Photography and the Art of Seeing: A Visual Perception Workshop for Film and Digital Photography
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Breaking the photographical routine
  • I deeply regret buying this book... RATED NO STARS AT ALL
  • An excellent resource
  • Don't buy this book - PLEASE!
  • Stimulating Creativity
Photography and the Art of Seeing: A Visual Perception Workshop for Film and Digital Photography
Freeman Patterson
Manufacturer: Key Porter Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1552636143

Book Description

In this third edition of Photography and the Art of Seeing, Freeman Patterson reviews principles of composition and visual design and provides techniques and exercises for breaking away from traditional concepts. Aspiring photographers are made aware of the barriers to seeing and learn how to observe, imagine and express in a personal and creative way.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Breaking the photographical routine.......2007-03-24

Freeman tries to get photographers to break out of their ways, to look at the world with different eyes, to question old habits. This is a good thing, in my opinion. But does he succeed?

I can only answer this from my own perspective: Yes, the book gives me impulses to try out different perspectives than the ones I'm used to.

The writing is fluent and to the point. The images underline the points in the text. I like many of them, even though they seem unspectacular at first. The printing quality could be better, though. I ordered the book together with two volumes by John Shaw ("Focus on Nature" and "The Field Book to Nature Photography", both Amphoto Books), and those are printed much better, with more contrast and color saturation.

Still, a recommended book for anyone who likes taking photos and would like to explore new grounds.

1 out of 5 stars I deeply regret buying this book... RATED NO STARS AT ALL.......2007-02-16

I wrote a review as follows: 'Anyone can take a picture of a hot dog. If this photographer took a picture of a hot dog you would smell the french fries, hear the ocean, and taste the salt water taffy. The author offers the reader a chance to see the world through his eyes.

Then I looked through the book more closely. On page 137 I saw a picture that disgusted me. When I read what he wrote about the subject, I became angry. He wrote, "This photograph captures a moment in the life of a child, and suggests innocence. The little girl had withdrawn from her playmates on the beach; she wanted to be alone. She was crying a little. When I came along, she hid her face to preserve her privacy. I quickly made this picture and left. Note that the expanse of rocks and the girl's small space in the composition strengthen the sense of her privacy."

The picture is of a naked little child who was hiding her face crying and trying to turn away from the man taking her picture with his camera. It is only my opinion, but I think this man is greatly lacking in respect of human dignity.

I am sorry I put money in his pocket. I hope no one else will.

5 out of 5 stars An excellent resource.......2006-12-15

If you have moved up from the technical aspects of photography, and are into "photography as an art", this is the book to buy to take you to that next level.

If there is just one book in the whole world that you can buy, this is it! I own all of patterson's instruction books - and they are all great! a worthy investment and proudly displayed in my bookshelf.

5 out of 5 stars Don't buy this book - PLEASE!.......2006-11-30

Please don't buy this book. It will change your photography. I bought it, and now I have an advantage, and I want to keep it!

Seriously, this is probably the most disturbing photography book I have found. It will challenge everything you do in photography, and that is unsettling.

If you follow the exercises properly, you will develop a whole new way of seeing and taking photos.

Sure, if you want to, you can read it from cover to cover and go "Ho, hum, very nice." and take it no further. But if you want to improve your photography, take your time, and do the exercises carefully. You will be surprised at the results.

I especially like the one where you lock yourself in a small room (bathroom) and have to take 20 images. "If you don't feel desperation before you finish this exercise, then you have to take another 20 photos."

Don't buy this book! Run away and hide. Keep taking boring photos.

5 out of 5 stars Stimulating Creativity.......2006-11-11

I found this book excellent for stimulating the creative process where photography is concerned.
Portrait Photography: The Art of Seeing Light
Average customer rating: 3 out of 5 stars
  • Boring...
  • Very disapointed !
  • Not Impressed...
  • The Master Strikes Again
  • Superficial and of very little practical use.
Portrait Photography: The Art of Seeing Light
Don Blair , and Peter Skinner
Manufacturer: Amherst Media
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1584281316

Book Description

Aspiring photographers are spared the rigors and tribulations of trial and error in solving lighting problems with the immense knowledge shared in this guide. Included is comprehensive coverage of the tools top portrait photographers use, the lighting styles they favor, and the problem-solving techniques they employ to ensure perfectly lit portraits. Techniques covered include dragging the shutter to produce a balanced exposure, warming the light for a softer portrait with a more accessible mood, and metering a subject with confidence for the perfect exposure every time. Filled with practical, up-to-date instruction, photographers will be able to make every portrait session a successful one.

