Complete Digital Photography (Graphics Series) (Paperback)

by Ben Long (Author) "In the roughly 150 years since its invention, photography has gone from being treated as a curiosity to being accepted as a legitimate art form,..." (more)
Key Phrases: single array system, bad white balance, black point adjustment, Color Plate, Nikon Coolpix, Std Dev (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Go beyond the basics with this comprehensive start-to-finish guide. Written for all levels of photographers, Complete Digital Photography delves into the real differences between traditional and digital photography, and explains how to make a smooth transition. If you're an amateur or hobbyist photographer, you'll learn about the fundamental technical concerns of shooting quality digital images. If you're an experienced film photographer who is switching to digital, you'll learn what's different about shooting digital, and how to adjust your working style to the latest technology. You'll also journey through the techniques used for choosing the right exposure, filters, and flash and learn how these choices can be a bit different when shooting digital.

Using practical tutorials, you'll work through key issues such as image editing, color correction, noise reduction, special effects, and more. And you'll learn how to get the best output possible, whether your images are going to print, video, or the web.

Covering all the technical details you need to understand to produce high-quality digital photographs, Complete Digital Photography is just that - complete! Key Features
- Geared toward the serious hobbyist and professional photographer
- Provides a detailed discussion of how a digital camera works, and a quick photography primer
- Details issues to consider when selecting a camera for your specific needs
- Explains hardware and software needed to create a powerful digital photography system
- Includes in-depth coverage of key techniques such as metering and exposure
- Detailed tutorials on color correction, editing, and special effects
- Color section illustrates key techniques
- Clear explanations on shooting and adjusting images to achieve the best color and contrast your camera can deliver

On the CD!
- All files needed to complete the hands-on tutorials
- Full-color images from within the book

- Demo Versions of Popular Applications and Plug-Ins:
- Adobe Photoshop 6 Try Out Version (Win & Mac)
- DigiEffects AgedFilm (Win)
- DigiEffects Web Euphoria (Mac)
- QBeo Photogenetics (Win & Mac)
- CameraBits Quantum Mechanics Pro (Win & Mac)
- nik Color Effects Pro and Sharpeners Pro (Win & Mac)
- iView Media Pro (Mac)
- Digital Domain Qimage Pro (Win)


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.

Product Details

• Paperback: 428 pages
• Publisher: Charles River Media; 1st edition (June 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584500077
• ISBN-13: 978-1584500070
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,080,245 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

298 of 302 people found the following review helpful:

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

By A Customer

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.

282 of 287 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

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.

77 of 79 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)

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!