Mastering Black and White Digital Photography (A Lark Photography Book)
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • A good starting point for learning fine quality digital black & white photos
  • Excellent B/W Digital book for Intermediate to Advanced
  • Freeman's insight
  • Disjointed
  • Excellent book on B&W techniques with Photoshop
Mastering Black and White Digital Photography (A Lark Photography Book)
Michael Freeman
Manufacturer: Lark Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1579907075

Book Description

Black and white has an enduring appeal that just keeps on growing. Above all, it's a medium for the fine print--one that benefits immeasurably from digital technology and inkjet printers. Written by a photographer well-known for his ability to explain complex digital concepts to a variety of audiences, this essential guide on the art of black and white is packed with information, hints, and tips, along with a plethora of stunning images. Discover how our colorful world translates into black and white and how to create a stunning monotone image. See how to render colors as gray tones and how to manipulate the tonality for dramatic effect. Experiment with high contrast, infrared, and pseudo non-silver looks. You won't believe the wonderful results you'll achieve.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars A good starting point for learning fine quality digital black & white photos.......2007-06-09

This book presents an introductory exposition of techniques for producing "fine art" black and white images from digital color images. Its intended audience is amateur digital photographers and Photoshop users with limited experience. The technical depth of the discussion is fairly high-level. The book is laid out in a glitzy fashion that indicates heavy influence from the graphic arts department. In this regard, the book is better suited for coffee table display than for use as a workroom reference.

The book divides its discussion into five chapters:
· The Language of Mono
· Color into Grayscale
· Digital Black and White
· Image Editing and Effects
· The Print

The Language of Mono
This is good place to start a discussion of black and white images, by looking at what makes black and white images work. Here, the author introduces his "case study" method, where he uses an image as an example to illustrate his points.

Color into Grayscale
In this chapter, the author explores ways to use the Channel Mixer in Photoshop to manipulate the individual color channels for red, green and blue to produce the black and white tones intended by the photographer. He also introduces the technique of manipulating hues to control tones. Again, he uses case studies of individual images to illustrate his ideas.

Digital Black and White
In this section, the author explores the management of tonal ranges using Photoshop. He discusses setting white and black points to expand tonal range, and introduces methods for managing scenes with high dynamic range. Zone System is introduced, and the author briefly discusses scanning images.

Image Editing and Effects
In this abbreviated section, the author introduces ideas for modifying images to enhance mood. He also provides brief introductions to concepts including adding color tones (e.g., sepia), using duotones and other print finishing techniques.

The Print
In this final section, the author presents a brief discussion of printer types (dye-sublimation vs. inkjet). He introduces the concept of printer calibration, and goes on to introduce ink issues (mainly suggesting external ink supplies). He finishes with a brief discussion of print mounting and display.

Critical Assessment
Clearly, the real value of this book is in introducing the reader to the concepts involved in digital black and white photography. The discussions that have the greatest value are in the first three sections, where the author provides the greatest depth. Topics broached in the final two sections are passed over too lightly to add much to the readers understanding.

Taking the first three sections on their own merit, however, they do justify the price of the book. Although introductory in scope, they delve deeply enough into the topics to provide real help for beginners. There is enough here to keep beginning photographers busy for some time, exploring the techniques he describes. Soon enough, however, students will reach the point where they will need additional information not provided in this book. To be fair, many of the topics the author covers lightly are worthy of books in themselves. For example: the author devotes four pages to zone system, but manages to say nothing that might actually help the reader understand what zone system is about. (I recommend reading Ansel Adams' The Negative again. Just remember, in digital photography the zone system admonition to "expose for the shadows, develop for the highlights" morphs into, "expose for the highlights, expose again for the shadows." And, while you're about reading Ansel Adams, The Print has much good information. Just skip all the lab chemistry parts.)

The layout of this book is such that it is not so much read as explored. Major content is provided in sidebars and captions. The heavy influence of the graphic arts department in the layout can be annoying at times, for instance when it is unclear which supplementary text belongs with which main text, or when an entire column is devoted to a pull-quote in large type of a paragraph we just read on the preceding page. The book does not invite highlighting with a marker or scribbling notes in the margins (it would seem almost a desecration).