Customer Reviews:

2 out of 5 stars Boring..........2007-05-12

Maybe this is 2007, I find this style of photography doesn't sell very well in today consumer tastes. Yes, Mr. Blair is a master as well as Zucker; nonetheless, my clients want natural and fun. If I pose them and hold for the shot, their reaction is "I don't like to pose." On the other hand, there are some good lighting tips and hand position that are important to keep in mind.

1 out of 5 stars Very disapointed !.......2006-12-13

I expected this book to be very useful, since it's written by a master portrait photographer. But I found it to be completely useless. Sample photos on this book look ackward and posing forced and also very, very outdated. It's the only photography book I own that I wish i never bought!. Sorry to say, but I considere it a waste of my money!

2 out of 5 stars Not Impressed..........2006-08-09

Nothing struck me as intriguing, interesting or new in this book. It's just a book of mostly mundane very normal typical photography. I was hoping for a new spin on the old habit.

5 out of 5 stars The Master Strikes Again.......2006-07-07

Along with Monte Zucker, Don Blair is one of our two living masters of people photography, and this book is a useful introduction to one of the key tools of portraiture: light. It features excellent photos that illustrate all the most important styles of lighting. Lighting diagrams would have helped, especially for beginners, but there is a lot you can learn from the examples and tips provided in this interesting compendium of techniques.

1 out of 5 stars Superficial and of very little practical use........2005-11-24

I was very disappointed when I got this book (which I bought right here based on the previous positive reviews) - after about ten minutes I found I had wasted my money for just another photo book which serves more as some kind of portfolio for the author's work instead of delivering lots of useful information to help the reader. One might get over this if Blair's images were indeed outstanding - but unfortunately the are very conventional, very stiffly posed, and VERY 80's style! They annoy me so much it is hard to concentrate at the text.
The lighting advice given is very basic and only loosely connected with the image examples given. As a professional photographer I was looking for a book with a strategic view on portraiture lighting, how to create different moods and emotions with a broad choice of light sources, interpreting personality, some new ideas to spark my creativity. I guess will have to look elsewhere...
Perception and Imaging, Third Edition: Photography--A Way of Seeing
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Uelsmann's Review
  • The Ultimate Photography Book
  • Perception and imaging masterfully explained
  • This book should be read by anyone interested in perception
  • The #1 Book I Recommend for ALL Photographers
Perception and Imaging, Third Edition: Photography--A Way of Seeing
Richard D. Zakia
Manufacturer: Focal Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0240809300

Book Description

How do you experience a photograph? What do you want a viewer to feel when they look at your image?

Perception and Imaging explains how we see and what we dont see. Relevant psychological principles will help you predict your viewers emotional reaction to your photographic images, giving you more power, control, and tools for communicating your desired message. Knowing how our minds work helps photographers, graphic designers, videographers, animators, and visual communicators both create and critique sophisticated works of visual art. Benefit from this insight in your work.

Topics covered in this book: gestalt grouping, memory and association, space, time, color, contours, illusion and ambiguity, morphics, personality, subliminals, critiquing photographs, and rhetoric.

·Provocative color images demonstrate the power of visual perception
·Photographs by Bresson, Bruce Davidson, Nathan Lyons, Lisette Model, Barbara Morgan, Man Ray, August Sander, Pete Turner, and Edward Weston
·Paintings by Degas, Escher, Hockney, Holbein, Kandinsky, Magritte and Warhol
·Hundreds of inspirational quotes from famous photographers, painters, and writers

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Uelsmann's Review.......2007-09-08

Jerry Uelsmann sent me an email with a short review of my book. I asked him if he would post it on Amazon
and he agreed. Unfortunately he ran into some problems so I am taking the liberty of posting it for him. With many thanks to Jerry, here is his short review, which I feel states precisely and concisely what I was attempting to accomplish with my book.

