Product Description
The natural synergy between photography and travel isexplored in these exquisite, lavishly illustrated, and instructivepages that demonstrate how artful camera use can record the truespirit of a place.

On this thrilling worldwide tour, the author shows travelingnonprofessional photographers how to bring home memorable pictures ofpeople, festivals, wildlife, architecture-even aerial and underwatershots. Directions are detailed for composing landscapes with a varietyof lenses, working in both natural and artificial light. Valuable tipstell how to pack and carry photo equipment, deal with airport andhotel security, and prepare for various locations and weatherconditions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (19)

Great work on the subject, if a little dated.
Good book

I got this book in anticipation of an upcoming vacation and it was worth the money. I think it serves the target market (amateur photographers on vacation) pretty well. It makes a few references to stock photography but doesn't dwell on shooting for it, doesn't mention selling it except in passing.

It starts out with a basic overview of composition (rule of thirds, Depth of Field, directional light, patterns etc). Other books cover this in greater detail, it is only an overview after all. The author does include a few tips on how each might apply to travel photography. After photo 101 it goes on to cover specific environments/situations. Cityscapes, tropics, winter etc. This was the meat of the book, each subject was given and adequate overview with a few specific examples to illustrate. There are also chapters on underwater and Ariel photography. Good intros but if your going to be plunking out the bucks for that I'd look for more specialized instruction.

He finished the book with some travel tips that may not apply to the non-professional (especially about packing in the post 9-11 travel climate) and on gear selection.

There are plenty of example photos that more or less illustrate the point he was talking about. Most of his shots seem to come from the Caribbean or North America, a few from Europe. Preferences to the Caribbean. On the plus most of them seem to be something that a person with normal means might replicate using moderately expensive gear. He did most of his work in the 20-35mm and 80-200mm focal ranges with full 35mm film. The cameras he used were by no means top of the line. He also addresses what is realistic to expect from the traveling photographer vs the pro who has been on location dozens of times.

The biggest shortcoming of this book is that it is film-centric (35mm). It was published in 2000 which was really before the digital age really took off. Most of the tips and techniques (The real meat of the book) are universal regardless of what kind of camera you use. But he does spend some time on film selection, care and feeding (especially filters and white balance) that are very different in the digital. Of course there is no information on digital care and feeding as a consequence.

I'm interested to see how well this book holds up over time. Years ago when I was starting out with photography I got a book on composition. At the time I felt it was an "overview" and probably lacking something. Now after years of experience I see that book really had it all, all the subjects were there, what was lacking was my experience to implement them. I suspect in time I will come to see this book the same way.

Pros-
Good book on the subject written to the beginner-intermediate level
Good pictures to illustrate the subjects
Focuses on "achievable" pictures rather than the extreme works of art
Covers all the bases
Great advice on film (if your using it)

Cons-
Needs updating. Lots of good film info but nothing on digital and the new capabilities (and liabilities) that it provides.
Some may want more in depth instruction on specific areas.

Conclusion
A great resource for travel/location photography. If you already have the basics down (Fstops and exposure and whatnot) then this is a good next step. I'd recommend it for anyone looking to make their vacation photos better.

Spirit of Place: The Art of the Travelling Photographer
It's amazing that in 7 years since this book was released, the transition of most enthusiast's and amatuers photo capture is now almost entirely digital, that this book seems "old". However the basic's of capturing the light, composition of the photo and the steps to recording the countries, cities and inhabitants don't (it just how they're recorded).Bob Krist workflows that he outlines and the tips provided in my opinion are well suited to the beginner and enthusiaist photographer. In fact, it would be a great idea to copy the simple steps down onto a card and slip in the camera bag for a checklist when travelling.This book precedes my copy of Lonely Planets Travel Photography but is simpler and more anecdotal. A good read and recommended even if your capture is digital. This book will be the one I use for reference before my next attempt of capturing the "Spirit" of the places I travel to and not just taking the pictures.

A materpiece!
This is film photography that is fully compatible with the digital age. It is not so much onwhat settings he used but on the planning and preparation that matters the most. What was in his mind when the shot was taken is fabulous. While he shoots landscapes mostly at the time when we are either calling it a day or still sleeping in the early morning, there are certain tips that opens our views on not only what, but also when and how to take a shot! This is a must have book for travellers wanting to have beautiful memories of his/her travel. We will never reproduce the same scene on a given place or event but it will surely open our eyes on what to look for and how to be a more creative photogpraher. I agree with Bob that when you know what to look for then you will realize how abundant there is to shoot wherever you are!! A must have book indeed! I give it 6 stars but unfortunately 5 is the best there is to choose from!

