Canon EOS 50D Digital Field Guide [Paperback]

Charlotte K. Lowrie (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0470455594 | ISBN-13: 978-0470455593 | Publication Date: March 3, 2009 | Edition: 1

Charlotte Lowrie's indispensable guide to taking the best possible pictures with the Canon EOS 50D!

Go well beyond the basics with this essential guide to getting great shots with the Canon EOS 50D camera. Professional photographer and bestselling author Charlotte Lowrie packs this portable guide with over 290 pages of beautiful full-color photos, proven techniques, and no-fail formulas for tapping all the features this exciting new high-resolution DSLR camera offers.

Get to know your Canon EOS 50D, learn all the tricks, and then take this handy portable guide with you in the field for quick and easy reference.

• Master your Canon EOS 50D camera with expert guidance from Seattle-area professional photographer and popular author, Charlotte Lowrie
• Find pages of step-by-step techniques and professional tips that will help you understand all the functions, menus, and dials on your camera
• Explore topics that many competitive digital SLR books just touch on, including step-by-step instruction on exposure and composition
• Learn professional composition and lighting tricks
• Examine full-color examples of breathtaking ways to capture stills, portraits, and action shots

Canon EOS 50D Digital Field Guide is the latest in the bestselling Digital Field Guide series that has taught thousands of photographers and beginners how to get the most out of their digital cameras.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Grasp all that your EOS 50D can offer, including fun

Speedy, responsive, and feature-rich, your Canon EOS 50D offers high resolution and limitless creative opportunity. This practical, portable guide gives you the technical know-how to master all the buttons, dials, and menus — but more than that, it's full of suggestions and ideas that nurture your creativity. Learn to set up your camera in the way that suits your style and your subject, taking full advantage of all the 50D can do. Open your mind, open this book, and open yourself to the possibilities.

• Manage focus controls, use shooting modes creatively, and control color

• Learn to use Live View shooting and when and where it works best

• Find out how to get accurate color in any shooting situation

• Explore using Speedlites and lighting accessories

• Get professional tips for great landscape and nature photos, portraits, and action shots

About the Author

Charlotte K. Lowrie is a professional photographer and award-winning writer. Her work has appeared in numerous magazines and on the Canon Digital Learning Center. Along with the bestselling Canon EOS Digital Rebel XSi Digital Field Guide and other Canon Digital Field Guides, she cowrote Exposure and Lighting For Digital Photographers Only. Charlotte teaches photography at BetterPhoto.com and is featured on www.takegreatpictures.com. Visit her Web site at wordsandphotos.org.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (March 3, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470455594
• ISBN-13: 978-0470455593
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #149,942 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Charlotte Lowrie is a professional photographer and an award-winning writer based in the Seattle, WA area. Beginning her career as a newspaper writer and photographer, she later moved from newspapers to corporate writing, and then to magazines. She became the founding editor and photographer of two trade magazines based in Dallas, TX.

In the mid-80s, Charlotte moved to the Seattle area and spent the 16 years as an award-winning writer and editor, and as an editorial manager for a large software company. She wrote documentation for a variety of popular consumer software programs, as well as writing software manuals. She also contributed to the ongoing redesign of instructional models for various learning systems.

During her last four years with Microsoft, she was the editor, writer, and a photographer for the MSN Photos Web site (now discontinued).

Today, Charlotte divides her time among writing books and photography magazine articles, shooting stock images, shooting editorial assignments and weddings, and making portraits for various private clients. She also teaches three monthly photography courses at BetterPhoto.com (http://www.betterphoto.com/courseOverview.asp?cspID=79).

Charlotte shoots with a variety of Canon 35mm cameras and lenses.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must have accessory for your camera bag if you have 50D!, March 9, 2009

By 

Kay Kay King "Kay Kay King" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Canon EOS 50D Digital Field Guide (Paperback)

I wanted a 50D book that would help me make better use of my Canon 50D now--and that would be useful to me a year or more from now. I think the 50D Field Guide will do both. The author clearly has used the 50D extensively. The explanations are thorough, understandable, and helpful. While the book printing isn't coffee-table quality, the pictures are professional, and they cover the range of subjects that many photographers most often shoot.

This is the first book I've seen that doesn't just tell you what the camera feature or button is, but it also offers practical suggestions on when to use the options and how to combine multiple options for different subjects. The author explains C modes thoroughly and gives useful examples on setting them up in advance for different shooting situations. Ditto for explaining everything you want to know about getting great color in images.

The writing is professional and engaging, and Ms. Lowrie explains technical concepts well. This book has already shown me things about my 50D that I hadn't discovered and maybe would not have tried without her encouragement. This book is already helping me get the most from the 50D--and that's exactly what I wanted.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better than the Magic Lantern series, April 27, 2009

By 

J. Knapp (Manassas, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Canon EOS 50D Digital Field Guide (Paperback)

I actually picked up this book based on the reviews here, and I must say, I was not disappointed. I had previously used the Magic Lantern series of guides on an earlier model, and this book is FAR more informative. My impression of the Magic Lanterns was that they were simply a slightly more detailed version of the Canon camera manual itself. This book, on the other hand, goes a step farther, focusing not only on the functions of the camera itself, but also providing useful information on APPLYING those functions. Lots of information presented in easily-digestible sections, along with full-color photgraphs throughout to demonstrate the particular topics being discussed.

This book also contains material that provides a good introduction to novice photgraphers on basic photography concepts like exposure, and provides a good brief intro to beginner and experienced photgrapher alike on digital photography specifically.

In short, this book is great for the novice photographer, the novice digital photogrpaher, or the experienced photographer looking to maximize his or her enjoyment and understanding of a sophisticated piece of techinolgoy, the 50D.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Book!!, April 10, 2009

By 

Teresa - See all my reviews

This review is from: Canon EOS 50D Digital Field Guide (Paperback)

This book is a must for beginner to intermediate photographers. The author covers topics related to photography in general and how to apply the concepts in the camera specifically. From the very first chapter, I learned something that I didn't already know and I've been using a 20D for years! The chapters on general setup and on customizing the camera were very helpful. Not only were the options clearly explained, she also stated the implications and recommendations for the particular choice. By applying some of the recommended settings, it makes using the camera quicker and easier to use!

This book talks about many general photography concepts. Exposure is something that I've struggled to learn. It is explained in a easily understood manner. The details are restated in different ways to help the reader understand the concepts.

It is evident that she has used the 50D in the field, shooting in different conditions. Throughout the book she offers tips from her own photography experience and from using the 50D. She gives excellent advice for what to bring on a specific type of shoot and the camera settings that are most effective in the particular situation. Reading this book seems like you have an expert right alongside of you!