Perception and Imaging is a great teaching resource... That addresses both the mind & the eye! Congratulations... I love all of the quotes... I think I have read them all and I plan to use some in my next lecture!
Jerry N. Uelsmann

5 out of 5 stars The Ultimate Photography Book.......2007-09-01

One of the many outstanding features of "Perception and Imaging" is its irresistible friendliness.
The layout is engaging, the illustrations varied and absorbing, the quotations from artists delightful
and provocative. Whether you are looking for technical information, historical data or graphic
challenges you will find it here in an easy-to-access format. Dr. Zakia's vision is all-encompassing: he
is equally familiar with a 2000-year-old Sicilian mosaic and the latest in digital concepts. You don't want to miss this one.

5 out of 5 stars Perception and imaging masterfully explained.......2007-08-08

Perception and Imaging, Third Edition: Photography--A Way of Seeing
By Dr. Richard Zakia
What's the difference between ordinary people and photographers when they are on vacation? Ordinary people on vacation go up to an attraction, take a photograph, look around and drive to the next stop. Photographers drive up to the location, look around for possible images, and then take a photograph. The difference is in their perception, or lack thereof, and Dr. Zakia covers the topic thoroughly in this book. His knowledge comes from a life-long love, and study of the image and how we interact with it. Many of the images that we see create a feeling or idea in our mind - the process of which we are usually unaware - such is the conditioning of our visual education since birth. This book helps us understand this process better. His approach certainly helped me better understand images as he was the advisor for my master's thesis on photographic literacy way back in 1976. We have been trading interesting visuals ever since!

Professor Zakia, Professor Emeritus at Rochester Institute of Technology, takes us on a visual journey of discovery as he shows us the results of his life's quest into the meanings of images, whether they be paintings, sketches, conventional or digital photographs. It really doesn't matter which medium one uses, as a successful image that resonates with the viewer can be made in any medium. And it is in this spirit that Zakia guides us through the centuries of illustrations that delight us and shape our understanding and feelings about the external world, and ourselves.

Using illustrations from many of the most successful and intriguing paintings and photographs, Zakia leads us to question how we make and evaluate photographs using the knowledge of Gestalt theory, figure/ground associations, colors, contours, shapes and our own feelings - often subliminal - to arrive at a renewed vision whether we create, or simply observe, images. Photographers should read this book to better help them create and appreciate images!

Gordon Brown
RIT Photo graduate

5 out of 5 stars This book should be read by anyone interested in perception.......2007-08-02

The layout is clear and allows the reader to move to any chapter and start reading. But this makes you want to return to the beginning. The many illustrations, the quotes keep the reader involved in the writer's journey. This book begs the reader to read it cover to cover with a reward; understanding perception from multiple levels of understanding. Leaving only one question. How do we use this knowledge now acquired ?

5 out of 5 stars The #1 Book I Recommend for ALL Photographers.......2007-08-02

It's a fact. Ask anyone who has attended one of my workshops and seminars "What's the #1 book I recommend?" and they will tell you: Perception and Imaging, Third Edition: Photography - A Way of Seeing.

Why do I so highly recommend Dr. Zakia's book? Simply put, when it comes to photography, you can probably figure out all the camera controls yourself (exposure, white balance, etc.) But when it comes to actually seeing pictures and understanding their meaning, one needs a good guide, an expert, someone with a lifetime of experience. Let Dr. Zakia be your guide, and you'll see your world differently - and perhaps picture it more creatively. There is non better that the "good doctor." The book is an easy read filled with powerful illustrations. It's also fun (like Dr. Zakia). P.S Don't miss the Ads from the Past and Answers to Selected Exercises sections. Most interesting information here! And surprising.
The Art Of Seeing: A Creative Approach To Photography
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • severely disappointed in lack of substance
  • Discovering your true potential thru hightened seeing
  • Training for the Most Important Tool of Photography
  • Breaking out of the rut
  • Visualization basics
The Art Of Seeing: A Creative Approach To Photography
KODAK
Manufacturer: Sterling
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0879857471

Book Description

Shows you how to take better photographs by studying the elements of the subject, using lighting, composition, color, shape, form, texture, and viewpoint. Explains how cameras, lenses, and films see differently from you. Suggests ways to achieve creativity by shattering preconceptions and lack of awareness. Helps you break through creative barriers.

Customer Reviews:

1 out of 5 stars severely disappointed in lack of substance.......2005-12-05

.
Save your money.
This book is virtually content free.
96 pages and most of them are pictures.
Which IMHO any average snapshooter already can do.

