Last updated 12/14/2003
Real World Digital Photography, 2nd Edition
Real World Digital Photography, 2nd Edition
Authors Katriin Eismann, Sean Duggan, and Tim Grey
.... Publisher: Peachpit Presss
698 pages .... $49.99
The companion Web page is www.digitalphotobook.net.
Real World Digital Photography, 2nd Edition
covers four parts professionally, readably, and well.
Part One is Digital Photography Essentials: Why digital?; The Nuts and Bolts of Digital Imaging; How a Digital Camera Works; Buying a Digital Camera; and Essential Accessories. Here are just three examples:
1. Photography is about seeing and learning, and for us it's a great reason to go out into the world to learn and experience as much as we can. So - Get out there! The light is good, the pixels are cheap, and there are pictures waiting to be taken
2. Back in the early days of personal computing, Apple Computer had a 13-inch display that did indeed operate at 72 ppi. Most monitors these days display at a range between about 85 ppi and 125 ppi. The exact number will depend upon the pixel dimension resolution and the physical size of the monitor. This number is a measure of pixel density. The higher the ppi value, the more crisp the display, and the more capable the monitor is of showing fine detail without as much magnification.
3. If your camera does not provide enough dynamic range to hold detail in all tonal values, it is better to underexpose by one half to one stop. There is no way to add information when it has been blown out to pure white. (Look at histogram to see when this happens.) It is better to lighten a dark image than to darken a light one. In camera processing can also reduce the dynamic range.
The second part is Digital Photography Techniques: Digital Photography Foundations; and Seeing the Light. Here are three small examples:
1. Painters begin with an empty canvas and include what they paint. Photographers begin with a jumble of reality, and exclude by framing to create their picture.
2. When a black, gray, and white card are each photographed iand you let the camera figure out the exposure to use, the resulting exposure for each is a middle 18% gray. experiment. .. If the background is substantially darker than your subject, underexpose a bit, and if it is substantially lighter than your subject, overexpose a bit.
3. While in thumbnail review mode, press the lens zoom control, or other buttons, to zoom in to verify that everyone has their eyes open before calling an end to the session.
Part three is The Digital darkroom: Building a Digital Darkroom; Download, Edit and Convert; Essential Image Enhancement; Digital Darkroom Expert Techniques.
The darkroom is where the photographic image is transformed from a mere photograph to a masterpiece.
Still, as good as digital cameras are, we never met a pixel that we didn't want to tweak, adjust, massage and finesse into a better image. -- Most digital photographs can be improved with a little TLC, and images that you would have written off as a total loss if you were shooting film can be coaxed and cajoled into a spectacular recovery with the right techniques.
The techniques are explained using the latest Adobe PHotoshop CS, but here is what the authors say about Photoshop Elements:
The tools that Elements is missing can be found in the full version of Photoshop, but they are tools only advanced users would miss. These include curves adjustments, layer masking, quick mask mode for selections, CMYK support, and other features. -- We consider Elements an excellent choice for photographers just getting started with digital imaging, especially if you plan to move to Photoshop later.
Here are some of their comments about non-destructive editing:
The cold hard truth of editing digital images is that any change you make to an image's tonal range results in tonal data being thrown away.
An image is included of a histogram which shows serous tonal erosion after just three levels adjustments applied directly to the image.
Adjustment layers let you apply tonal and color corrections to an image so that they are not permanent and can always be edited as long as you do not flatten the layers. We recommend using adjustment layers for any tonal or color corrections work you do in Photoshop.
They provide a method for extending the tonal range beyond the capacity of the camera.
When the camera is on a tripod, two different images taken without moving the camera can be combined on separate layers lined up in perfect pixel-for-pixel registration. Expose once for highlights and once for shadows, changing exposure by changing shutter speed if possible.
The digital darkroom instructions began with Following their instructions, I took pictures of our house at night with the snow and Christmas lights. I put them together using their instructions and Photoshop Elements. I am not professional, but the process worked and an interesting picture resulted. Part four is Output, Manage, and Present: From Capture to Monitor to Print; The Digital Portfolio; Archive, Catalog, and Backup. As one small example, the authors recommend using 600 x 400 pixels for the Web, and starting with a modest amount of unsharp mask of about 125 to 200 percent and a radius setting of about at 0.4 to 0.8. If you are looking for professional insights to help you get better results from your digital camera or digital darkroom, including specific recommendations from three highly qualified professionals, you will find them in To get more information or to order go to
http://www.peachpit.com Real World Digital Photography, 2nd Edition
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