Great book
I bought quite a few books before a recent trip to Kauai where photography was a large part of my experience. This book provided as much or more insight into how to approach a place and experience it through photography as any other I read. Part of the value of this book will be in re-reading parts of it over a few times, before any major outing, at least until you take what it's saying to heart. In the end, photography is an active thing, and reading about it will only take you so far.

Very Well Done Travel Photography Guide
Spirit of Place provides an excellent overview of travel photography. It is well organized, written clearly and concisely, and is filled with beautiful photos to help illustrate the points made in the text. The author discusses techniques to help you deal with various difficulties from how to find the best vantage point when shooting tall buildings to dealing with people that you may want to photograph. One thing that I really appreciated was that he also gave advice on which equipment to use in various settings and situations.

For travel photographers, the topics covered are pretty comprehensive.The author walks through some basics of composition.There is a full chapter devoted to working with various light sources and using filters to enhance that light.There are sections on skylines, architecture, shooting in the tropics, wildlife, and more.Each section is fairly brief.This book is more about giving general direction and ideas then trying to offer a detailed approach to all possible shooting possibilities.I found the level of coverage just about right.No one can provide detailed direction for every possible consideration for travel photographers so the author wisely offers some general advice to start you thinking and leaves it at that.

If the book has a weakness it is that it was written back in 2000 by a photographer who obviously didn't so much as scan his slides for further editing. This is strictly centered around film photography and that definitely limits the usefulness of the material focusing on film selection if you use a digital camera. Forturnately, most of his advice is sound regardless of whether you use film or digital so I would still highly recommend the book. ... Read more

Product Description
The advent of photography opened new worlds to 19th-century viewers, who became able to visualize themselves, their immediate surroundings, their communities, and the world beyond. The geographical imagination—the ability to know the world and situate oneself in space and time—fostered the expectations and applications of photographic technologies, and photographic technologies expresses the form and reach of the geographical imagination. This dialectic is the basis of this collection of intriguing essays, which explore the diverse ways in which the relationship manifested.
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Customer Reviews (1)

speedReaders.info Review
This is the sort of book you pick up in an idle moment--and hours later wonder where the day has gone. Both in terms of photographic technique and storytelling there is much, much to discover here.

Parker pays tribute with this book to one of the great names in British motor racing photography. The selection presented here is culled, with the help of Cooper's wife Liz from his archive of negatives which has yielded quite a few of the sort of photos that may not have made final cut in Cooper's day but now gives us something to look at we haven't seen before. Moreover, some of the color work here is shown for the first time. There was never much of it anyway as Cooper preferred to work in black and white.

The photos are presented in more or less chronological order and stem from the 1950s to the 1970s when Cooper turned his back on the rampant commercialization and politicking in F1 and returned to his roots in advertising and commercial work. Obviously the book is first and foremost a record of its time: the cars, drivers, tracks, the very different conditions in regards to safety and also unfettered access; not to mention the absence by and large of sponsorship decals slathered all over cars, drivers, and tracks.

While the overall theme of the book is racing, not all of the photos here fall into that category but show people or circumstances emblematic of the time and motoring life. Cooper had also been involved with three motion pictures, most notably Grand Prix and Le Mans, and one chapter covers that. Aside from short introductions to the various sections there is no other narrative save Parker's captions which are very detailed, often witty, and convey great detail and even more sympathy for his subject. The style and presentation here are very similar to Parker's highly recommended In Camera series of racing photography books. Many of the photos are full-page and all are well reproduced and printed on glossy paper.

Among the several people who contributed a page of reminiscences of Cooper is the artist Dexter Brown who also drew a portrait of Cooper specifically for this book which is shown on the last page. A bibliography and a good index top off an all-around satisfying book. Parker hints at hundreds and hundreds of still unprinted photos in the archive.

Full review at . Copyright 2010, Sabu Advani. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (7)

Outstanding Book
This is an outstanding book on travel photography.It includes all kinds of tips on preparing for a trip, what equipment to consider taking, when to use the equipment, how to compose the images, and how to process the pictures after taking them.It describes the considerations that are required for the complete workflow of travel photography.I would highly recommend this book for any photographer planning on traveling.