And if you can't this isn't the book to start with.
.
This book is barely an outline of a few topics concerning how to see.
.
The only substance, and I speak loosely, was to break the rules.
Use different angles. Look at parts instead of the big picture.

I infer that if most of your pictures are colored blue that that must be good as the author had a lot of blue pictures.
.
A good book on composition, and admittedly those are very rare too, would tell you more about seeing. At least then you could look for elements to put together.

This book spent a lot of its few (about 48) pages of instrution doing a second rate job on composition versus actually seeing.
.
Read it at the library, as you will feel cheated if you spend $20-$25 for this to buy it.
.

Wabi Sabi for the artist and poet by ?? (Kamen??) would tell you more about seeing than this book.
.
There are a few good photog books out there. Feininger would blow this one away if you can still find copies.

This is just another one of the disappointments. And it wasnt even artsycraftsy just blah.
.


5 out of 5 stars Discovering your true potential thru hightened seeing.......2002-11-16

This is one of the best books that highten your photographic abilities. It makes you aware of preconceptions you may have about photography, and encourages you to explore your seeing and observation skills. Included are chapters on what elements make up a scene, the importance of composition and lighting, and varying your ways of looking and treating the subject. I've reread it several times, learning new things everytime. It's remarkably well written and is non-technical.

4 out of 5 stars Training for the Most Important Tool of Photography.......2002-05-31

The Art of Seeing is the latest, and most unique, book in my small but growing library on photography. I bought it because I was taking the same photographs over and over again and getting bored and frustrated with a hobby that I used to really enjoy. This book helped me work on the most important tool of photography: my eyes.
This book does what it says: teaches the art of seeing. I have been stuck in a rut of trying to take the pictures that I am "supposed" to take according to what my preconceptions tell me make a good photograph. This book encourages you to see everything differently and to photograph whatever you want.
Doeffinger breaks the book down into different aspects of what makes a picture, including color, depth, and form. He teaches you how to gain a new respect for every part of what makes a picture great while encouraging you figure out on your own what would make a picture great for you. While being a more abstract book, it does not fail to mention what techniques will help you bring out what you see with your eyes and put in on film. It does assume that you already know the basics of photography such as arpeture and film grain, but is careful not to go over the heads of beginners. Being an out of print book, the pictures are a little outdated but overall I would recommend this book to any photographer trying to put new life into their pictures.

5 out of 5 stars Breaking out of the rut.......2001-11-19

This is a very good book for breaking out of the rut when you find yourself totally stuck for things to photograph. While some of the images remind one of those you might take in an introduction to photography class, that's not all bad. It gets your creative juices flowing again. Book helps you break repetitive image making and promotes creative thought processes, and it's not as dull as this sounds.

4 out of 5 stars Visualization basics.......2001-06-21

A good intro book to expand the beginning photographers understanding of visual imagery. Will open your mind to new ways of viewing the world around you and lead you to create more interesting and engaging photos.
The Art of Seeing 2: The best of Reuters photography (2nd Edition)
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • The Art Of Seeing 2
The Art of Seeing 2: The best of Reuters photography (2nd Edition)
Reuters Photographers
Manufacturer: Financial Times Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1903684374

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars The Art Of Seeing 2.......2004-06-14

I really enjoyed viewing The Art of Seeing 2, by Reuters. Coming from a journalism point of view, the photographs in this book are stunning! The book truly does capture some of the most significant moments in recent history. The photos range from important sports and celebrity moments to symbolic or historical political statements.
Since the photos are taken from an agency that shoots primarily photo journalistic photos, some people may not appreciate some of the photos. The true beauties of these images lie in the capture of the moment and emotion and truth. I really enjoyed many of the political and war photos, very in your face. Some of them were shocking, taking me back in realization and touched me at the same time. In a solely artistic sense, the pictures had a great sense of composition and lighting however they are documentary. This is definitely not printed to act as a fine art book, more of just a collection of incredible pieces of journalistic work. The book definitely demonstrates the talent pool found in the world of photo-journalists.
Photographic seeing
Average customer rating: Not rated
    Photographic seeing
    Andreas Feininger
    Manufacturer: Prentice-Hall
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Unknown Binding

    GeneralGeneral | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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    ASIN: 0136653723
    Seeing Gardens (New Millennium)
    Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    • Exotic, beautiful, dazzling photographs of gardens
    Seeing Gardens (New Millennium)
    Sam Abell
    Manufacturer: National Geographic
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Hardcover

