepts in photography that may seem abstract or elusive, yet renders them in such a way that, to even then beginner, they can bring their own photos to life. It presents the masters, clearly, to students.

I really love it and am so happy and excited that I found this little book to accompany me, as I venture on this newfound hobby of photography.

[Ángela Martínez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tics buenos de fotografía para quienes se estén iniciando, o para repasar ciertos elementos que ayudan tener siempre en cuenta. Tiene buenos referentes, buenos consejos de manejo de cámara en cuanto a iluminación, enfoques, obturación, etc. Comenta las ventajas de lightroom y herramientas básicas pero útiles para la edicion de fotos y tiene también un apartado de preguntas y respuestas en las últimas paginas, muy completa esta guía.

[Agustín Choca · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is always good for those who love to take photographs to read tips and points of view of experienced photographers. It is a great way to keep learning and develop your own eye behind the camera.

[Vita Mikuličiūtė · Rating 5 out of 5]

Labai įkvepianti daryti great photos of places! Tik, aišku, vien įkvėpimas be rezultato nelabai ką reiškia :(

[Ruben · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like picture books

[Nikky Southerland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing in here is revolutionary, but it provides a good reminder to slow down and consider where you are, what light you have, the mood you're trying to convey and the story you're trying to tell with your pictures.

[Jaana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Photography books are tricky, specially nowadays when there's an abundance of material on the Internet and everything get out-dated very quickly. Additionally most of them are exactly the same, this is ISO, this is aperture this is shutter speed. This book covers that as well, very briefly BUT what makes this book enjoyable is that it's just a collection of photos and the description of it by the author or just an observation by the book author. These photos laid out one by one by the technique taken are interesting and inspiring and this is why you should read the book. To get inspired to see your environment and photos in a slightly different or new way.

First photo book I've enjoyed. Granted have read less than 10.

[carl caesar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Siguiendo la tónica de la colección "Lea este libro si desea tomar buenas fotografias..." éste se centra en las fotografía de lugares. Sin entrar mucho en la parte técnica sobre la que ya se habla en el primer libro de la colección, éste se centra más en la fotografía hablando por la parte artística y de encuadre.

Como toda la colección este libro se basa en una descripción de la foto que aparece en la página de al lado y el análisis de los puntos fuertes de dicha fotografía. Desde la dinámica de lo que aparece reflejado en la fotografía hasta el encuadre incluyendo los "personajes" de la misma. Algo que se hace realmente interesante y que enseña al lector a leer una fotografía y a apreciarlas mejor. Algo que hace mucha falta hoy en día en la época donde Instagram crea la tendencia de ver una fotografía durante 1 segundo y pasar a la siguiente sin analizar demasiado.

En la parte un poco negativa del libro, que no considero que sea realmente malo, pero por poner el contrapunto a la review, el libro se hace tremendamente corto. Son pocas páginas y las descripciones y análisis de las fotografías son bastante cortas. Ésto es algo que se puede hacer tremendamente ameno para algunos y algo frustrante para otros. Eso ya cada uno tendrá que valorar su punto de vista, a mi me hubiera gustado poder analizar algo más en profundidad algunas fotografías.

Por otro lado muchas veces se muestra una sola fotografía de toda una colección y eso es algo que puede llegar a descontextualizar en exceso algunas obras que en su conjunto podrían llegar a tener muchísimo más valor.

Como resumen: El libro me parece bastante bueno para amateurs e iniciados, aunque quizás algo escaso para profesionales. La parte interesante es que la "fotografía de lugares" no se ha basado solamente en paisajes sin más, si no que profundiza en todas las variantes de cosas, calles e incluso algunos edificios, algo que me ha parecido realmente bueno.

[Rudolf M · Rating 4 out of 5]

In my free time I enjoy taking photographs and posting them on social media and am very interested in photography in general. Taking photographs of places is a memory and a free souvenir of this special place that you visited. The evidence that you visited a place. I chose this book to improve my own amateure photography skills and to discover the world of photography with its very many details.

I enjoyed reading this book because of the simpatic and relatable language Henry Caroll used while writing about the different photographers and their Pictures. While explicitly describing the techniques of the Photographers he managed to build in humor to distract from the books statistics but still remaining with the same theme.