An okay overview to photography generally
This book tries to be an intro to photography and a book on travel photography and because of this it falls a bit flat on both.If you want an intro to digital photography with a little bit of extra information on travel photography, it's certainly worth the price.Easily more than half of the content of the book is basic photography, though, so if you've been shooting for a while and want to pick up more information on travel shooting in particular there is almost certainly something better out there (though I haven't read it)

Gripping
Bob knows his stuff. This book is not a technical know how but is great advice from a great shooter. Must read!!

Great Starting Point
This book would be a great gift to the new dSLR owner. Someone new to the field of digital capture could stand to learn a great deal from this book. For the newer photographer, tips on blending flash with ambient, dragging the shutter, finding vantage points and composition are invaluable.

Unfortunately, for those who already know about those techniques, there is not a lot of new information here. There are some great pictures, and it never hurts to review the images and techniques of a legendary shooter, but outside of some information on approaching people in different countries to take their picture, you probably won't pick up anything new.

For someone new to photography, you can't go wrong. And, considering the low price, experienced photographers won't feel jipped either. But if you are already pretty comfortable with your camera, you would be better using the $16 to take even a small trip to a neighboring city and try some "travel" photography of your own would be a better suggestion.

On the Road, Again
I sometimes wonder if there is such a thing as travel photography.Isn't what the travel photographer does already covered by such genres as landscape, architectural and portrait photography, among other things?

Bob Krist obviously doesn't think so.He's been taking wonderful photographs during his travels and writing about travel photography for years.In his latest book he discusses the gear to use for travel photography; the workflow of a digital photographer on the road; the nature of light; composition; what he calls "moment" which seems to be the picture element that deals with exciting or interesting content; the use of flash; portraits; archiving and sharing; and survival tips.He even includes an afterward that stresses that exciting content is far more important than technique.

Krist emphasizes the importance of doing research before traveling so that one has some idea of subjects to photograph, and in the chapter on sharing he emphasizes the importance of planning the categories of shots one might want to capture.I was reminded that after at least one trip, I realized that, although I had some magnificent pictures, I had failed to capture a few images that would have allowed me to tie those pictures into a story.

His chapter on portraits emphasized the method of getting people to pose for the photographer rather then camera techniques, and included a discussion of tipping.I suspect that many travelers have missed good portraits because they didn't know how to approach a possible subject.

Experienced photographers probably can skim much of this book.If you know how to take landscape, architectural and portrait photos there is not a lot you will learn about these subjects from Krist's writing that will improve those skills (although his tips on protecting your equipment in far-off places may be helpful).On the other hand looking at his photographs may provide a wealth of ideas.The author's images adorn every page, but often there is no explanation of the individual picture, although one can usually draw a connection between the text and the picture,Still, I would have liked a little technical data and often wondered where the picture had been taken.

For the inexperienced photographer, who expects to go on vacation and wants to get ready to capture more than just snapshots, and who doesn't want to spend the time to read several books, the book may provide a needed boost.But, and Krist doesn't say this, that individual should also spend time learning about his or her camera and actually taking pictures to see what needs to be learned.The middle of an exciting event in an exotic location is no time to find out that you don't know how to use your flash.

The book is a curious blend of topics.For example, Krist spends time describing the differences between point-and-shot cameras and digital single lens reflex cameras (DSLR's), which is really a very fundamental issue, and then presumes the reader knows how to control depth-of-field.My guess is that anyone who knows about depth-of-field doesn't need information about the advantages of DSLR's over point-and-shoots.Similarly, he suggests using a graduated neutral density filter, without providing any further instruction, and then details what fill flash is.Some books are aimed at beginners and some at experienced photographers, and it's probably a mistake to try to appeal to folks at both skill levels in a short book.

This book will provide a nice introduction and over-view for a person who plans to take a photographic vacation, but no one should think he's going to capture pictures like the author by reading just this one book.



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From forts and battlefields to mansions and monuments, here's a full-color illustrated guide to 500 of America's most fascinating historic places. The book divides the country into 5 regions and includes 6 detailed maps pinpointing the locations of the historic sites. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A+++
I give this book an A+++ just for the photography alone and not to mention all of the historical information that this book covers.A great item for the history buff.

America's Historic Places
This is another travel guide from Reader's Digest that shows several historic places within eachg state.It is along the same line as "Off the Beaten Path" and in fact was published around the same time.This book offers unique places to visit, each with historical significance.The book is helpful when planning either short or long driving trips and offers brief insight into the locations described. ... Read more

Product Description
A unique and unforgettable portrait of an intriguing community: the small traders of Nairobi.In Nairobi, slick advertising has made few inroads, and shopping malls and supermarkets remain a rarity. People buy their daily necessities locally, from small traders within their communities. Business owners paint their own billboards and signs, or call in friends who happen to be handy with a paintbrush. The results are delightfully quirky—an authentic form of popular street graphics that is endlessly fascinating.