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    ASIN: 0792279565
    Release Date: 2000-11-01

    Amazon.com

    In his 1990 book Stay This Moment, National Geographic photographer Sam Abell wrote, "There are few fresh photographs of gardens because photographing beautiful things is difficult." Now, almost as if in answer to himself, Abell has produced Seeing Gardens, with 150 quiet, intensely gorgeous full-frame images from around the globe that stand as a testament to his ability to do exactly that: photograph beautiful things in a fresh and inventive way. In his simple, elegant text, Abell provides insights into how he came to take many of his better known images, such as National Hotel, Moscow, Russia, which features a handful of pears resting on a windowsill with the Kremlin in the background. Perhaps never before have Abell's sumptuous photographs been placed in a more apt context--that of the garden, both in a literal sense, like his stunning images of temple gardens in Japan, and in a figurative sense, including his shot of a blue neon sign that simply says "FLOWERS." --Walt Opie

    Book Description

    At the heart of every garden lies an idea; the greatest gardens represent not just nature's beauty but the clear vision of a gifted artist. The same is true of an inspired garden book.

    To capture the essence of a garden demands both a keen eye and a subtle sensibility, the hallmark qualities of Sam Abell's acclaimed photography. Not for nothing is this volume entitled Seeing Gardens, for its landmark images have as much to tell us about how we see as what we see. To Abell, a scatter of pears ripening on a Moscow windowsill evokes an orchard just as surely as his portrait of a 600-year-old Japanese garden summons up an ancient tradition of artfully cultivated wildness. Each pebble, pond and twisted pine in that garden is carefully placed to create an idea of unstudied nature as resonant as reality itself.

    As befits a book that melds two visual arts, Seeing Gardens lets its 150 pictures speak for themselves with a spare text that offers context rather than commentary. The book is at once thoughtful and elegant, and the anecdotes, recollections and aesthetic philosophy amount to a brief but telling memoir of Abell's three decades of interpreting gardens. His photographs include planned gardens in a variety of cultural settings; found gardens, created by nature but given form by the artist's frame; and the many allusions to gardens in daily life. Whether in the pruned symmetry of a line of plane trees along Lake Como's shores, the pristine shape of a wild water lily in the blackwater mirror of the Okeefenokee Swamp, or the leafy print of a vivid floral fabric, Abell discovers gardens everywhere. The gift of this book is the gift of seeing gardens in a new, intimate and involving way.

    Customer Reviews:

    5 out of 5 stars Exotic, beautiful, dazzling photographs of gardens.......2001-01-17

    For more than thirty years Sam Abell traveled the world on assignment for National Geographic. In Seeing Gardens he has assembled 125 of his most exotic, beautiful, dazzling photographs of gardens ranging from the symmetrical, formal English garden to the haphazard, naturally harmonious rock pools, to a field of spring blossoms, to the floral design of a head scarf. Highly recommended for students of photography, gardening enthusiasts, and anyone who appreciates viewing the world through an artist's lens, Seeing Gardens is a vivid, personally intense, inspiring, visual celebration of the variety, spectrum and beauty of gardens.
    The Art of Seeing : The Best of Reuters Photography
    Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    • excellent photojournalist book
    • The absolute best of photojournalism
    The Art of Seeing : The Best of Reuters Photography
    Ulli Michel
    Manufacturer: Financial Times/Prentice Hall
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Hardcover

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    ASIN: 0273650114

    Customer Reviews:

    5 out of 5 stars excellent photojournalist book.......2003-07-02

    an excellent photojournalist book with a very good edit

    5 out of 5 stars The absolute best of photojournalism.......2002-11-07

    Let me start this review by saying that I am *not* a photojournalist. I am an art photographer, and unlike these people at Reuter, I take weeks or months to perfect a print when they need only hours (although I am limited my darkroom availability at my school). So, I was judging this book not as a photojournalist book, but as a serious art photography book, since that is what I know.

    That being said, this is an EXCELLENT art phorography book. I picked up this book to look at in Borders after being fascinated by the cover photography, which is more of an art photograph than anything. It was absolutely beautiful, with human faces blocked by simle white masks, and only black in the abckround. I didn't know this was a photojournalist book, I thought it was art photography. So, being so in love with the cover, I sat down and looked through every single photograph. About 1/5 of the book is sports photography, and I am not at all into sports, so I didn't much like those sections, but the rest more than makes up for it.

