Photography

This is less of an ultimate guide and more of a superficial survey of basic nature photography principles. I can’t imagine anyone awarding this guide more than 2 or 3 stars.

Certainly the photos are remarkable — as you would expect in a photography book — and the basic information is helpful to beginning and intermediate photographers. The book offers plenty of brief theoretical explanations and general nature photography guidelines. But if you’re looking for step-by-step instructions or any kind of topical depth, it falls short of “ultimate.” It barely reaches “adequate.”

A dozen “Scene Tutorials” appear at the end of the book, but they are not tutorials at all. They are enumerated lists of helpful pointers for shooting different sorts of photos. You can find better tutorials in a few minutes of Googling.

Some topics in this book are inexplicably short. For example, I’m quite interested in macro photography, which the authors awarded 11 paragraphs (less than 2 pages of text). I think it’s safe to guess that most nature photographers shoot in macro from time to time and would appreciate a little more coverage of the topic in an ultimate guide. The topic of landscapes comes in with a whopping 15 paragraphs plus a sidebar. But who’s counting. The point is, there’s no meat in this book. I can’t recommend it.
Rating: 2 / 5

While I have an extensive background in 35mm and medium format photography; I am a newcomer to the Digital Image world and was looking for a book that would add to my knowledge of the subject and hopefully make me a better photographer in the process. “The Ultimate Guide to Digital Nature Photography” has provided exactly what I was looking for in an easy-going, non-threatening style. If you are new to Landscape/Nature Digital Photography; the section on camera choice and equipment suggestions alone is worth the cost. The book covers areas that are the exclusive realm of digital format imaging such as HDR (High Dynamic Range)imaging and the ability of newer DSLR cameras to create photos in extremely low light conditions. This book covers a wide gamut of knowledge and the reader will benefit from what is presented. It has encouraged me to pursue a more in-depth analysis of some sections of the book by additional research. I have rated this book a five-star! I found it to be well written and informative.

John Vaughan

John Vaughan Photography
Rating: 5 / 5