“Beauty is your birthright” proclaims the Eclipse Hair Salon. The Enlightened Electricals store features paintings of bulbs, switches, sockets, and plugs. More than one shack hotel sports the name “Hotel Hilton,” while elsewhere “Joy Hotel” is scrawled in white paint across corrugated metal panels.

“Ghetto life is not easy” says the facade of the Abdalla Store. Indeed not: these are people for whom the threat of hunger is never far away, and money is a constant preoccupation. Yet in poignant and frank interviews with Steve Bloom, Kenyans display extraordinary generosity: their priorities are faith, family, love, community, and helping others. 125 color illustrations ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

Rural Nebraska Captrued
This book captures the heart of rural Nebraska, a land of wide open spaces and strong willed people.The author captured the people's trust and compassion for one another with his descriptions of their everyday lives. He gives a sense of the hardiness required for survival for those folks who choose to live in isolated places.Between the narrative and the photography one comes to understand the business of ranching.For those with a rural background, this book will stir your memories and for urban dwellers, you can gain a sense of what it means to live and earn a living in the ranch lands of America.

Amazing Book
I grew up in the sandhills of Nebraska and my parents are mentioned in this book.I bought it and couldn't put it down.The photography is amazing and the way he writes makes reading this book effortless and addictive.Thank you Dave for writing this book!I wish I could be there for the book signing.

Wonderfully artistic & eloquently stated
This is a treasure!!!David has captured the essence of who we are and what it takes to enjoy and go beyond just living here.This is our home, our community and our way of life that is so very precious.We are blessed by God to live in an area of such deep roots of family and enjoy the wonder of His creation EVERY day!!Thank You David for your insight and your eye to capture our lifestyle.I love it!!Jecca Ostrander ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

GreatBook
From northern lakes cradled by ancient hills, to remote desert canyons, to grassy backyard jungles, nature's places define our world.Each place is an event, constantly being remade, defined by all that happens there ... the rise and fall of the wind, changes in light, the first mallard returning to a vernal pond, the last red maple leaf of autumn.

In this book, with eighty-two exquisite photographs, Rod Planck celebrates the magic of place and time.With abiding respect for the natural world and exacting technical skill, Rod creates images that open our eyes to the special places and special moments that surround us.Insightful captions reveal the essence of each photograph's natural history and the techniques used to record these moments on film.

I've known Rod and his work for several years.This is some of his finest work. He is a great nature photographer, a knowledgeable naturalist, as well as a terrific teacher.

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Hailed by the poet and architectural historian Sir John Betjeman as "a genius at photography", Edwin Smith (1912-1971) was one of Britain's foremost photographers. At the time of his death he was widely regarded as without peer in his sensitive renditions of historic architecture and his empathetic evocations of place. The recurrent themes of Smith's work - a concern for the fragility of the environment; an acute appreciation of the need to combat cultural homogenization by safeguarding regional diversity; and a conviction that architecture should be rooted in time and place - are as pressing today as when Smith first framed them in his elegant compositions. By providing the first in-depth survey of his work, this book introduces Smith's poignant imagery to a new generation.

The first major study of Smith's work for over twenty years, and the first to put his work into its photographic and cultural context
Includes many rarely seen images as well as previously unpublished correspondence
Written by a leading expert on architectural photography ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A fitting tribute to the photographer's talents.
Robert Elwall's EVOCATIONS OF PLACE: THE PHOTOGRAPHY OF EDWIN SMITH surveys one of Britain's finest photographers: while his name is lesser known here, it's the first major study of Smith's work in over twenty years, making it a recommendation for any specialty college-level art library strong in world photographers. Smith emphasized historic architecture, landscapes and gardens and died in 1971: nearly two hundred illustrations here include rarely seen images plus previously unpublished correspondence, making for a fitting tribute to the photographer's talents.