On balance, I am glad I discovered this book. It provided me with essential help in getting started with black and white digital photography. I was disappointed that the book lacked the depth to help me with steps beyond the first, so in this sense it does not live up to its title, Mastering Black and White Digital Photography. The book would have more accurately been titled, Introducing Black and White Digital Photography, which it well accomplishes.

5 out of 5 stars Excellent B/W Digital book for Intermediate to Advanced.......2007-05-15

This book is an excellent reference for intermediate to advanced photographers. Absolute beginners would need a basic photoshop book to help fill in the gaps or details to understand some techniques instead of blindly following a recipe.
The author has brought together under one book a large variety of creative ideas and techniques that not too long ago were only available from a collection of books and magazine articles. It's written in concise 1 to 2 page sections and in many places use a sequence of images to show the different steps of a process. Most of the images are very suitable to demonstrate that technique.
I can see how this book could seem confusing and disjointed in places as described by other reviewers, especially to an absolute beginner, but there is so much good stuff in this book that I would consider it a definite must have reference for any serious Digital B/W photographer. A second edition could fix some of these issues, e.g. key information being relegated to captions under images vs. in the text and minor tweaks to the logical sequence of a few topics. Adding summary outlines of the steps would make it even more useful for quick review and reference instead of wading through the text and images every time. However, the book is still very useable. These suggestions would just make it clearer. As a photography instructor, I have applied and taught several of the methods in this book. Using this book has further clarified my understanding of Digital B/W techniques to create compelling images.
One area of weakness is that this book lacks a good comprehensive section on image composition. This would make it more complete as a useful class text book. B/W imagery lets you look at composition in it's elemental form without distractions from color. If the author could round up a good collection of images demonstrating various composition and design concepts in a revised edition, I would go as far to say this book has the potential to become a "standard" intermediate text on B/W Photography for the digital era.

5 out of 5 stars Freeman's insight.......2006-07-24

As a professional photographer I found Michael Freeman's book to be the most informative and concise study on the complex and somewhat baffling world of digital photography. He is a master of his craft and opens one's eyes to the major developments. His writing and illustrations are supberb, he simplifies what could be compex adjustments and tasks.
Excellent, a must for any serious photographer.
Thanks Michael

3 out of 5 stars Disjointed.......2006-07-24

I did not care for the 2 page snippets used to describe most of the topics in this book. In addition, the book did not seem to flow well. For example, some black and white conversion techniques were listed in one part of the book, whereas others were listed in other chapters, making it difficult to find and compare them.

Significantly, most of the key information was not included in the text itself, but rather in captions accompanying the images. Not only is the font size for these captions small, but sometimes it was hard to determine the proper sequence of the images.

While this book does provide some useful information, I have purchased other books that are both more informative and better written.

5 out of 5 stars Excellent book on B&W techniques with Photoshop.......2006-07-15

Whenever I read a photogrpahy book such as this one, I always carry around those little plastic post-it notes to mark any important pages. After reading it, I found that I had marked almost half of the entire book! Freeman explains different ways of converting color files to black and white using layer masks, contrast, desaturating, and everything else. The great thing, though, is that he gives you solid examples and a step-by-step process for each one. He tells you how to fix a washed-out sky that unbalances the photo, how to manipulate each color when it has already been converted to black and white and why this is such a useful tool, how to work with skin tones, how to get great contrast without clipping, and even how to use layers with each color. As a bonus, at the end of the book he talks aboout printing; what inks are good, what paper is good, etc. A very thorough and easy to understand book with great detail. I recommend this book for anyone interested in B&W photography or B&W Photoshop techniques.
Black Book
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • I Will Purchase This Book
  • Black Is Beautiful
  • Has a great depiction of the male body as it should be seen.
Black Book
Robert Mapplethorpe
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0312021666

Book Description

In Black Book, Robert Mapplethorpe presents an astonishing photographic study of black men today. In their diversity, impact, subtlety, technical virtuosity, erotic appeal, and deep humanity, these photographs constitute a stunning celebration of the contemporary black male."all my life they've been near me/these men" says Ntozake Shange in her Foreword, "i've been holdin your heart in/my hand since i was a child/cause i wanted what all you were/what all you are/now you're a man."

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars I Will Purchase This Book.......2006-08-22

I will buy this book soon as a private tribute to a dear friend of mine, Jeff Gray, who is one of the models in the book. I remember him showing me the photos which Robert Mapplethorpe had taken of him. At the time, he doubted that they would ever be published. I did see the book later, but didn't purchase, but I was impressed.

