Complete Digital Photography [Paperback]

Ben Long (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1584507004 | ISBN-13: 978-1584507000 | Publication Date: September 23, 2009 | Edition: 5

As digital cameras and image editing software become more technologically advanced and affordable, photography has become more popular and accessible to photographers of all ages and skill sets. While these advances have helped beginning photographers take better pictures, these same photographers often don't have the technical skills required to take great photos. "Complete Digital Photography, Fifth Edition" guides you through every aspect of digital photography, from shooting through postproduction and printing, to help you master the theory and technical skills required of a great photographer. In an easy-to-understand format, you'll uncover the fundamental photographic knowledge you need to solve common dilemmas and challenges and advance your photographs to a new level. You'll learn everything from how a camera works and how to choose the camera that's right for you, through shooting, image editing, output, and workflow. You'll also explore the basics of artistry in photography, including finding a subject, composition, lighting, and more. This fifth edition features both new material and a revised and more user-friendly organizational structure. Tutorials and exercises throughout the book will help you practice the techniques presented in each chapter.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ben Long is a freelance writer, photographer, illustrator, multimedia producer, and videographer, and is the co-author of the best-selling Digital Filmmaking Handbook. He resides in California. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 581 pages
• Publisher: Charles River Media; 5 edition (September 23, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584507004
• ISBN-13: 978-1584507000
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (98 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #48,879 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ben Long is a San Francisco-based photographer and writer. The author of over a dozen books on digital photography and digital video, he has been a longtime contributor or contributing editor to many magazines including MacWeek, MacUser, Macworld UK, and others. He currently writes for Photoshop Elements magazine, is a Senior Contributor at Macworld Magazine and, and a senior editor at CreativePro.com. His photography clients have included 20th Century Fox, Blue Note Records, Global Business Network, the San Francisco Jazz Festival, the Pickle Family Circus, and Grammy-nominated jazz musicians Don Byron and Dafnis Prieto. He has taught and lectured on photography around the world. A sometime dabbler in computer programming, he has written a Mac-based image editing utility that is used by the British Museum, the White House, and others. You can learn more about what he's up to at www.completedigitalphotography.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

389 of 395 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very STRONG book, February 15, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Complete Digital Photography (Graphics Series) (Paperback)

I'm a professional photographer, and when I decided to go digital, I bought about a dozen books on the subject. This one leaves the others in the dust.

One of its greatest strengths is that the author explains digital by referencing film photography. This allows quick understanding of the new by comparing it to the familiar.

But if you're new to photography, this book is still for you. The author has a real gift for explaining complicated processes in a way that makes them easy to understand and utilize. And he covers what you need to know, without putting the pro to sleep.

I read omniverously, but I'm rarely impressed enough to write a review. If I could only keep one book on photography -- digital or film -- this would be it.

And thank you to the author for insisting that digital photography is created with a digital camera, NOT a scanner. I am SO tired of books that are supposedly about digital photography which are really about digital manipulation of film photography.

Do yourself a big favor: if you're interested in this subject, buy this book. You won't be disappointed.

306 of 312 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Complete Digital Photography IS Complete, July 17, 2001

By 

"lghadle" (Livermore, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Complete Digital Photography (Graphics Series) (Paperback)

As an instructor of Photography and Digital Imagaging, I have found it difficult to recommend texbooks that incorporate ALL the most important points of capturing, transmitting, printing, storing, archiving, and retrieving digital images. I generally need to list several titles to cover these various topics. Ben Long not only does the job with the Complete Digital Photgraphy, but he does it in a very concise, logical and easy to comprehend manner. This book is timely, informative, accurate and thorough. I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to jump into to the art of digital photography. I especially praise its use for instructional value. I am replacing next year's text with this one.

99 of 102 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Complete Digital Photography - tells you what you must know, July 10, 2001

By 

Jeri Ann Payne "jeriann3" (Huntsville, Alabama) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Complete Digital Photography (Graphics Series) (Paperback)

I've found Ben Long's Complete Digital Photography an excellent writing about today's superior digital imaging equipment! As an advanced nature film photographer, I've had my eye on the recent advances in digital photography for quite some time, and this book will help anyone, experienced or beginner grasp a good thorough understanding of what digital photography encompasses. This writing does not go into the specifics of all the digital cameras in today's market, there are plenty of excellent equipment review sites online to handle that task. Instead, the book provides excellent material regarding how digital cameras work; what components are common and present in the various models; how to match a camera to your particular shooting requirements; the "similarities" and the "differences" between digital photography and traditional film-based photography. It further gives a good basic understanding of photography fundamentals which apply to picture taking in any medium. The book includes a CDrom disk of actual sample photos, and is presented in a tutorial basis so that you can actually try out the explained techniques and examine for yourself on your own computer/monitor and or scanner equipment setup, the qualities and results from photo editing tutorials etc., that are presented in the book. There are some excellent Adobe Photoshop image editing lessons included as well as a demo version of this popular image program on the CD. I could ramble on about this book, but let me just summarize and say that if you are serious about digital photography and/or are interested in making the transition from film to digital photography or just want to get the very best results from your digital equipment, this book should greatly help you achieve your goals... highly recommended!