Digital Photography For Dummies - Softcover

King, Julie Adair

3.69

393 ratings by Goodreads

9780764516641: Digital Photography For Dummies

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0764516647 ISBN 13: 9780764516641

Publisher: For Dummies, 2002

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In the 1840s, William Henry Fox Talbot combined light, paper, a few chemicals, and a wooden box to produce a photographic print, laying the foundation for modern film photography. Over the years, that process was refined, and people discovered the joy of photography. Now, more than 160 years after Talbot's innovation, photography has entered a new age, with the arrival of the digital camera and a new and exciting way to think about photography. In fact, digital photography has spawned an entirely new art form.

With a digital camera, a computer, and some photo-editing software, you can explore the unlimited creative opportunities of digital photography. Just think – no more film, no more film development costs, no more limitations of working only with what's there. With digital photography, you have almost instant access to your photos, and with photo-editing software, you can easily clean up your photos and add special effects that used to be nearly impossible for the amateur photographer to achieve.

Digital Photography For Dummies, 4th Edition, is your introduction to the world of digital photography, whether you're a beginner taking your first shot or an experienced photographer looking to try a new medium. In this newly revised edition, you'll discover the following topics and more:

Explore the different kinds of equipment – from cameras and computers to photo-editing software
Understand the science behind digital photography, including resolution, aperture, shutter speeds, and f-stops
Compose great shots, including how to light your subject
Solve common photographic dilemmas – such as capturing a moving target and dealing with unfriendly lighting
Edit your photos by sharpening them, removing red eye, and cropping them
Display your photos in a variety of ways – on CD, on the Web, or in slide shows
Top Ten lists on ways to improve your digital images, great ways to use your photos, and online resources all digital photographers should know about

Digital Photography For Dummies, 4th Edition, also comes with a CD that includes trial versions of popular photo-editing software, as well as some original photos taken by the author that you can use to experiment with.

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Review:

If you're comfortable with the concept of photography but find the digital part a stumbling block, Digital Photography for Dummies will get you over the hump.

Author Julie Adair King, a photographer and graphics-software specialist, deftly explains such concepts as resolution, f-stop, and compression. She is also refreshingly upfront about the differences between film-based and digital photography, spelling out the latter's shortcomings early on. Her advice on all aspects of the field is well thought out and simple without being condescending. She informs readers, for example, that you needn't use high-pixel resolutions simply for placing images on a Web page. Such tips will come as a relief to fledgling photographers on a budget, or novices who may have thought they had to use the highest-quality settings at all times.

Aside from the technical concerns of working with the camera and computer, King also gives sound tips on composition and lighting. And since retouching is one of the principal benefits of digital photography, she spends a fair amount of time discussing photo-editing software. And while most of the examples are in black and white, the most important examples, gratefully, are included in a 16-page color plate section in the middle of the book.

For those of you considering jumping into the world of digital photography, you'll be hard-pressed to find a better guide to getting started than Digital Photography for Dummies. --John Frederick Moore

From the Back Cover:

"Clarifies mysteries and offers useful help!"
-U.S. News & World Report

Updated with coverage of the latest cameras and software!

Your fun and easy guide to the world of digital photography

Digital cameras just keep getting better - and cheaper. But where do you begin? In this friendly guide, Julie Adair King delivers just what you need. She tells you how to select the right equipment. She reveals secrets of great digital picture-taking. And she shows you how to use photo-editing software to enhance any digital photo.

All this on the bonus CD-ROM
* Image-editing software, including tryouts of Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements, Ulead PhotoImpact trial version, Paint Shop Pro, and Jasc After Shot evaluations.
* Photo cataloging software, including ThumbsPlus evaluation version and ACDSee trial version
* Album software, including FlipAlbum Suite freeware

System Requirements: PC running Windows 98 or Later; Power Macintosh running System 8.6.6 or later. See the About the CD Appendix for details and complete system requirements.

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