When Jeff was lying in bed in a hospital in San Francisco, I called to inform him that the book had indeed been published. He was thrilled to know that he had been immortalized, for he was dying of AIDS. Jeff never saw the book and didn't have anything negative to say about Robert, whom I never met. I still own a pair of leather pants and a vest Jeffrey designed and made for me.

5 out of 5 stars Black Is Beautiful.......2005-04-14

Published in 1986, Robert Mapplethorpe's BLACK BOOK remains one of my favorite books of photography. Nothing had been published like it previously; nothing comparable has been published since. The book is devoted entirely to shots of black men, some of them naked, some of them not. There are portraits included here as well-- one of my favorites is the stunning portrait of Roedel Middleton on page 70. Some of the images are outrageously beautiful. Many of the models' bodies take on the quality of polished ebony. The four nude photographs of someone named Ajitto in a classical pose-- as are many of the images-- at the beginning of the book are as beautiful as any you will ever see.

It is common knowledge of course now that some of these photographs have been declared obscene (by the likes of Jesse Helms et al.) and racist by some African Americans.(Some of the black men making these allegations, to paraphrase the black poet Don Lee, talk black but sleep white.) According to a less-than-scientific survey by this Caucasian male, there are about 94 photographs included here, only six of them are of body parts-- and I'm not talking here of feet and hands or even behinds here-- 27 are of male nudes with their genitalia exposed, and only in five of them is the model unnamed. Mapplethorpe may well have been a racist, but I fear his critics may have to look elsewhere for proof. An observation or two: his models appear to be willing subjects as no one is tied up or seems to be shot unawares. Secondly, the nature of the male animal of all colors being what it is, there's a good possibility that people having little to offer may have been unwilling to make the sacrifice of giving the viewer the full monty. The artist obviously loved black men and had many black friends as well as lovers. Finally the poet Ntozake Shange has written a beautiful poem as an introduction to this book. Apparently she had no problem with Mapplethorpe's creative vision.

Many of these photographs will last.

5 out of 5 stars Has a great depiction of the male body as it should be seen........1999-06-03

Mapplethorpe, with his great photographic potenial produced a riviting book that dignifies the male, black body to the next zenith. He was able to capture the very essence of what it is to be a male and to be viewed as "God's" art or creation and not a male "pig." This book demonstrates the power of the camera when the beholder knows what he/she is doing. The images in this book do not apal me, afend me nor do they disgust me. I enjoyed reading and flipping through this book as a ligitimate art reviewer and as a academic scholar.
Stanley Kubrick: Drama & Shadows
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Phenomenal compilation of regrettably forgotten works...
  • Sheds some light on Kubrick but does not stand alone as photography
  • Great photographs
Stanley Kubrick: Drama & Shadows
Rainer Crone
Manufacturer: Phaidon Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0714844381

Book Description

Born in New York City in 1928, Stanley Kubrick began taking photographs when in high school. At sixteen, he sent a photograph he took of a newsstand after President Roosevelt's death to Look Magazine. The publication of the photograph marked the beginning of Kubrick's work for the magazine, which lasted until 1950, when Kubrick made his first 16mm documentary film. During those five years Kubrick completed dozens of photographic reportage assignments in New York City as well as abroad. The resulting thousands of negatives have remained in the archives of Look Magazine ever since. Kubrick's photographs vary in subject, but people are the central focus of attention, as is his commitment to narration. Whether capturing the meditative state of passengers in a series of portraits made in the New York subway, following famous boxer Rocky Graziano on the ring and in intimate moments, portraying the coming of age of socialite Betsy Von F++rstenberg, or narrating the tale of a shoe-shine boy in the streets of New York City, Kubrick draws psychological portraits that combine drama, irony, and often mystery, anticipating his trademark cinematic style.If Kubrick's photographs are fascinating accounts of life in the late 1940s, they are also a major contribution to American photography of that era. At nineteen, Kubrick already had an immense talent in constructing complex compositions in which camera positioning and lighting played a crucial role. The book is introduced by an essay by Rainer Crone, who also edited the selection of photographs for this book. Crone is an expert on Kubrick's photographic work, and has already published a catalogue on this subject (see Related Titles below). An art historian, he gives context and examines Kubrick's photographs in relation to not only his later films but also the history of twentieth-century art and photography. Crone also wrote short introductions to most stories in the book.An invaluable contribution to the history of photography, this book explores how one of the most influential and successful film directors of our time used photography to master visual techniques and cultivate his signature style.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Phenomenal compilation of regrettably forgotten works..........2006-04-05

These are masterpieces of insightful timing & guerrila portraiture. Avedon said photography was mostly lies - photographs only captured an instant in time & usually the wrong instant. Kubrick almost always managed to get the right instant. That's great photography!