Evocations of Place - Evocations of a Time
Edwin Smith - Evocations of Place

Robert Elwall tackles the enigma of Edwin Smith (1912-1971) through a careful combination of photographs and text in the well produced Evocations of Place. Around 120 plates and 20 figures illustrate the broad range of his work, from documentary studies in the mid 1930s through his great architectural oeuvre to landscapes at the end to the 1960s.Three chapters explore his discovery of photography, Britain and abroad.Taken together they track: his tough early life; training as an architect and draughtsman; discovery of photography and the development of his eye for detail and the unconsidered; writing guides for the Focal Press; meeting with Olive Cook and their joint publications on English architecture; working abroad, especially in Italy; and later engagement with conservation issues and love of landscape.

Evocations of Place notes the self-proclaimed conventional wisdom about Smith that he was a photographer only out of necessity.Elwall then goes on to show through an assessment of Smith's life and crucially through the pictures themselves that he was passionate about photography, innovative in his visual perceptions, technically extremely accomplished and dedicated to the effective presentation of his work as a way of communicating his view of the world.Smith the reluctant photographer becomes Smith the passionate photographer.This reflects one of the great strengths of the book: Robert Elwell gives us an impartial, if favourable, view of the work.For too long Smith and his photography have been seen and promoted through the loving eyes of his utterly devoted widow, Olive Cook.A more detached view has been long overdue.

Edwin Smith had a marvellously perceptive eye that saw the extraordinary in the every day, the telling detail in the bigger picture and the sublime in the broader view.But the early work is very variable, what Elwall calls `heterogeneous', though he might have said derivative; and the later work looses it edge and increasingly seemed `removed from the reality of contemporary existence'. This does not detract from the quality of his best work, but rather serves to emphasise it through contrast.As Elwall says, the pictures represent `a unique insight into the cultural and social milieu of mid-twentieth-century Britain'.In particular they celebrate the value of local distinctiveness and sense of place as expressed the architecture, materials and landscape.When Smith died this view was becoming increasingly unfashionable but now in a rapidly changing world identity and belonging are seen as increasingly vital to community harmony and quality of life.This is not to hark back to Smith's golden days of the 1950s as somehow the embodiment of national consciousness, but rather to seek within each age its valued and enduring qualities.

A strength of Elwall's new, independent stance is that he avoids a purely romantic perspective by setting Smith's photography in its social and artistic context.The visually idealised documentary work on the North East made during the 1930s takes on a quite different tone when viewed with the knowledge that he was working with Sir Arnold Talbot Wilson, a maverick MP, who `combined a libertarian zeal for social reform at home with enthusiastic support for Fascist regimes abroad'.Farm houses, churches and great houses in the 1950s are set within the environment of modernism and the Festival of Britain. At the end of the 1960s, when his unpopulated, almost prelapsarian view of England had to compete for attention with the harder edged, more critical, view of the Tony Ray Jones generation, Smith became isolated from the modern world.Olive Cook never sought to open the window on these influences and tensions.

Elwell cites Atget as a major influence on Smith (Cook was inclined to stress that Smith's genius was entirely his own) and the case for that is convincing.However, his appellation of Smith as `the English Atget' is an interesting one and fertile ground for future debate.It might be argued that Atget dealt with the actual, what was there and not the dream, while Smith tried to turn the actual into his dream of an England that was slipping away even as he worked.Atget captured his world in simple, almost forensic images and with the perspective of history we overlay them with a patina of romance; Smith sought to capture the romance, the illusion and we have to try to reimagine the real world.Yes, fertile ground for debate.

Evocations of Place will bring the work of Edwin Smith to a new generation, not just of photographers, but to everyone who cares about architecture, the environment and the apparent bland homogenisation of the world around us.



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Award-winning author Frederick Turner examines the lives and careers of nine American authors, the locales they made famous, and the ways in which landscape played a role in the creation of their finest works. It is both a testament to the creative genius of nine of America's most important writers and an insightful investigation of the vital role of the physical landscape in the cultural development of the United States. ... Read more

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Just as mountaineering developed from a leisure-time pursuitinto the high-tech, intense sport it is today, photography has evolvedinto a favorite activity as well. This parallel growth created adistinct genre of mountaineering photography. As much a history ofmountaineering as a history of photography, Souvenirs from High Placesoffers a fascinating collection of images from both ground-breakingphotographers and amateur enthusiasts that demonstrates not only howmuch has changed, but how much has remained the same. ... Read more

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This catalogue on contemporary photography and video art provides a rich insight into the dynamics shaping the contemporary Indian psyche and landscape. ... Read more

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This new edition will help every photographer, whether amateur or experienced,to uncover new ways of taking exceptional pictures on the road. World-acclaimed travelphotographer Susan McCartney offers both a definitive guide to honing skills as well as a businessmanual of expert tips for making each endeavor profitable.

