The National Geographic Field Guide to Photography: Digital [Paperback]

Rob Sheppard (Author), Bruce Dale (Author), Charles Kogod (Author)

Book Description

Series: National Geographic Photography Field Guides | Publication Date: November 15, 2003

The world of photography has been transformed by the digital realm—both professionals and amateurs alike are abandoning traditional film cameras for new technology. Now, in the fifth of the acclaimed Photography Field Guide series, National Geographic presents an easy-to-understand, step-by-step guide to this new media with tips on everything from picking the right camera to producing exotic infrared images.

This reference provides all the information necessary to get the most out of new digital technology, including the background and development of digital technology, the ethics of when a photographer should and should not alter images, differences in various file types (JPEG, TIFF, etc.), and tips for producing excellent panoramic images.

Featuring information from one of the field's most revered experts, this guide is the quintessential tool for photographers of all levels of experience who wish to be on the cutting edge of photography's exciting new frontier.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: National Geographic (November 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0792261887
• ISBN-13: 978-0792261889
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #508,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Rob Sheppard is a naturalist, nature photographer and videographer who says his favorite location is the one he is in at any time. He is the author/photographer of over 30 books, as well as a well-known speaker and workshop leader. He was the long-time editor of the prestigious Outdoor Photographer magazine and helped start PCPhoto (Digital Photo). Presently he is editor-at-large for Outdoor Photographer. He does workshops around the country for all levels of photographers.

As author/photographer, Sheppard has written hundreds of articles about photography and nature, plus books including the Magic of Digital Landscape Photography, The Magic of Digital Nature Photography, the Digital Photographer's Complete Guide to Shooting HD Video, Top Tips Simplified: Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 and the National Geographic Field Guide to Digital Photography.

His website is at www.robsheppardphoto.com; his blog is at www.natureandphotography.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Concise, lots of useful information, good sample pics, December 13, 2004

By 

Gadgester "No Time, No Money" (Mother Earth) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The National Geographic Field Guide to Photography: Digital (Paperback)

I totally disagree with those who call this book too basic. On the contrary, this book assumes you already have film photography concepts. It's a concise guide to digital photography and focuses on how to make a transition from film photography to digital. It does not, for example, tell you how to buy a digital camera. Instead it just dicusses the important features of a digital camera (as well as scanners). This is not a book that weighs 20 pounds which you'll never read. It's small and can be carried with you when you need to consult it.

Why would you want to consult it? Well, it does have a lot of useful information. Things like what to do with ISO settings, how to back up your image files, how to make effective edits in a photo-editing program, how to print. This is really more of a tips book for the advanced beginner. It also features three National Geographic photographers and talks about how they made the transition to digital.

I like this book because it's concise, to-the-point and practical, and is not pretentious at all, unlike "The Joy of Digital Photography". It may NOT have enough details for the absolutely beginner, and is unlikely to impress those who already know how to set bulb exposure. But it's ultimately a book about how to leverage the advantages of digital photography in order to create good pictures.

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Intro, April 29, 2004

By 

Judy Segal (Portland, ME) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The National Geographic Field Guide to Photography: Digital (Paperback)

I have to wonder if some of these other guys who rated this book low are just computer geeks or what. I am new to digital photography having just bought a Digital Rebel and this book really opened my eyes to the possibilities of digital photography without having to wade through a big heavy book. Plus there are some National Geographic photographers who talk about their use of digital and that was very interesting. I have already put stickies in a lot of the book for favorite techniques that I want to work on.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational book, April 28, 2004

By 

Adam Samuelson (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The National Geographic Field Guide to Photography: Digital (Paperback)

I found this to be a very inspirational book. It really helped me understand the possibilities of digital photography and what was really important. There are so many people who know a little about digital photography but act like they are experts even though they give misinformation. I figure if National Geographic thought enough of this book to put it together and with the author an editor of big photo magazines, this should be pretty accurate. I thought it was.

The book seems aimed at people like me, photographers who want to master digital photography but don't want a degree in computer science. Plus there is some really great photography in here from some top digital photographers.