3 out of 5 stars Sheds some light on Kubrick but does not stand alone as photography.......2006-04-01

The editors of this book were wise in prominently placing the photo that you see here on the cover. It is the most distinct and mysterious image in a book of otherwise indistinct work. Most of the photos are commercial and are interesting in so far as they reveal little hints of Kubrick's budding genius for mis-en-scene. But as photos the work doesn't stand alone very well, nor was it intended to.

5 out of 5 stars Great photographs.......2006-03-01

The photographs in this book are worth the price of it. If you're a Kubrick fan, you can't do without it. The photographs teach more about film than a dozen histories.
Black Dice & Jason Frank Rothernberg: Gore (Picturebox Books)
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Noisey psychadelia
  • cloud busting rainbows
Black Dice & Jason Frank Rothernberg: Gore (Picturebox Books)
Black Dice
Manufacturer: "Picture Box, Inc."
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0971367086
Release Date: 2006-04-01

Book Description

Underground rock darlings Black Dice just released their fourth album, Broken Ear Record from DFA/EMI. Music enthusiasts may consider this first book--an extension of their highly visual melange of sound, performance, and art, with a plastic flexi-record bound in--a fifth album, but it's something entirely new. The band grew out of the infamous Providence art and noise scene in the late 1990s, and has since drawn acclaim in New York and worldwide. Their longtime friend, the photographer Jason Frank Rothenberg, has been documenting their work. His images, often reworked and collaged by the band to illustrate their tastes and sensibilities, form the foundation of the book. In collaborating on Gore, the band's creative process paralleled its musical one, each member making use of different skills in individual contributions that informed and built on one another. The resulting mix of found images, photographs, collages, and altered documentation explores the full integration of their creative processes and offers a glimpse into daily life in the genesis of their sonic persona. Band member and rising artist Bjorn Copeland's psychedelia will draw particular attention, as will a flexi-picture disc featuring new music.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Noisey psychadelia.......2006-10-27

A book that is interesting and visualing stimulating, i recommend it for fans of black dice, or if you are looking for something different to stimulate you. however, it is JUST pictures, so keep that in mind, no text whatsoever. the cover is neat too.

4 out of 5 stars cloud busting rainbows.......2006-08-14

Like a scrapbook of deities and banshees whom haunt the plane of advertisement and commercialism, this novel generates
new visual capabilities using a fashionable medium. A witless juxtaposition of elements from an even more witless source. BLACK DICE are geniuses. They have made a cool book, i guess, but it acts more like headway towards new forms of their creative aesthetic sense. Anticipation is granted.
Bjorn Copeland seems to have the obvious talent but as a collective, they must upgrade. Use multimedia like a shaman.
Allow the creative horchata to act like a panacea only to further the capability of something as pleasing to the spirits as a shwarma. Give me Lizzie's digits.
The Basic Darkroom Book: compl GT Processing ptg Color Black White photogs for Beginners thru Experts
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • SO ****ING BORING
  • Superb Darkroom Manual
  • Best Photography book!
  • Terrible book!
  • This "Basic" Darkroom Book has it ALL.
The Basic Darkroom Book: compl GT Processing ptg Color Black White photogs for Beginners thru Experts
Tom Grimm
Manufacturer: Plume
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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  5. Mastering Black-and-White Photography: From Camera to Darkroom Mastering Black-and-White Photography: From Camera to Darkroom

ASIN: 0452274362

Book Description

Third Edition, newly revised, the companion edition to the bestselling Basic Book of Photography.

This completely updated edition of Tom Grimm's classic how-to darkroom guide explains all the steps necessary to develop and print professional quality photographs at home. This third edition of The Basic Darkroom Book is totally current with the latest technology and equipment, including electronic imaging in the "digital darkroom."

