Modern Weddings

In recent years there has been what some may call a trend in wedding photography of photojournalistic photographs in place of or in conjunction with traditional posed photographs. Personally I like this style. It's how I shoot. I also think it captures the feel of the day more accurately. My most recent book read was The Beautiful Wedding Photographing Authentic Moments by Tracy Dorr. This book discusses how to effectively shoot a wedding in a documentary manner. Capturing those once in a lifetime moments during a wedding is what photography is all about. Tracy gives solid tips on what type of shots to keep in mind, what cues to look for, and suggestions for editing images and final presentation. There is also a little bonus at the end where she briefly discusses applying the same techniques to children's photography. The Beautiful Wedding can be found here:
Amherst Media
Amazon
and
Barnes and Noble

Pricing Your Portraits By Jeff Smith

I received this book even before it hit the presses to get my opinion on it. Can I just say how awesome this was? I was able to implement his pricing strategies that much sooner. He doesn't offer quick fixes for pricing like I have seen advertised by some photographers out there. You know that super easy pricing formula to get you earning six figures in no time and of course you have to shell out some serious dough to gain exclusive access to this information. Not so here. What you have here is truth. Time is money being one of them. For example when you don't get something right in camera and have to fix it later in post that is cutting into your profits. Quite significantly when you apply numbers to it. He talks about how each facet of your business, no matter how small, will affect your bottom line. But this book is really about more than just making money. It's about having it all -studio, happy clients, and most importantly a home life. Because when you can run your business well that is what you get.
Look for it soon here:
Amherst Media
here:
Amazon
and here:
Barnes and Noble

Macro

Shooting macro images is one of my absolute favorite photography genre. I just finished reading Shoot Macro Techniques For Photography Up Close by Stan Sholik. I learned some new techniques like focus stacking which was not really around when I started shooting macro back almost 10 years ago. So much has changed because of digital! But that subject is better left for another time. He also used fiber optic lights for many images which I found interesting. They allowed him to put the light right where he wanted it which is critical for lighting such small objects. Of course there are some outstanding images in this book and not just flowers which I feel end up as the fall back for a lot of macro photography. Not that flowers are a bad subject by any means but it's nice to see something else from the macro perspective. All in all a very good book.
Find it here:
Amherst Media
here:
Amazon
and here:
Barnes & Noble

Photograph The Face by Jeff Smith

This was a super book. Jeff details his process very well. By detailed I don't mean lengthy or boring. I mean he gives you the details to properly visualize what he is talking about as you read. He does this very well and you can tell he has the experience to back up his word. This book will help you understand more than just how to improve the faces in your portraits. By improving the face you improve all other aspects of the portrait as well. Basically a good portrait starts with making a pretty face. If you're so inclined to purchase this book you can find it here:
Amherst Media
here:
Amazon
or here:
Barnes & Noble

Moving Beyond Point and Shoot

Ok so point and shoots have their place such as in my purse for our fun days out when I don't really need all that a dslr has to offer. However when you get beyond automatic settings and move into a camera with settings and lenses it really is a whole new world of photography made available to you. If you've been wanting to move from that fun little point and shoot to something a bit more advanced but are feeling intimidated try reading a book about it. Such as Essential Elements of Portrait Photography by Bill Israelson. His book is a great little guide to take you into the dslr world without feeling so intimidated by it. He covers a lot of the basics of equipment, camera function, and composition in regards to portrait photography. If you are so inclined to purchase this book you can find it here:
Amherst Media
here
Amazon
or here
Barnes & Noble

All Is Not Lost

I'm going with a different sort of title for this post. It could be about nearly anything but it is a review of the book Lighting & Design for Portrait Photography by Neil van Niekerk. So why the title of this post then? This book will help you find the image you didn't think was possible given the scenario. Take a drab parking lot and make it into something from a fairytale. It covers a ton of different possibilities for images with options for lighting, equipment, posing and composition along with a bit of post work. My favorite part is the inclusion of the images that led to the final image as well as a pull back shot of what he was working with for a setting. You will be amazed when comparing the two but you definitely know he's legit when you see them.
If you want to own this amazing book you can find it here:
Amherst Media
here:
Amazon
or here:
Barnes & Noble

I like reading, if you couldn't tell by now.

My book review this time around is Sulty, Sweet, or Sassy Lighting and Posing Guide for Boudoir Photgraphy by Kay Eskridge. I like guide books with full page images. Being the visual person I am I learn the most by studying the examples so it helps when they are nice and big. The other part I really liked about this book, well ok there were lots of things, are the way the chapters are laid out by lighting setup. This way if I want to test something out I can easily refer back to where it was in the book. My favorite thing, besides all of the lovely images of course, was that each image was rated by the client and the studio so you know which images/poses are client favorites even if they weren't favorites from the studio. It's a nice guide for the those beginning in boudoir.
If you're interested in buying a copy for yourself find it at any of these places
Amherst Media
Amazon
Barnes and Noble