The only things that slightly irritated me was the fact that the author disagreed with himself a few times while describing concepts of photography and the repetition that sometimes accured throughout the book.I would recomend the book to anybody intrested in photography or visual art.

[Taija · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Photographing sublime scenes should be an exercise in mindfulness.”

Kirjassa opetetaan esimerkkikuvien avulla miten maisemista ja paikoista voi ottaa erilaisia kuvia. Ohjeistetaan kuvaa ottaessa miettimään mitä, miten ja milloin. Esimerkiksi sommittelu, valaistus ja suljinaika ovat tärkeitä.

”But taking great photographs isn’t about going where you’re told. It’s about making your own discoveries.”

Mitään hirveän konkreettista kirja ei antanut, pikemminkin vain herätteli katsomaan kuvattavia asioita eri tavoilla, esimerkiksi eri vuorokauden aikoina erilaisissa valaistuksissa. Tai mitä kuvata: rumia teollisuusrakennuksia, ihmisiä ottamassa kuvaa nähtävyydestä, kauniita paikkoja luonnossa. Ei välttämättä niitä ilmiselvimpiä nähtävyyksiä vaan jotain poikkeavaa, jotain omaa.

Olisin kaivannut kirjaan kuitenkin ehkä enemmän konkretiaa ja vinkkejä.

Kivoja kuvia silti, ja joitain käyttökelpoisia ideoita itse sovellettavaksi. Lopussa mielenkiintoista tekstiä tekijänoikeuksista ja sitä mitä saa kuvata ja mitä ehkä ei.

[Tusia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dostałam tą książkę jako prezent i polecam podarować ją komus również kto ma zajawkę na fotografię!
Książka jest bardzo krótka i przejrzysta, szybko się czyta :) Książka zdecydowanie dla początkujących

Dużo było tu fotografów, których nie znałam, ale zaciekawiły mnie ich prace (i to jak autor je zinterpretował)
Minusem było zdecydowanie to, że Henry Carol wychodził ze swoimi wnioskami zbyt często za daleko, kiedy ewidentnie nie było tam żadnego drugiego dna
Czułam się jakbym czytała jego wypracowanie, które pisze w ostatnie 30 minut przed deadlinem i leje wodę gdzie się da, przez co ok. 15 fotografii mogłoby tu nie być, gdyż nic nie wnosiły i nie łapały za oko
Za mało było tu zdjęć, które zrobiłyby na mnie wrażenie i zainspirowały…
Późniejsze „dygresje techniczne” w książce były zbyt ogólne, stąd 3 gwiazdki
Cieszę sie, że przeczytałam to, na każdej stronie było coś do podkreślenia
Myślę, że ja najwięcej wyniosłam z tego, jak można opisać daną fotografię i zbudować historię wokół niej

[Leila Mota · Rating 5 out of 5]

O livro ideal para quem quer ter ideias e aprender conceitos básicos de fotografia. Pessoas que se distraem facilmente, como eu, têm, confesso, preguiça de estudar a fundo assuntos de natureza técnica. Como, por ex., ler um manual. Digamos que o livro atende a quem gosta de fotografia, pratica a arte por diletantismo, mas não quer estacionar na mediocridade. São apresentados trabalhos de fotógrafos consagrados, famosos ou não. Como fotógrafa amadora, alguns nomes são bem conhecidos, outros não, o que não significa nem que as pessoas não sejam talentosas nem que as fotografias não sejam incríveis em sua concepção. Pode-se nem "gostar" ou "entender", mas certamente elas ilustram até onde a arte da fotografia pode ir. Quando comprei o livro fiquei um pouco em dúvida entre comprar ou não, e qual escolher da série. Decidi por aquele que tem mais a ver com o que gosto de fotografar. Mas já fiquei com vontade de comprar os outros.

[Eli Villalba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un libro básico, me encantó, conforme transcurren los capítulos el autor va citando ejemplos de fotógrafos y es así como es más comprensible el tema que aborda.
Sobre el título del libro, logra resolverlo, contiene material para entender el funcionamiento de la cámara y lo explica de una forma sencilla, en mi caso sí me resolvió las dudas sobre cómo tomar imágenes adecuadas, la cosa va en visualizar lo que se quiere comunicar y cómo para que se plasme en la imagen.
En las preguntas finales al autor, en mi opinión es evasivo y siento que solo las puso por cortesía pero no resolvió.
Si vas empezando en el mundo fotográfico como yo, seguro te inspira sí ya tienes experiencia, encontrarás cosas básicas.