Like most books on darkroom techniques, The Basic Darkroom Book contains illustrations, but what sets it apart is the amount of explanatory text devoted to each step in the development process. Written with clarity and concision by a 40-year veteran in the photographic arts, this accessible master reference is the only darkroom assistant a photographer needs.

Customer Reviews:

3 out of 5 stars SO ****ING BORING.......2006-09-17

This book, is so hard to read, i don't know how any one could possibly turn a book that i, a darkroom hobbist my self could have wirtten in perhaps two hundered pages into a 464 page snooz fest. he includes all this unessiccary stuff aout how the film works and summerizeds stuff hes going to explain before he explains it... WHO CARES!!?? if i wanted to know how film works id buy a book on film! If you want to set up a drak room, eihter take a class, or buy a diffent book, thats not so hard to read, its basicly a text book. is it a bad book? nay, but don't expect to use it as a instruction manual, it has about fifty pages of nonsense between the actaul process of making a god damn darkroom!

5 out of 5 stars Superb Darkroom Manual.......2005-12-17

This book by Tom Grimm is by far the most comprehensive and practical handbook on darkroom information and procedures that I have yet read. I have been involved in photography since the early 1950's and this is one of the best books on this aspect of photography that I own. I believe it surpasses that excellent book "Enlarging" by Jacobson and Mannheim that I also own and still use (1975 edition). I just do not understand the previous criticism made that the book requires "a degree" to understand it! The only criticism I would make is that products listed by the author are not always available to UK photographers, as it has, naturally, an American bias, however, even with that small defecit, the book is well worth the price!

5 out of 5 stars Best Photography book!.......2004-09-10

This is one of the best photography books around, in my opinion. Very very detailed coverage of most all aspects of B&W and color photography. The author does not assum that you have your very own private dark room and makes sigguestions as to how you can use things you probably allready have around your house instead of expensive photography equipement. For instance, the author sigguests that you might use a fish tank and heater to control the temperature of color chemicals! And I tell you what, that is a lot less expensive compared to buying a rotary processor from Jobo.

The author gives detailed explinations of how processos work, and some hostory behind them. He also lets you just jump ahead to the quick and simple overview. This lets you learn about what your doing, if you new to the area, or get a quick review if you're not sure your quite remember how to do something.

Truly a great book, or even textbook for college classes.

1 out of 5 stars Terrible book!.......2001-07-26

I am writing this review in order to warn new-comers to the field of photography against buying it. Although the title specifies, "for beginners through experts," this book almost requires a degree to comprehend it. Techniques discussed are not for beginners! The book insists you need to spend vast amounts of money and time to develop prints; this is untrue. In fact, a beginner would need to read 6 chapters of the book, which are extremely confusing, before being able to develop a black-and-white print. The process could quite easily be explained in less than a page.

In short, I do not recommend anyone buy this terrible book.

5 out of 5 stars This "Basic" Darkroom Book has it ALL........1999-08-14

As it says on the book's cover, for beginners through experts. Basic indeed! The author covers virtually every subject in photofinishing from basic black & white printing through color processing & printing with various films, papers and chemistry to delving into the digital darkroom! The author explains each subject in entertaining and conversational style to build the foundation for a more detailed and thorough explanation of the science & art of custom darkroom procedures and techniques. Photographs, illustrations and tables compliment the text. Loaded with information making it a valuable reference book even for those of us who have been doing custom black & white and color darkroom work for 20 years! If you have only one book on this subject, this is the book to own. The Basic Darkroom Book third edition is a must have.
Body & Soul: The Black Male Book
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Don't Judge a Book by Its Cover--or Its Title
  • Nice Tease- You Got My Money!
  • Bad As They Were
  • Yeah Shannon!
  • Hai-Chi Mama!
Body & Soul: The Black Male Book
Duane Thomas
Manufacturer: Universe Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0789301296
Release Date: 1998-07-15

Book Description

Black men have always created their own style vocabulary, and this stunning collection of photographs is an unprecedented visual tribute to black male beauty and style--as photographed by such top photographers as Marc Baptiste, David LaChapelle, Michel Comte, Thierry Le Gouès, Walter Chin, Greg Gorman and Bob Frame.

At once sensual and inspirational, Body & Soul is a candid, provocative look at some of the most talked-about black men on today's cultural scene--from music artists and athletes to models and actors.

