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Langford's Basic Photography, Ninth Edition: The Guide for Serious Photographers
 
 

Langford's Basic Photography, Ninth Edition: The Guide for Serious Photographers [Paperback]

Michael Langford (Author), Anna Fox (Author), Richard Sawdon Smith (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

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Book Description

August 11, 2010 0240521684 978-0240521688 9
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 photography, but Langford's Basic also includes in-depth coverage of the fundamental principles that govern the art, such as how light behaves, optics, and the shutter. This ensures that the reader comes away with not only a good grasp of photographic technique, but also an in-depth understanding of the fundamentals that will help them to better understand how great photography is made. As such, it functions both as an excellent coursebook for students of photography, and a great primer and reference for amateur enthusiasts.

The new edition has been fully updated to reflect dynamic changes in the industry. These changes include: an expansion and overhaul of the information on digital cameras and digital printing; an emphasis on updating photographs to incude a wider range of international work; replacement of many diagrams with photos; overhaul of the analogue sections to give a more modern tone (ie exposure measurement and film and filters with some more dynamic photo illustrations); a fully edited and updated photography timeline.

This landmark text is an essential purchase, both for new photographers as an introduction, and for established photographers as an invaluable reference work.

* New edition of seminal photography text
* Comprehensive photography reference for all photographers, and perfect introduction for new photographers
* Completely updated for the now fully-established digital age of photography

Frequently Bought Together

Langford's Basic Photography, Ninth Edition: The Guide for Serious Photographers + Langford's Advanced Photography, Eighth Edition: The guide for aspiring photographers (The Langford Series) + Understanding Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera
Price For All Three: $79.78

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is the ninth edition of a textbook that has become an industry standard since its first publication in 1965. Now updated to include the most recent innovations of the field, it contains an entire chapter on digital cameras and one on post-production of the digital image. From shooting to processing to printing, this guidebook gives thorough instructions in various procedures, equipment, aesthetics, and forms of presentation for the medium. Detailed treatment of the fundamentals for lighting techniques, optics, and composition are enhanced by numerous diagrams, charts and photographic examples. A supplemental glossary and extensive appendices are found at the back.. Either as an introduction for amateurs or as a reference for intermediate photographers, this book is an invaluable resource for practitioners of this field."--Sacramento Book Review

"This is the ninth edition of a textbook that has become an industry standard since its first publication in 1965. Now updated to include the most recent innovations of the field, it contains an entire chapter on digital cameras and one on post-production of the digital image.  Detailed treatment of the fundamentals for lighting techniques, optics, and composition are enhanced by numerous diagrams, charts and photographic examples. Whether as an art form or a commercial venture, the complexity of photography requires meticulous and systematic explanations.  This is precisely what Langford's Basic Photography provides.  Either as an introduction for amateurs or as a reference for intermediate photographers, this book is an invaluable resource for practitioners of this field."--Sacramento Book Review

About the Author

Michael Langford, renowned author, teacher, and practitioner, is a legend because of his skill that balanced art and technique. He inspired and taught thousands. As Photography Course Director at the Royal College of Art, London, UK, his key involvement with photography courses and exams set the standard worldwide.


Product Details

  • Paperback: 480 pages
  • Publisher: Focal Press; 9 edition (August 11, 2010)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0240521684
  • ISBN-13: 978-0240521688
  • Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 7.6 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #198,575 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Average Customer Review
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding text for newcomers and veterans, July 17, 2011
By 
Michael A. Hays (Charlottesville, VA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Langford's Basic Photography, Ninth Edition: The Guide for Serious Photographers (Paperback)
One of the hardest things about taking up a new hobby (or profession) is knowing where to begin your study. With so many books and manuals on the market, the sheer volume of available information can seem overwhelming. Well, neophyte photographers, take heart, because here is the book that you need. If I could recommend only one source for someone really looking to "get serious" about taking quality photographs, this would be it.

The book progresses in a very logical manner, beginning with a basic introduction to the very nature of light and optics and proceeding through camera mechanics, principles of lighting and composition, film characteristics, and digital techniques. As you would expect in any photography text, there are many, many photographic illustrations. One thing that really shines about Langford is the wonderful diagrams, which are among the best I have seen in any textbook. Understanding optics and the behavior of light is not always intuitive, but the diagrams do an excellent job of illustrating difficult concepts in an easy-to-grasp manner.

The writing itself, while clear and unambiguous, sometimes tends a little dry. You may find books like "Understanding Exposure" or any of Scott Shelby's popular series to be more engaging; these are excellent books, however Langford has a much wider scope and so of necessity the prose is somewhat more technical. In my opinion, though, this also makes it a more satisfying reading experience. Shelby's series tell you how to do something, but Langford tells you why it works.

A word about digital and film. It is true that this book is somewhat heavily weighted toward the "old-fashioned" subject of film photography. Indeed, multiple chapters are spent discussing the characteristics and chemistry of film as well as its processing and darkroom techniques. (I suppose many would even consider the discussion of handheld light meters to be antiquated.) As someone who shoots primarily with film, I have no problem with this and in fact welcome it. This isn't the forum for rehashing the "film vs. digital" debate, but I would encourage anyone reading this -- especially those who are new to the field -- to keep an open mind. Film is anything but obsolete, and an understanding of it can only strengthen your photographic skills. The information is there if you want it, but for those who choose to skip it, there is also a strong introduction to digital techniques.

In summation, I think this is a book that should sit on any photographer's shelf. I have been shooting for years, but I still consult this text from time to time to refresh myself on this point or that. I strongly recommend it to anyone looking to get the most out of their camera.
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars VERY GOOD INFORMATION!!!, November 20, 2011
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This review is from: Langford's Basic Photography, Ninth Edition: The Guide for Serious Photographers (Paperback)
This book is a great book for a person learning serious photography. It also covers some intermediate topics. There is also mention of Medium format SLRs (Hassleblad and Mamiya) and TLRs. This book gives equal coverage to both film and digital.
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9 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Good book, Still very Old, November 1, 2010
By 
Frank Silver (Somerville, MA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Langford's Basic Photography, Ninth Edition: The Guide for Serious Photographers (Paperback)
This book used to be good. It explains basic principles of photography very well.

Although in its ninth edition, and published in 2010, the book is still very old. It is film-oriented and need a complete overhaul. A lot of techniques are already out-dated. About half of the book can be completely ignored. It talks too much about film, film processing, large format camera, hand-held meter etc.

The books need a complete re-written. Simply adding some contents of digital cameras does not make it modern.
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