    All of these photographs are greatly crafted and precise technically. There are beautiful ones like the one on the front, hillarious ones, ones that look unbelievable (I'm thinking of one with a skelton model about 50 feet high raised out of the water in a lake looking at a huge "book of life" that's actually an opera stage. I thought it was a digital piece of art at first!). The best, and most moving photographs in this book however are the war photographs. These are very, very hard to look at, but they show you what war is really like, the things you don't see in the regular news media. You see bodies burned so taht the yellow fat and muscles show. You see a body hunched over a railing with almost all of his back blown off and scattered about him, where you can see straight into the empty cavity of his back. You see a man shotting another man in a gutter. These are not fun to look at, but tehy are important, give such impact that the breath is knocked out of you several times.

    This book is not for the faint of heart, but it is one of the best photography books I have seen. And to pay $[money]for a 200 page hardback is a real deal. Buy this book, if you can stomach teh ahrsh war photographs you won't regret it! And even if you can't, there's plenty of other, easy to view, excellent photographs.
    Photographing the Landscape: The Art of Seeing
    Average customer rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
    • Photographing the Blandscape: The Art of Blowing One's Own Trumpet
    • Great resource for photo composition and technique
    • Organizes to see and capture a scene
    • Pictures teach more than words
    • nice layout...concepts expressed simply
    Photographing the Landscape: The Art of Seeing
    John Fielder
    Manufacturer: Westcliff Pub Inc
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Hardcover

    GeneralGeneral | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
    Nature & WildlifeNature & Wildlife | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
    ReferenceReference | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
    GeneralGeneral | How-to | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
    EquipmentEquipment | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
    Similar Items:
    1. Large Format Nature Photography Large Format Nature Photography
    2. Capturing the Light: An Inspirational and Instructional Guide to Landscape Photography Capturing the Light: An Inspirational and Instructional Guide to Landscape Photography
    3. View Camera Technique View Camera Technique
    4. John Fielder's Best of Colorado John Fielder's Best of Colorado
    5. Using the View Camera Using the View Camera

    ASIN: 1565791509

    Customer Reviews:

    2 out of 5 stars Photographing the Blandscape: The Art of Blowing One's Own Trumpet.......2007-08-28

    Colorado is at saturation point with Fielder's books, calendars etc. Whenever I picked one up in a bookshop I would think, "yeah, nice" and put it back with all the other pretty picture books. Then I visited his gallery in Cherry Creek Mall and was blown away. Massive prints (in size and price) that take your breath away. So detailed you can almost smell the breath of that mountain goat atop a grand mountain, so intense you feel you can reach out and touch the Indian Paintbrush nestled in the vibrant mountain meadow. I was so impressed that I bought this book.

    But back at home, much of what those photos gained through size, pinsharp detail and technical excellence is lost when printed page size. Look at his online gallery (do a web search) and you will get the idea. A lot of his work doesn't scale down that well at all. Compositionally I find most are pretty average, some very good, but not consistently excellent.

    Is that a problem? Not really except that you realise that he is his own publisher and so crams the book with self congratulatory arrogance. To hear him bleat about how much effort and skill he put into a mediocre landscape gets to you after a while.

    However, loving the Colorado mountains as I do, I find myself appreciating the subjects whatever their artistic merit. His subjects are often beautiful, and reflect his dedication (of which he reminds you a great deal) to spending his life away from home searching for that perfect sunrise by being there at 12,000 feet at 4am.

    And he does pass on a fair amount of technical knowledge and advice (if you can ignore his back-patting style).

    Some people lap his work up and I would definitely buy one of his huge prints for my living room if could afford one. I'm not disppointed I bought this book, but I feel I wouldn't have missed much if I hadn't.


    4 out of 5 stars Great resource for photo composition and technique.......2007-05-31

    I saw John Fielder at a public event and I was impressed with his matter of fact work flow model. This book lays it all out. Its a great how to resource.

    5 out of 5 stars Organizes to see and capture a scene.......2005-05-22

    What a great help this book is to learn to see, visualize and capture the panorama and the detail in landscape photography. The first Chapter flows through how to see, compose and capture. The illustrative photographs and the accompanying commentary are invaluable supports to the text.

    If you are learning how to do better landscape photography, read this book after John Shaw's Landscape photography. The two books are quite different and quite compatible. Both authors have strong points of view, but as a learner it is good to hear these and take away the good in each.