Customer Reviews:

3 out of 5 stars Don't Judge a Book by Its Cover--or Its Title.......2005-08-14

D'Angelo, the cover man, is not to be found inside. The title is much too broad; a more accurate title would be, "Fashion Styles of Some Rich & Famous Black Males." As for bodies, they are mostly clothes hangers here; the amount of skin on the cover is misleading. The contents rate as PG because of a couple behinds and a few covered crotches; there is no full, frontal nudity whatsoever. I don't know how anybody gets any soul out of this book, unless they see it in the eyes of some portraits or glean it from scattered quotes of fashion magazine staffers, usually a phrase or single sentence each, as the quotes, along with some other one-sentence observations by the author, are the only text. Therefore, the cover and title are cheap, bookselling tricks, but the book price is not cheap. A used copy, however, IS cheap, as buyers turn into sellers. Although a book about men of color, I am surprised that black & white plates out-number color 3:1, as I count about 90 b&w and 31 color photo's. I am a fan, too, of some of the people featured, but, to me, this is no reason to gush about the book as a whole. Although I could ooh and ah about some of the photo's, there are a like number of dogs and mediocre shots. What could form a pop-culture chapter itself is the number of celebrities who must have paid a lot for elaborate fantasy scenes shot by highly-paid photographers. I would not feel good about seeing this sort of arrogance if I shelled out a lot for their books, CD's, magazines, ticket prices, etc., the profits of which finance such folly. The author sees Black male fashion from a mainly GQ-type perspective, which may be right in-step in certain parts of Manhattan, but, from here in 'da hood, its seems like he's in an ivory tower. He has a new book coming out, with a similar cover and title, of which I will be suspicious. Except for a few unkwnowns, I expect that everyone involved is highly paid--subjects, photographers, fashion industry, etc.--and I wonder if people paid to be in this book, either in the form of their likeness(es) or their work; it would explain a lot.

2 out of 5 stars Nice Tease- You Got My Money!.......2003-06-15

Have owned this book over six months but just had to get my twocents in on a review. My purchase was based solely on the frontcover showing the gorgeous black rapper- D'Angelo. Since his MTVvideo titled "Untitled" was one of the hottest & sensual videosever to hit the TV screen, I naturally assumed Mr. Thomas wouldtreat all his purchasers to a D'Angelo collection highlightinghis extremely buffed 'bod. Or maybe he could have given us JamieFoxx instead spoofing D'Angelo on his syndicated weekly program.I salivated alot at the other photos- many too small but in the end it galled me that MY MAIN MAN was really a "no show!"

2 out of 5 stars Bad As They Were.......2001-11-06

Unlike most of the reviewers here, I got to meet some of the guys here either in concert, from the 'hood etc. All left a bad impression on me, so to see them so marvelously pictured here is confusing.

5 out of 5 stars Yeah Shannon!.......2000-03-28

I agree Shannon. Gary Dourdan is SWEET! Someone should do an entire book on him!

5 out of 5 stars Hai-Chi Mama!.......1999-10-17

Ladies, get your credit cards out (or borrow a friend's), get your car to the mall (or catch the bus), buy this book now (do what you must)! I am not even kidding you for one second. This is a beautiful book. This book will make you proud to be (check one): 1. Black 2. An admirer of black beauty 3. Female 4. Male 5. Visually adept. All I got to say is Gary Dourdan, my dear, God Blessed You. God Bless You. All the other fine young specimens and the infinitely talented stylists, editors and photographers, "y'all GO"! (Specifically, GO directly back to the drawing board and do this again...serially,pleeeeeease!) Love... me.
Driving to Stony Lonesome: Jack Welpott's Indiana Photographs, 1936-1959 (Quarry Books)
Average customer rating: 3 out of 5 stars
  • EVERY aspiring photographer should study it, none should buy it
Driving to Stony Lonesome: Jack Welpott's Indiana Photographs, 1936-1959 (Quarry Books)
Jack Welpott
Manufacturer: Quarry Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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  1. Impounded: Dorothea Lange and the Censored Images of Japanese American Internment Impounded: Dorothea Lange and the Censored Images of Japanese American Internment

ASIN: 0253218667

Book Description

"Its pictures are memories of moments a half century old or older...rich grays, luminous whites, black in the deepest shadows. Some have the feel of the work of Dorothea Lange or Walker Percy...a few have the almost surreal aspect of the work of Diane Arbus."-- Bill Strother, Hoosier Times, Bloomington, Indiana (January 7, 2007)

Internationally acclaimed photographer Jack Welpott grew up in southern Indiana, served in World War II, and returned to the Hoosier state to attend Indiana University. Unsure of his direction, he enrolled in a photography class and met the legendary photography instructor Henry Holmes Smith. Under his tutelage, Welpott thrived. He became enthralled with black-and-white photography as a fine art form, and never looked back.

