Best Photography Books for Beginners
Hot Shots
National Geographic Ultimate Field Guide to Photography: Revised and Expanded
Photography: The Concise Guide
Langford's Starting Photography, Sixth Edition: The guide to creating great images
A Short Course In Photography
Teach Yourself Photography
BetterPhoto Basics: The Absolute Beginner's Guide to Taking Photos Like a Pro
Langford's Basic Photography, Eighth Edition: The guide for serious photographers
Mastering the Basics of Photography
The Photography Bible
Top 10
1. Hot Shots
Today more amateur photographers than ever before have the means to create incredible pictures. This hip primer proves that whether shooting with a film or digital camera, you don't need to invest in expensive photography equipment or have an art school degree to take amazing photographs. Whether readers are tired of disappointing snapshots or have just picked up a camera for the first time, Hot Shots teaches with a friendly tone, picture-perfect advice,…»
2. National Geographic Ultimate Field Guide to Photography: Revised and Expanded
Straightforward and entertaining, this is the ultimate source for people seeking real how-to advice from the editors and photographers of National Geographic. It is carefully designed to lead the amateur photographer to better pictures and is comprehensive in scope, explaining the entire process from choosing a camera to taking the pictures to printing, scanning, and archiving the images. The National Geographic Ultimate Field Guide to Photography spells…»
3. Photography: The Concise Guide
Turn your enthusiasm into striking photographs! From composing the shot to applying special techniques and developing the film, this information-packed manual covers everything readers need to become successful black-and-white and/or color photographers. Ideal for first-year students, as well as anyone who wishes to explore the ins and outs of contemporary photography processes and state-of-the-art techniques, Photography: The Concise Guide is a fast-paced…»
4. Langford's Starting Photography, Sixth Edition: The guide to creating great images
'The' Focal Press introductory photography book, this authoritative classic by leading photography writer and lecturer Michael Langford has been refreshed and revised by best-selling photography author Philip Andrews for today's photographers. Strongly focused on digital, but with key references to traditional photography where relevant, to offer a full grounding in the topic, Langford's Starting Photography is an ideal technical introduction. All the core…»
5. A Short Course In Photography
This easy-to-use book introduces readers/students to the fundamentals of photography and suggests ways in which they might create photographs that have meaning. With a special focus on black and white photography, the book also explores digital techniques and web photography resources, equipment, cameras and camera accessories, the exposure and development of film, and the making and finishing of prints. All aspects of the process are explained and…»
6. Teach Yourself Photography
Unleash the professional photographer in you! Teach Yourself Photography is your complete guide to all the practical know-how, technical information, and creative insight that will turn you into a confident photographer. Covering the very latest in equipment, with essential and straightforward guides to all the techniques--from exposure to use of flash--it will also teach you how to use digital manipulation, software, and all the other technology that will…»
7. BetterPhoto Basics: The Absolute Beginner's Guide to Taking Photos Like a Pro
Absolutely anyone can take better photos! If you can press a button, you can take great pictures. ItâÄôs as simple as that. In BetterPhoto Basics, Jim Miotke, founder of the popular online photography school BetterPhoto.com, shares tips and tricks to improve your photos right away, no matter what camera youâÄôre using. Too busy to read a book? No problemâÄîflip to any page for an instant tip to use right away! Learn to compose knockout shots, make the most of…»
8. Langford's Basic Photography, Eighth Edition: The guide for serious photographers
Langford's Basic Photography has informed the work and career of many of the world's leading photographers. It is a comprehensive guide to all aspects of photography, from pre-capture to output, written for photographers who want to understand the principles behind photography and how to create great images. In this book you will learn:. How images are formed and how to control what you capture* The best camera and lens type for your work * The principles…»
9. Mastering the Basics of Photography
The perfect camera-bag companion for every serious novice photographer who shoots on location in the field, this clear, nontechnical book shows how to achieve desired effects every time. The basics of camera function are explained in language that's easy to understand, giving complete coverage of film, light, lens apertures, shutter speeds, exposure, metering, and focusing, with printing, storing, and showing of work also included. Fully explored are…»
10. The Photography Bible
Fully revised and updated to cover all new camera formats, including the latest digital technology. Highly accessible and attractively presented, with over 250 color photographs. This indispensible reference for everyone from the complete beginner to the experienced enthusiast covers all the basic questions from explaining what the different types of camera are and how they work, to techniques for shooting different subjects, darkroom methods and how to…»