    You will, however, have to take some leaps to digital as it is a film based book -- I did not find this to be overly concerning.
    My only wish is that Fielder still did photography field classes!

    5 out of 5 stars Pictures teach more than words.......2003-05-06

    John Fielder is one of the best photographers of this age. Perhaps not as commonly know as a Tom Till or a Larry Ulrich, he centers the majority of his work in the backcountry of Colorado where he's hiked virtually every inch of terrain.

    This is one of the most beautiful books on photography that I own and his images taught me more than his words. He has some of the more typical landscape scenes that could be done by most competent professionals. But where Fielder stands out the most are the pictures that truly look like a complex model of math and art. He blends perfectly the elements of his trade. Photography is as much a technical craft as it is an art. To be great, you need both. Fielder is a virtual Bach of photography where he punctuates his gorgeous style with obvious control of technique.

    What sets him apart from most other photographers is his style. Most of his images are not typical and clearly make use of simplicity, beautiful lines, hazy afternoons. He doesn't rely on perfect buttermilk clouds to paint a photograph for him. He uses the soft folds of a hill on a cloudy day or the sheer layers of a clear sunrise on a beach to make his pictures. He doesn't need much to turn his world in a vivid piece of artwork captured precisely on his large format.

    His writing style is very much like his photographs. Simple and concise. Though at times, I did wish he would explain some concepts a bit more in depth. Mostly though, he uses his images as an example of what to do or what not to do.

    He writes how he learned photography by taking pictures and then comparing them to the best (Ansel Adams and Eliot Porter). His own photographs have set a precedent, a standard beyond many landscape photographers could even dream. Take his advice and study the greats to develop an eye for the craft. The technical aspect requires some learning but to be great like Fielder, follow in his footsteps until your own style emerges.

    I also enjoyed his accounts of a day in the life of a landscape photographer. To find those beautiful, untouched places, you have to be tough and be able to hike miles at altitude. It's always great to have a personal touch to an educational book. Nothing could be more mundane than a purely technical photography book especially when we all know that photographers are fairly opinionated and outspoken.

    If you want a strictly technical book, invest in National Geographic's field guide. But if you are looking for inspiration, for a chance to study a master in his prime, look to Fielder. He will teach you in his images, in the subtle language of art and make the text on the page virtually unecessary.

    5 out of 5 stars nice layout...concepts expressed simply.......2003-03-12

    This is a book that explains basic concepts of landscape photography -- rhythm, proportion, etc. -- in ways that will allow you to easily understand and use those concepts. You get clearly explained information about different types of cameras, filters, lighting, etc. and how they affect the outcome. This author capably explains the principle AND illustrates that principle with his own work, so whether you learn best from a tutorial or a definition, this book will help you. It is laid out in such a way that it is easy and pleasant to read, and the author uses plain language. It includes some useful charts and diagrams. This book seems aimed somewhat more at beginners than advanced photographers. I've been shooting a while though and found my understanding of some concepts explained by his work. His photos may not be the best I've ever seen but they ARE quite good, certainly beyond the range of most beginners and adequate for illustrating the concepts. I collect Galen Rowell's books due to a great respect for who he was -- both in terms of his wilderness ethic and his phenomenal photographs -- but, as another reviewer mentions, his books are not nearly as easy to learn from. This author concentrates on teaching but includes enough of his own experience to make for an interesting and instructive read.
    Photographic Seeing.
    Average customer rating: Not rated
      Photographic Seeing.
      Feininger Andreas
      Manufacturer: Prentice-Hall
      ProductGroup: Book
      Binding: Paperback
      ASIN: B000OJ140M

      Books:

      1. Photography and the Art of Seeing: A Visual Perception Workshop for Film and Digital Photography
      2. Photography
      3. Photoshop Artistry: For Photographers Using Photoshop CS2 and Beyond (Voices That Matter)
      4. Photoshop CS / CS2 Wow! Book, The, 1/e (WOW!)
      5. Photoshop CS2 For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))
      6. Planet Earth: As You've Never Seen It Before
      7. Playboy Girls Next Door 2007 Poster Wall Calendar
      8. Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?
      9. Princess Masako: Prisoner of the Chrysanthemum Throne
      10. Pure Sea Glass: Discovering Nature's Vanishing Gems

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