This new edition has been revised and expanded to cover: bringing equipment up-to-date;handling lighting; composing portrait, landscape, architecture, and location still life shots; planningand preparing for a travel shoots; editing; building a portfolio; working on assignment; selling tostock houses; shooting on location for businesses and corporations; and exploring opportunitieson the World Wide Web. Includes self-assignments and sample itineraries to get started, as well asmodel releases in more than thirty languages. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

very few advices...
This book was a disappointment... Yes of course McCartney is talking about travel photography and gives a few -good- advices but the book is a real pain to read. She keeps talking about herself and how great she is and how many countries she traveled and another couples of very useless stories. Also some points are very discutable.... p23 "You don't have to be handsome or beautiful to be a successful photographer, but you should strive to be as physically attractive and well-groomed as you can be."
To conclude, there are very few photographies, B/W, outdated and some of them not very interesting at all.

Excellent and very thorough, some color photos would be nice
If you want to dive into the world of travel photography or brush up this is an excellent book. It is full of information, not only on the technical side with lighting tips with the use of flash and film, the difference in what to expect between color and black and white, but also includes tidbits on where to travel, suggestions on what to carry to minimise loss of luggage. In addition the self assignments are instructive and very useful. One minor quirk the lack of color photos, i guess this was done to keep the price of the book down given its size but a few color photos would have added emphasis espicially when discussing general color filter use!

Is there a more enjoyable photography author?No!
Susan McCartney obviously loves her work and it shows in everything she writes.She willingly shares her vast experience and knowledge in a straightforward and enthusiastic style that makes all of her books a pleasure to read.In fact, her love of photography and willingness to share her knowledge infuses her writing to the extent that even topics as well traversed as travel photography (and check out her book on Flash Photography which is also excellent) become fresh and exciting to read about again and again.

Only complaint is they should have included color plates to really show the results the author accomplishes in her own work rather than the dreary black and white printing throughout the book.I certainly would have paid the extra few bucks for that.

Fantastic Travel Companion
Have made my way through several books on travel photography lately, undoubtedly the best I have read!! There are many other books available which are useless when it comes to being practical. This book is not a picture book, just very informative. Recently I went away for another trip overseas and actually lugged this book along for the ride. Susan lets you in on good places to start for every major country in the world and also places to avoid...incredibally usefull. More handy then a 'lonely planet' for photographers.

Travel Photography by Susan McCartney
This book not only reveals the nuts and bolts of travel photography and is a "must read" for those interested or planning to become travel photographers; it is a complete course in photography. I consider this book one of the most informative that I have read on the subject. Susan McCartney reveals not only how to photograph, what equipment she uses, but the fine details which most photographers keep to themselves. Ths book not only should be read, but reread until the material is recorded in one's mind like the tradecraft of any profession. A five star rating for this books is what I think it deserves. ... Read more

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This richly illustrated volume is a comprehensive survey of the work of Jeff Wall. It brings together photographs from the beginning of Wall's career in the 1970's to the present.The book includes the artist's best-known works, as well as recent, previously unpublished material, and an interview with the artist. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

A future star of american photography
Dave Jordano is one of the most interesting american photographers, unfortunately not known enough. His work is always a shock, bright colors, strong lines and special moods. His pictures can remind at Alec Soth's work, but they are just much stronger. I am not interested in churches and faith. But Jordano's work brings you further, beyond churches and faith. It is great photography. If I had a wish, it would be to see Jordano's work on the Mid-West published. It would for sure add a big name to american photography. ... Read more

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More than 2.8 million people currently call Brooklyn home, and over the past few decades, the boom of art galleries, stores, and nightlife in this proud borough of New York has drawn visitors from near and far. Yet the fascinating mix of people, places, and institutions that define Brooklyn today existed long before the current cultural renaissance.

In this profusely illustrated book, writers Grace Glueck and Paul Gardner provide a historic tour of the borough, from the Brooklyn Bridge and the Verrazano Narrows Bridge to Prospect Park and Coney Island. The reader is also introduced to the dynamic people of Brooklyn, from Hasidic Williamsburg to the African American community in Bedford-Stuyvesant, and some of its most celebrated natives, including Woody Allen, Spike Lee, Barbra Streisand, Mae West, and Truman Capote.AUTHOR BIO: Grace Glueck is former art news editor of The New York Times and author of New York: The Painted City. Paul Gardner is the co-author of Lynn, a memoir of dancer Lynn Seymour. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Beautiful Book
I ran into this book at the house we rented this summer in the Hamptons. The owner is an art and book collector and had some fabulous books and paintings. I fell in love with this book the moment I picked it up and knew I had to find a copy. I found it here on Amazon and I just love to look at the pictures and read the history of the neighborhoods that I spent part of my childhood in during the late sixties.... Great Book! highly recomend it.

