Table Of ContentPhotography
Published by:
Greatest Guides Limited, Woodstock, Bridge End, Warwick
CV34 6PD, United Kingdom
www.greatestguides.com
Copyright © by Greatest Guides Limited 2012. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written
permission from the publisher, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.
The right of the author to be identified for this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988.
Every effort has been made to ensure that this ebook contains accurate and current information. However, neither the author nor the
publisher shall be liable for any loss or damage suffered by readers as a result of any information contained herein.
All trademarks are acknowledged as belonging to their respective companies.
This ebook is licensed for your personal use only. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this
book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you’re reading this book and did not
purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy to ensure you are not in breach of copyright.
Thank you.
ISBN 978-1-907906-52-7
For Chris, for Ros, and for Debs.
Contents
A few words from Alistair
Chapter 1 Kit and Caboodle
Chapter 2 How to be a Sharpshooter
Chapter 3 Compose Yourself
Chapter 4 The Light Fantastic
Chapter 5 Shooting People
Chapter 6 The Call of the Wild
Chapter 7 Be a Good Sport
Chapter 8 Child’s Play? No Way!
Chapter 9 High Days … Holidays … Houses … and Other Things
Chapter 10 Take Care
Chapter 11 Cash from Your Camera
Appendix
Other Great Books
The Author
A few words from Alistair…
Almost everyone owns a camera, whether it’s a little snapper tucked away inside a phone, a
professional job with a lens like a howitzer, or one that still uses that good, old-fashioned film. And
taking photographs is easy. You only have to push the button and a modern camera will do everything
for you … exposure, shutter speed, focusing … it handles it all with electronic efficiency.
So, if your camera does it all, why do you need a book like this?
Because, just as all the bells and whistles of a word-processor won’t turn a hack writer into a
Shakespeare, so all the automation on your camera will not turn you into a better photographer.
Cameras may be very sophisticated, but there is still nothing to equal the human brain for judging light
conditions and the crucial moment; there is still nothing like the human eye for seeing shape and form.
In other words, it is the person behind the camera who matters. As the great landscape photographer
Ansel Adams said, “You don’t take a photograph. You make it.” And that is still just as true today as
it was when he said it.
‘Making’ good photographs is not difficult. But to do that you’ll need to go a bit further than just
raising your camera to your eye, pointing it and pressing the shutter button. You’ll need to discover
the best viewpoints, you may have to wait for the right light (or create it) and, if that light is difficult,
you’ll usually get a better photograph by over-riding the camera’s automatic controls. Above all,
you’ll need to learn to ‘see’ rather than just ‘look’.
The aim of this book is help you do all these things. In it I will cover everything from buying the best
equipment, through composition and lighting, to making your photography pay. There are tips on
portraiture and sports photography, hints on taking landscapes and even help with capturing a flash of
lightning.
But there’s one tip that is most important of all. Have fun! Get out and about with your camera, be
creative, and come back with some stunning images that you can display in an album, frame for your
wall, or even sell for a pleasant profit.
Enjoy your photography!
Kit and
Caboodle
Chapter 1
Kit and Caboodle
Go into any camera shop and you’ll be spoiled for choice … and beset by questions. Digital or
film? Matchbox- or brick-sized? Six megapixels or twelve? Is ‘face detection’ worth having?
What’s the difference between ‘vibration reduction’ and ‘image stabilization’? Is optical zoom
better than digital zoom? And what is a megapixel, anyway?
Don’t despair. When buying a camera there are some features that are essential, others that are useful,
and a few that are not worth having. This chapter will cover the worthwhile and not-so worthwhile,
and will also give ideas on some additional items that will help you get the best results with your
photography.
But, before you begin, don’t get too hung-up on your gear. Owning an expensive camera won’t make
you a good photographer any more than having an expensive stove will make you a good cook.
Consider the pioneers of photography. They used primitive and unwieldy equipment – glass
photographic plates and magnesium flash powder. Their cameras were so huge and heavy that, if they
were photographing landscapes, they needed mules to carry their gear. Some photographers even
needed to take portable darkrooms with them. And yet they produced stunning images.
In photography, the crucial factor is the person behind the lens. You. Developing a good eye and
learning to frame great scenes are far more important attributes than having a fancy camera.
Digital or film?
What if you have an old film camera? Is it still worth using it, or should you go digital?
This may seem like a no-brainer. Aren’t all cameras digital these days? Film is out of date, isn’t it?
Not necessarily. Be careful. Film is certainly not to be written off as something out of the Ark. Many
professional photographers still use film cameras because they are more robust and can deliver
images of the highest quality.
In addition, film cameras can be left switched on for much longer periods without draining the
battery. This is ideal if you’re into sports or wildlife photography. And, believe it or not, some film
cameras don’t even need a battery.
However, digital cameras do have advantages. They can be made a lot smaller and you see the results
instantly. This means you can experiment … or re-take the family portrait when you accidentally
caught little Freda picking her nose. Then you can print or e-mail your photos, or post them on