Driving to Stony Lonesome chronicles his years in Bloomington, Indiana. The 100+ photographs that make up the core of this gorgeous book are intense and personal, and include many fine examples of environmental portraiture of which Welpott was a master.

Welpott, now in his middle 80s, provides personal anecdotes along with the photographs. He didn't just take "art photographs"--he captured the heart of his subjects. By getting to know the people he photographed and winning their confidence, he gained an understanding of his subjects that would not belie a camera. This strategy served him well, and the photographs in this book richly capture life in rural southern Indiana.

Customer Reviews:

3 out of 5 stars EVERY aspiring photographer should study it, none should buy it.......2007-08-18

This book should be in every public library in the country, although on no photographer's personal bookshelf.
There is not a single image in this book which I would want to hang on my wall, yet the overall quality of the photographs is superb. It is the sort of work by dedicated photographic enthusiasts whose prints fill countless albums, envelopes, drawers, and old print paper boxes throughout the world.
The importance of the book lies more in its instructive value than in its aesthetic appeal. There are no illustrations of Ansel Adam's "Moonrise," or Karsh's "Churchill," to inspire young (or older) photographers to greatness. Nowhere else that I am aware is available to show the reality of how the plain, often simple images of ordinary events touching the photographer's life are where and how the study of the photographic art should proceed. Not as an end, but as a significant intermediate stage of learning.
For a photographer to achieve this level of vision would be more than most of us could ask for, to exceed it would be a blessing of great personal satisfaction.
There is even a chapter of really (unintentionally) bad landscape photographs at the end, to confirm that the path of improvement does not always lead upward. Even the title is a hoax. There are only two images taken in those important depression and war years between 1936 and 1950.
It is somewhat like a song with great, uplifting words, and an unsingable melody.
Basic Developing & Printing  In Black And White (Kodak Darkroom Books)
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • great book with easy to understand explanations
  • this book is great for beginners wanting to learn developing
Basic Developing & Printing In Black And White (Kodak Darkroom Books)
Kodak
Manufacturer: Sterling
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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  1. Mastering Black-and-White Photography: From Camera to Darkroom Mastering Black-and-White Photography: From Camera to Darkroom
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ASIN: 0879857552

Book Description

Offers expert advice on the step-by-step basics of developing and printing photographs in black and white media. Helpful illustrations guide you through each step of the process.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars great book with easy to understand explanations.......2002-06-10

Starting back up in the dark room after 12 years I needed some refreshing and bought this book. It is great for beginners or those to need to refresh their memories. Easy to understand, going through the process step-by-step.

5 out of 5 stars this book is great for beginners wanting to learn developing.......1999-01-09

i was curious about developing my own pictures so i purchased this book to see how hard it was i read the book and the next weekend i purchased the equipment for a dark room [in my bathroom] and the chemicals and try'd it and my pictures turned out great. this book made it very simple to understand. read this book,do it,and you will be very impressed i was. dan.
The Essential Darkroom Book: A Complete Guide to Black & White and Color Processing
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • truly a complete guide
The Essential Darkroom Book: A Complete Guide to Black & White and Color Processing
Tom Grill , and Mark Scanlon
Manufacturer: Amphoto
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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  1. The Darkroom Handbook The Darkroom Handbook
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  3. Build Your Own Home Darkroom Build Your Own Home Darkroom
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  5. Mastering Black-and-White Photography: From Camera to Darkroom Mastering Black-and-White Photography: From Camera to Darkroom

ASIN: 0817438378

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars truly a complete guide.......2000-06-14

basically the title of the book says it all. anything you might want to know about developing and processing black and white photographs they tell you including illustrations and explicit diagragms. a great book for beginners but there is probably not too much here for the more advanced developer.
Black Book Photography 2006
Average customer rating: Not rated
    Black Book Photography 2006

    Manufacturer: Black Book Marketing
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Paperback

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    ASIN: 0942454952

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