An heirloom
If you ever lived in Brooklyn or visited relatives there growing up, this book brings it all back to you.On the bottom of page 244, I was surprised to find a picture of my Grandma Josie, sitting in front of her house as she had throughout her life.Grandma is gone now . . . but she is forever immortalized in this book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An excellent introduction to the "Canyon de Chelly School."
Every cowboy story has a canyon. . . . .or so it seems.Yet, only one is a world famous tourist attraction--the Grand Canyon;one is a World Cultural Heritage site due to its religious significance--Chaco Canyon;one, deservedly, inspires great art--Canyon de Chelly.None, perhaps significantly, has much association with cowboys.Cowboys may need canyons, great canyons deserve original artists more than they need cowboys.

Like the "Taos Artists" who created some of the best original American art, Canyon de Chelly has inspired its own "school" of painting and photography.Hagerty has done a masterful job of summarizing the "Canyon de Chelly School" (my label, but it should become official) of art for the past century.It's unfortunate he mostly ignores Native American art from pre-historic to modern times if the Canyon--but that topic may well deserve a separate analysis of its own.

First of all, Canyon de Chelly is far more believable than the Grand Canyon, which is so huge and so deep that it defies belief.It's possible to stand on the rim and see people and buildings at the bottom of Canyon de Chelly, where the greatest depth is about 1,000 feet.The Grand Canyon is a mile deep, its vistas simply melt into infinity.

The almost 100 illustrations range from the sublime (Ansel Adams 1941 photo of White House Ruin) to the silly (Woody Gwyn's 1994 painting of the parking lot next to Antelope House ruin).If the most beautiful thing we can experience is the sense of the mysterious, as Albert Einstein once described the true source of all art and science, then these artists did capture the essence of Canyon de Chelly (the name is adapted from the Navajo "tse"--meaning rock, which is pronounced "shay").

One great advantage is the inclusion of recent artwork, showing how the non-Navajo perception of the Canyon has changed.Art a century ago featured Navajos in the Canyon--just as Taos artists emphasized people;today, Canyon paintings are mostly empty landscapes, as though today's Navajos are an oddity .Navajo artists, of course, still include people--but then, the Canyon is their home and not a distant mystery.

Many artists, in Hagerty's words, see "Canyon de Chelly as solid and eternal, a place of solace and escape from pressures of modern American culture."Personally, I think of it as a place of living people, and the beauty which surrounds their lives.Chaco Canyon is the vast empty ruined cathedral from people who have vanished into the mists of time;the Grand Canyon is the window into eternity.

Each locale generates a unique artistic depiction, which really hinges on living in the place, or it fades from artistic consciousness.Be that as it may, and Hagerty doesn't delve into such esoteric speculation; he does offer an informed, relevant, intelligent and ongoing look at a truly original element of American art.

The Taos school seems frozen in time even though gigantic in its own legends, the "Canyon de Chelly School" is continually evolving and experimenting with new forms.Taos artist Barbara Zaring is interesting but unreal in her 1980s paintings;Phoenix artist Ed Mell, despite his overlooking the Navajo inhabitants of the Canyon, offers a fresh 1990s view.

There is no "best" portrayal of the Canyon--though my favorite is Adams 1941 photo-- and Hagerty doesn't imply that one exists.He simply and eloquently offers an excellent overview, giving artists, patrons, collectors and viewers alike an intelligent insight into a very original and significant element of the American art scene.

Suffice to say, no serious collection of American art should be without a portrait of Canyon de Chelly.Hagerty provides a wonderful introductory service, which makes his book perfect for all artists, viewers and people with an interest in the beauty of America. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (7)

Best photography book for amateurs not interested in studio equipment
BEST photography guide I've ever read.This book covers the basics (e.g. shutter speed, depth of field, filters, etc.) and has a useful glossary at the end, but goes a lot further.It discusses a number of advanced techniques which all photographers with dSLRs can use without needing incredibly expensive studio equipment.E.g. Scott Kelby's three book series has many useful bits of advice on composition and technique, but spends a lot of amount of space on studio techniques that few amateurs will be interested in (e.g. complex studio lighting setups, tethered shooting, etc.)Useful for pros perhaps, but not for most amateur dSLR owners.Not only are the pictures in Davey's book visually stunning, but almost all of them can be taken with a dSLR and a basic lens setup.The only exception is a lovely picturetaken with a 600mm lens, which few people are likely to own.Nonetheless, it's one of the best pictures in the book, and I'm glad it's in there!

