Digital Nature Photography: The Art and the Science (Inglés) Tapa blanda – 17 jul 2007

I have been a John Gerlach fan for many years and still have amidst my photo gear a typewritten exposure guide that he handed out during a seminar I attended many years ago in Orlando. His emphasis then, which is repeated in this book, is an emphasis on getting the picture right in the camera - not depending on Photoshop to "rescue" haphazard results. Exposure and sharpness are critical and he demonstrates how to achieve the results. Comments on equipment are interesting since he shoots Canon and his wife who is now his partner in these endeavors shoots Nikon so you can gain insight into both systems. He will also reference Sony and Pentax now and then but on a more limited basis. Tips on composition are also quite helpful.

An excellent book to get the basics down but also some great content for those, like me who have been doing this for many years. (47 in my case) The cover shot alone is enough to keep one inspired!

Two areas might disappoint. First, there is little discussion of the use of software like Photoshop. As he points out, there are plenty of books on the topic and he would rather be out taking pix as opposed to siting in front of the computer. The second area that might disappoint is that there are no pictures or illustrations of equipment or accessories. This was less of a problem for me as an experienced photographer but some may wish to see exactly what a particular item such as an "L bracket" for off camera flash or a flash extender looks like. (I understand that given the rapid changes in technology that material may become dated - as opposed to the photos which are timeless!)

I found reference to this book in his column in Nature Photographer and ordered this and the one on landscape photography. Both were worthy purchases.

Recommended for (although not exclusively):
Digital photographers, beginners to digital cameras/dSLRs, nature photographers wanting to improve their skill level.

Comments:
Having read many photography books, from John Shaw's Nature Photography Field Guide to Mountain Light: In Search of the Dynamic Landscape, Tenth-Anniversary Edition, I find the sheer fact that the Gerlachs' book focuses on digital photography is worth buying the book alone.

They give details, in a simple and easy to understand manner, for the /digital/ photographer. Yes, it is useful to read about prints, negatives, and so forth, but they are to a certain extent, not as meaningful for a photographer with a digital camera (or, these days, for those who've never even handled film!).

However, the most important observation that I can make about this book, is that the technical details are easily understood by the amateur photographer. Other books, such as The Camera (Ansel Adams Photography, Book 1), can easily leave you scratching your head. Well worth the money!

A number of folks have downgraded their ratings of this book because of the poor editing. I have read some 20 photography books over the last couple of years and I would have to say this is one of the best. I agree the editing is very poor, among the worst I have see in a professional publication. But I was able to look past that and throughly enjoy this book. I learned alot from it and will likely read it again. If they were to issue a second edition with better editing I would probably buy a copy that is how good I found this book to be. Don't throw the baby our with the editor's bath water.

Although I first read this book in 2008 the year after it was published, I have decided to go back and write this review from a more recent perspective. One way of dividing nature photography is to consider its three components: landscape, wildlife, and macro and then ask how this book addresses these topics. Are there any general issues common to these three areas of photography, and are there any issues specific to each of them? Furthermore, does digital photography make a difference in answering these questions?

A critical chapter in this book is called "Exposure Essentials", and the Gerlachs discuss the histogram as the "key to making sure you get the best exposure". However, at the time this book was written, most cameras only provided the single large luminous (brightness) histogram. Since then, the three color channel RGB histogram has become universally available, and the Gerlachs now have adopted the view that to obtain perfect exposure in the highlights of a RAW file one of the color channels must be just barely touching the right hand side of the LCD screen without spiking ("expose to the right"). This principle clearly applies to all three branches of nature photography and ensures that none of the colors in a scene will be overexposed.

The Gerlachs also mention in this chapter that they first used spot metering and manual exposure mode as their original exposure method prior to the histogram. However, they acknowledge that spot metering requires that you "must meter carefully, learn to judge reflectance values, and know how to compensate the exposure." Since this book was written the Gerlachs have switched to Evaluative (Canon) or Matrix (Nikon) Metering in all of their photography because of its ease of use and accuracy. They also prefer manual exposure for most subjects, and their outstanding book on "Digital Landscape Photography" has a chapter on "Mastering Exposure" that explains the advantages of using manual exposure in landscape photography in detail. On the other hand, they indicate that shutter priority mode can have its advantages in photographing wildlife subjects, and I expect this topic will be discussed thoroughly in their forthcoming book on "Digital Wildlife Photography".

A second critical chapter in the book is entitled "Shoot Sharp Images Consistently". Here there is an excellent discussion of continuous autofocus and back-button focusing in wildlife photography, and a photograph on p. 96 suggests that this technique also can be used in landscape photography. Indeed, their "Digital Landscape Photography" book shows how these techniques are essential for obtaining sharp landscape images.

I have focused on these two chapters because they elucidate basic principles in digital nature photography. Of course, there is much more to the book than I have so far indicated. In fact, there are excellent chapters on macro photography and using flash, which will interest most nature photographers. Also, beginning and even intermediate photographers will benefit greatly from the chapters on light, composition, and gear. Indeed, an excellent section on shooting panoramas appears in the chapter on composition. While the more recent development of high dynamic range photography does not appear in this chapter, the Gerlachs' recent book on "Digital Landscape Photography" contains a comprehensive chapter on the subject.

This is a superb digital nature photography foundations book, and I expect subsequent books written by the Gerlachs, such as their "Digital Landscape Photography" and their forthcoming "Digital Wildlife Photography", will become classics in their fields.