Amphotos Complete Book of Photography: How to Improve Your Pictures with a Film or Digital Camera
Langford's Starting Photography, Fifth Edition: The guide to great images with digital or film
The New Photography Manual
The Creative Photographer: A Complete Guide to Photography
Photography: A Very Short Introduction
Photography: The New Complete Guide to Taking Photographs
Stoppees' Guide to Photography and Light: What Digital Photographers, Illustrators, and Creative Professionals Must Know
John Hedgecoe's New Introductory Photography Course
Fundamentals of Photography
Langford's Basic Photography, Ninth Edition: The Guide for Serious Photographers
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11. Amphotos Complete Book of Photography: How to Improve Your Pictures with a Film or Digital Camera
This indispensable reference guide gives amateur photographers everything needed to take their photography to the next level using all types of cameras âÄì from low-end and high-end point-and-shoot cameras to SLR (single lens reflex), traditional and digital cameras. The basic information covered includes lighting and exposure, film, digital, lenses, filters, earning money from photography, and going pro. Designed to be as comprehensive as it is easy to use…»
13. The New Photography Manual
In the tradition of the Artist's Manual series comes the definitive illustrated guide to all things photography-related. A veritable bible for beginners as well as an invaluable reference for accomplished photographers, this volume covers the ins and outs of photography equipment and techniques. Comprehensive and easily referenced, The New Photography Manual clearly explains all the essential tools and tricks of the trade from choosing cameras and lenses,…»
14. The Creative Photographer: A Complete Guide to Photography
The Creative Photographer is a complete introduction to the modern medium of photography, designed to meet the needs of photography, art, and design students, as well as beginners who want a broad overview of the field. It approaches photography as an artistic medium for solving problems in visual communication, showing how established photographers and advanced students approach such typical photographic subjects as portraiture, landscape, still life, or…»
15. Photography: A Very Short Introduction
Photographs are an integral part of our daily lives, from sensationalist images in tabloid papers, to personal family snapshots, to the art photography displayed in galleries and sold through international art markets. In this thought-provoking exploration of the subject, Steve Edwards provides a clear, lively, and imaginative approach to the definition, importance, and meaning of photography. He combines a sense of its historical development with an…»
16. Photography: The New Complete Guide to Taking Photographs
No matter what type of camera you're shooting with--digital or traditional--this is the best all-around guide for learning how to photograph better and smarter. Acclaimed photographer John Freeman simply covers all the basics...and more. Become a better photographer with hundreds of tips for taking more creative and expressive photographs with APS, SLR and digital cameras. Sixteen easily understood sections, including Understanding Cameras and Film,…»
17. Stoppees' Guide to Photography and Light: What Digital Photographers, Illustrators, and Creative Professionals Must Know
Brian & Janet Stoppee have incorporated their decades of daily, hands-on expertise at image-making plus their leading seminars and one-on-one training into the most comprehensive guide to photographic lighting available! Its impossible to be successful in photography without a mastery of light. Its the basis of all things photographic. The Stoppees welcome the reader into their professional world with a conversational tone that makes you feel as if you are…»
18. John Hedgecoe's New Introductory Photography Course
John Hedgecoe teaches the skills of a professional to the beginner, and inspires the self-confidence to take on any aspect of photography, through guided projects and over 400 examples of his own work. The new photographer first learns the secrets of the camera's make-up and its use. Then all the most popular photographic subjects are covered in 65 easy-to-follow projects, beginning with how to put together the components of a picture and how to make the…»
19. Fundamentals of Photography
Through superb images by the best contemporary professionals, plus detailed diagrams, this right-from-the-beginning guide introduces all the key elements of conventional and digital photography. In addition to unique insights into the working practices of creative photographers, it offers a thorough overview of equipment, from aperture to exposure metering; an introduction to film stock; and a look at the basics of composition, including points of interest…»
20. Langford's Basic Photography, Ninth Edition: The Guide for Serious Photographers
Langford's Basic Photography is a seminal photography text. First published in 1965, it has informed the work and career of many of the world's leading photographers. The new, 9th edition, continues the tradition of its predecessors, reflecting the same comprehensive mix of scholarly and practical information. It covers every aspect of photography, from capture through to output, both digital and analogue. There is an emphasis on explaining the 'how to' of…»