A few particularly strong parts from the section entitled "Execution" - the best part of the book.
- Good advice on composition
- Very detailed explanation on how to read and use histograms
- The section on manual exposure gives detailed advice on how to use the spot meter in conjunction with exposure compensation in order to find the correct exposure (i.e. instead of relying on multi-point autofocus).Since metering for midtones is difficult, Davey shows the reader how to meter by focusing on the highlights or the shadows.
- Section on "color temperature" (i.e. white balance) is also extremely detailed - the clearest explanation I've ever read.
I would have appreciated a bit more detail on the fill-in-flash section.E.g. first curtain versus second curtain on slow sync.Author alludes to the difference, but never gets into it.But overall, excellent material.

The section labeled "Inspiration" is also quite useful:advice on shooting in a number of common settings: e.g. religious buildings, ruins, sunsets, deserts, from a boat, food and drink, markets, etc.

Perhaps the most questionable section is the one on "correction", which covers a lot of ground in very little space.Although the advanced photographer is likely to find this to be of little use compared to the previous sections, this should be very useful to beginners who are new to raw editing.Clear and succinct explanations of the various file formats, what the basic settings in lightroom do (e.g. vibrance versus saturation), etc.

All in all, a brilliant book for both beginners and advanced photographers.Not only is it useful, it is also fun to read.The author strikes a good balance between informing and entertaining the reader.The author gives a mini-anecdote in all the photo captions, without wasting space in the actual body of the text, which is engagingly written but more business like. Yes, the text is small, but not unusually small.It didn't cause any problems for me.

A highly recommended blend of photography manual and travelogue
Steve Davey's work has taken him all over the world shooting photos and his TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY charts his path around the world - and tells others how to plan a trip, keep equipment safe when on the road, and locate inspiring photos. Tips on professional money-making opportunities blend on those about composition and structure, making for a highly recommended blend of photography manual and travelogue.

Unfortunate editing choices...
I found this book in the 'New Books' section at our public library. I checked it out based on the excellent photography that is present throughout.

When I got home, I sat down to start reading it and I was immediately dismayed.The type is so small and the letters are so close together that reading becomes serious work.After less than 10 pages, I put the book in the 'return to library bag.' I did take the time to compare the type with over 20 of my personal books on photography. Mr. Davey's book was in a class by itself.

I would add that I am 65 years old but I do have excellent vision.I do a considerable amount of macro photography and post capture processing with various software products.There is nothing wrong with my vision.

A book is supposed to bring us pleasure and be a joy to read.This book does neither.That is unfortunate because Mr. Davey is an outstanding photographer and writer.

Great Resource for Travel Photogs
I've been in Thailand for the past two months and have been reading this book for tips.I've learned quite a lot already and am looking forward to finishing the book and getting into more of the post production and business end of things.

This book is very comprehensive and covers everything you need to consider as a travel photographer (or just vacationer who likes making photos).Davey covers composition, lighting, equipment, technical settings such as aperture, shutter speed iso, etc.Later in the book, he talks about post production workflows and how to make your images even better as well as how to sell your photos and make some money doing what you love!

A couple of things lead to me giving a near perfect score instead of all five stars.The editing of the book is pretty awful.There are typos all over the place.This, of course, doesn't detract from the effectiveness of the content, but it's at the very lease pretty annoying.It's as if the editor didn't even give it a quick read.I find errors on virtually every page.Secondly, some of Davey's opinions are just that, his opinion and I tend to disagree with some of his compositional advice.That's personal preference of course, but there are some things that I just didn't jive with him on.

All in all, I've really enjoyed this book and found it to be an extremely helpful and useful tool to improving my photography both at home and abroad.

Very small type
The book seems to have valuable information on travel photography but the very small gray on white font makes it extremely difficult to read. Captions are even smaller than main text and almost impossible to read, even with magnifying reading glasses. Good photos, but again printed so small they came out somewhat muddy. Have to stop reading after 10 minutes or so due to eye strain. My eyes are not the best but I do not usually have problems reading books.
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