[Carlos Giadáns · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un excelente libro si vas comenzando con la fotografía.
Un libro mediocre si llevas varios años con cámara en mano y crees que lo sabes todo.
Y un libro necesario en tu biblioteca si eres amante de la fotografía y sabes que nunca se para de aprender.

Comienzo a interesarme por la fotografía. He empezado a salir con la cámara a tomar fotos, mover los parámetros, entender los aspectos técnicos y sobre todo lo aspectos narrativos visuales. Este libro y la forma en la que escribe el autor me ha dado una valiosa perspectiva de ambos términos, el técnico y el visual narrativo.
La forma de reseñar las fotografías, así como el dar pautas para cuestiones técnicas me han parecido bastante valioso para iniciar este camino.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded down. I've previously read Henry Carroll's Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs, and I found it to be a good introduction to technique and composition. I was hoping for more of the same in Places, but sadly this was not the case. Places focuses more on showing examples of various compositions and saying, "This is a thing someone did." At the end of each section is brief technical summary, and the book ends with some troubleshooting suggestions. If the troubleshooting had been woven into the rest of the content and fleshed out, this would have been much more informative. Explaining that some people take pictures of shadows and others do not is not very helpful.

[Frank Luca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Admittedly, not the most thorough text on photography I have ever read. I looked to this book with an attempt to integrate a little bit of inspiration into my daily photography practice, picking it up sporadically, and reading a few pages here and there when time allowed. In the end though, I would say that I was hoping for something slightly more enlightening. However, that is not to say that it was a disappointing read as I think that newcomers to the world of photography could certainly find value here.

[Benjamin Stevenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a practising photographer of 12 years, I am always looking for new ways to improve my craft.

I’m sure you’ll agree, as long as we practice our passions, we will remain students to our craft.

No matter if you are an experienced maker of photographs or a novice iPhone shooter. This book would suit you just fine.

Henry Carroll, does a wonderful job explaining the photographs. He gets you think over the process and what it took to take those images, in the same breath urges us to see what we could do to better improve our own structure, style and storytelling ability.

[Galina Skatkina · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Showing the world through your eyes. That's what it's all about. Some people might not like what you see or hiw you see it. It really doesnt matter, as long as you find the places that mean something to you and communicate that connection through your photographs. (...) However far you travel, no matter how unfamiliar your new environment, there's one thing you can never leave behind - youself"

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Art chapters are interrupted with technical sections.

Yes, the book is more conceptual than technical on the whole -- Thomas's review

Yes, the art chapters are explanations and not walk-through demonstrations -- Jordan's review

[Josh Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellently insightful, brilliantly outlined and enormous use to an amateur photographer wanting to get into the subject more. Couldn’t recommend this book enough! Not only a thoroughly enjoyable read but one that brings photography down to the ground. Will be carried around for a long time to come.

[Kayleigh McMillan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Contains some useful technical tips on composition, subject selection, lighting etc, but the photos they had chosen to illustrate this were definitely in the "I can see that this is a good photo but not one I'd ever hang on my wall" category, the art version of the literary 'classics' that are dull AF to read.

[Barry Avis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides guidance on such subjects as depth of field and lighting by showing examples of well known photographs. It is a great little book and really has some greats tips. definitely recommended for beginners and intermediate photographers.

[Hannu Kokko · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of the most useless photography books I have read among the many I have read. Mostly very uninspiring photographs. Very very few "great shots". Some basic techniques described but that has been better done elsewhere.

[Emily F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome book for all of those iphonographers out there and lots of simple tips and tricks for those up and coming photographers! Quick read and would definitely recommend for anyone trying to learn something new this year!

[Romans · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the format, it's amazing. Street and ourdoors photographs are grouped by topic and analysed one by one: composition, colour, forms, lines, techniques.
It's a great inspirational reference and an intro to composition.
For an intro format, it's 5 starts.