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Collins Complete Photography Course
A practical, affordable and accessible home photography tutor. This inspiring project-based course book covers everything from basic composition to the latest digital darkroom techniques.
192 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2008
77 people are currently reading
155 people want to read
About the author
John Garrett
15 booksJohn Raymond Garrett is an Australian/British photo journalist whose work is mainly on fashion, reportage and photojournalism. He has covered situations and exhibited widely and is the author of many books.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
July 15, 2011
This was the first of three photography books I decided to read as introduction into the theme, its techniques and creative possibilities. The one best thing I can say about this Photography Course is that reading it has really got me into trying my new Sony Cyber-shot DSC HX100V. If the title with the word "complete" might be an overstatement, in fact it does include most or all of the subjects one would expect to find in a technical photography book.
It starts by a quick review of the history of photography and then moves to a chapter on equipment with enough information for a newcomer to understand what kind of camera one should buy and what else is needed to produce the wanted results, from torch to tripods and even a swiss army knife. After this, the book has sections on exposure, aperture, shutter and lenses, interesting for both SLR or compact camera and film or digital users. Next, the authors introduce the reader to the planning and production of a photo and creative possibilities in sections such as composition, light, colour, filters and black and white. All of these sections include small projects to encourage the reader to try as he learns and small explanations on how the image achieved can go wrong. Finally, the last two chapters are on image enhancement (mostly, but not only, based on Photoshop) and management, organizing and printing images. I was glad to find that the book offers further reading advice and other strong points to it are the good quality images as examples to almost every concept and technique described, the reference of artists considered experts on them and the inclusion of a glossary and an index, sometimes forgotten but always useful in this kind of book.
All in all, this is a really good read for photography beginners such as myself and, though one might need more information on some topics or could be happy with less time spent reading about others, as what each reader knows and is interested in a priori is different, I believe most would be satisfied with the organization and clear explanations given in Collins Complete Photography Course.
This review was originally published on my blog, written both in English and Portuguese.
It starts by a quick review of the history of photography and then moves to a chapter on equipment with enough information for a newcomer to understand what kind of camera one should buy and what else is needed to produce the wanted results, from torch to tripods and even a swiss army knife. After this, the book has sections on exposure, aperture, shutter and lenses, interesting for both SLR or compact camera and film or digital users. Next, the authors introduce the reader to the planning and production of a photo and creative possibilities in sections such as composition, light, colour, filters and black and white. All of these sections include small projects to encourage the reader to try as he learns and small explanations on how the image achieved can go wrong. Finally, the last two chapters are on image enhancement (mostly, but not only, based on Photoshop) and management, organizing and printing images. I was glad to find that the book offers further reading advice and other strong points to it are the good quality images as examples to almost every concept and technique described, the reference of artists considered experts on them and the inclusion of a glossary and an index, sometimes forgotten but always useful in this kind of book.
All in all, this is a really good read for photography beginners such as myself and, though one might need more information on some topics or could be happy with less time spent reading about others, as what each reader knows and is interested in a priori is different, I believe most would be satisfied with the organization and clear explanations given in Collins Complete Photography Course.
This review was originally published on my blog, written both in English and Portuguese.
February 16, 2020
Tam tikrų dalykų prisiminimui ir atsinaujinimui. Kaip pratybų knyga visai gera, kaip įkvėpimo šaltinis gal silpnoka.
November 7, 2024
Pradedančiam fotografui - pati ta knyga.
April 4, 2023
The book is comprehensive, and the author is knowledgeable. I read from cover to cover over 2 days, but did not feel like I had learnt anything from this book.
I know there are some big holes in my approach to photography, and I was hoping to find a book that could help me identify what those holes are. This book is not one of them.
However, I would recommend this book for someone who is either new to photography or has not had much practice with a camera.
I know there are some big holes in my approach to photography, and I was hoping to find a book that could help me identify what those holes are. This book is not one of them.
However, I would recommend this book for someone who is either new to photography or has not had much practice with a camera.
July 23, 2017
Very good introduction to DSLR photography with Nikon cameras (whose operation, as I was to find out, is completely different from other DSLR cameras).
June 7, 2017
Currently reading this book from a suggestion from a professional photographer.So far pretty good.Glad i invested in it.
October 9, 2022
I really enjoyed reading this book! It has given me so many ideas and tips when it comes to me and my photography. I highly recommend this book to any beginner photographers!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews