You Won't Be Disappointed

For anyone new to Nikon's D40/D40x DSLR this is the book to buy. The camera manual supplied by Nikon has poor readability, with tiny fonts, grey print not black, and defies logic in the way that's organised. In contrast The Digital Field Guide by David D. Busch, in full colour, is a treasure trove of well organised, readable information. For the newbie or the more advanced amateur moving to DSLR, you won't be disappointed. I'm delighted with mine. After reading a few chapters, my photographs are stunning. Much thanks to David, to Amazon for a terrific book.

Not Worth the Money

I just returned my book to Waterstone's. It Cost me around the same price as it is on here, and I must say that is was nowhere near worth it.<br /><br />Half the book is talking about the titles for each chapter and the other is basically telling us how to recreate his own images. Its an okay book, and if it was around 5 quid it would be okay, but for the price, don't bother, you can get"the Digital Photography Handbook" for about 7 quid, its twice as thick, full of useful tips and lacks the lame sense of humour!<br />

a must have

A superb book that explains a relatively complex subject really well. I've been taking my photography more seriously of recent years and this book has been a major help in taking it to the next level.<br /><br />A great reference to have and very inspiring.

Remove any Donald Rumsfeld from your life

The ex-Secretary of Defense is now most famous for his quote about knowledge. "...as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns -- the ones we don't know we don't know."<br />.<br /><br />When I started thinking about renovating my house and building an extension I had very few known knowns. After using the Housebuilder's Bible as a guide I now have no unknown unknowns and very few known unknowns. I and know how to know those.<br /><br />So, if you're building or thinking of building and you feel an outbreak of Donald Rumsfeld is imminent; buy this book !

At long last

A book on composition that delves down further than the rule of thirds and the likes. I'm still waiting for my copy but had a half hour skim through it's content in a book shop, can't wait to start reading. He uses shapes on his photos to describe what makes the compostion work on certain situations. I found the content easy to read and comprehend.

Wow!

Having just"adopted" two company websites, I've been buying books to help me get to grips with it all. This book answers a number of things and explains exactly what I need to do to impress customers, keep them and get them to buy. Excellent

Don't buy it....

.....if you are a seasoned pro or utterly humourless. If you think your photographs are generally OK, but are missing that little something extra that makes them good enough to be proud of; then buy it instantly.<br /><br />This isn't a technical photography manual that will spin your head out with more terms than a consolidation loan contract. Neither is it an artsy Bauhaus analysis of photography design. No, it is actually useful. <br /><br />I wrote a glowing review of the first volume, and the second volume is just as good. The only downside is that I now am going to spend more money on photography kit. I really think that addiction to narcotics or alcohol would have been much cheaper and far less damaging to my marriage.<br /><br />The author, to me anyway, comes across as a thoroughly nice bloke who obviously loves what he does. The style is informal and friendly and I enjoy reading both volumes again and again. If, like some reviewers, you find this off-putting I think that says far more about you than it does Scott.<br /><br />In conclusion: my photographs are better after reading this book, thanks Scott.

A worse dummy than I thought!

I think I must need a 'Total Idiot's Guide' as this was not what I thought it would be.<br />Being a complete beginner with dSLR, I thought this book would be a step-by-step guide on 'How To....' I was a bit wide of the mark - although the book says a lot about why you should do this over that, etc it left me lost on how to actually do it. So I'm using my camera on Auto until my Nikon book arrives. Let's hope I'll have more success with that one.

Wall and Piece

This is a brilliant book looking at the humorous, sometimes political, occasionally caustic and often thoughtful artwork of Banksy. It shows his most famous pieces, as well as demonstrating just how influential his style has become. This book has some fantastic commentary and quotes from Banksy that really add to the overall package and make you realise the ideas behind the art and artist. I found the paper quality to be excellent and I have to say I enjoyed this book more than expected and it left me with a new, deeper appreciation of Banksy's work. Highly recommended.

Top of the shop !

Bedside book or looside book , it's one of those tomes you pick up to flick through and can't put it down . I'm not big into graffitti , to me it's an urban menace , but art in this , it's simplest form , is eyeopening .<br />Keep it up Banksy ......... oh and as for the suited and booted idiots who painted out the wall at Old Street underground station :-<

Handy, Man

Now here's a book that could really come in useful. Admittedly you have to put up with the occasional picture of Ms Beeny scowling threateningly at the camera (implied message to dodgy tradesmen: mess with me and you'll be talking two octaves higher for the rest of your days). And, yes, some of her estimates manage to be simultaneously both vague and strangely precise ("doorknob: £5 to £44"). Nevertheless, this compact little book -- small enough to slip between a builder's arse cheeks -- is bristling with tips that could save you a small fortune. Or at any rate take a good deal of the stress out of dealing with plumbers, electricians, tilers, carpet-layers, glaziers and the like. With immaculate logic Ms Beeny dissects each project into its component elements and pins a time and a price on each. Costings, of course, will vary between different parts of the country. And a few years hence they might well be out-of-date. But hey, it's a start. Let's hope they keep it regularly updated.

Review of reviews

All the reviews would seem to be for the Elements 5 version of the book.<br />This is totally misleading - the software has changed substantially for Elements 6 and I presume the book covering it would change as well.

Buyer Beware.

I recently attended a two-day course on Adobe Photoshop CS3 as part of my conversion to digital photography and digital imaging. At the end of that course the students were all given a copy of this book which contains a training CD Rom. As I was already booked onto the"advanced course" in 14 days time, I eagerly put the CD into my computer to practise what I had learned. Only then did I discover the CD would not work without my having first purchased and installed the full Adobe Photoshop CS3 software. <br /><br />In my case, I had already ordered that software so it was only a matter of a few days delay before I could get started. Just be warned that you cannot use this product without having first installed the full software package - and that is a separate purchase altogether.<br /><br />Once that's done, it's actually great. Anyone who starts at page one - with no previous experience and no knowledge of the difference between a tool bar and a menu bar, will find it all fit slowly into place as the book teaches one step at a time and then builds on each step until you find yourself automatically going back to something already learned as though you have been doing it for years.<br /><br />My only criticism of the book is some pretty silly typing errors. In one example you are referred back to a previous page only to find they got the page number wrong. In another, a list of tools is incorrect.<br /><br />I did find such basic errors to be quite surprising (and very annoying at the time) from a team of people who are otherwise so technically competent.<br /><br />NM<br /><br />

It almnost won me over...........only almost

Being someone who had read the Batman comics of the 60s and also a fan of Tim Burton's first two Batman films and of the animated series,I had resisted trying Miller's Batman as I had only browsed the Graphic novel in the past,however I decided to see what the fuss was about and bought it.I have to say that although it is an excellent read in itself I have one or two reservations about it and though this probably 'IS' Batman as Bob Kane intended,his depiction of Superman is sacriligeous and the moronic Mutants just got on my nerves,in the end as a Batman affectionardo I have to say that it belongs in the bin.due to poor reviews of the sequel 'THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN ' I won't be buying it.

Layers - for the rest of us

I do a fair amount of PhotoShop Image Editing, and tho' I say it myself, have become reasonably proficient at it, but one aspect I haven't really come to grips with, and which I know to be a failing, is understanding how to use Layers. Now I do know what Layers are, and I also understand that there's something quite magical about using Layers in PS, but somehow, although I do indeed understand the"Why", I've never really got to grips with the"How To". Then Amazon, as they do, mailed me about Matt Kloskowski's brand new PS Manual, strangely enough called"LAYERS"<br /><br />And I have to say that it really has been an eye-opener, virtually from page one. Obviously inspired by Scott Kelby's eclectic style of writing, the book is laid out throughout as a series of step by step tutorials, including a complete on-line download of all the stock images used, which is many times easier to understand than Adobe's admittedly comprehensive User Guide's, and Classroom in a Book series, which in the main, flew right above my head. Some of the adjustment Layer Tutorials are little short of stunning, almost blindingly Damascene in their revelation of technique. If I had one criticism it would be of the sometimes facile chattiness of the writing which does begin to jar a little after the tenth or fifteenth jokey comment, but let that not distract from what is a tour de force of a book, enabling Layer novices such as myself to effortlessly move up a level, or should I say Layer, in my comprehension of an area of PhotoShop which I have been too uneducated - read nervous - to previously take on board.<br /><br />Obviously, I have no connection with the Author, or the Publisher, but if you enjoy, if that's the right word, playing around with PhotoShop, then I can thoroughly recommend"Layers" as one of the best PhotoShop guides I've yet worked with.<br /><br />Neil Carter<br />Oxford UK

Stuck for an idea? Dive in here...

Alan Fletcher was one of the creative powerhouses of design from the 1960s on, and this book puts together some of his musings on life, the Universe and everything. The book is designed to spark ideas and thought, so even the paper used changes from page to page. <br /><br />In typically quirky fashion, only the left hand pages are given a number so if you buy this book you actually get over a thousand pages of inspiring graphics, calligraphy, typography and photographs collected over the course of a long and illustrious career: he founded Pentagram; he designed logos for Reuters and the Victoria and Albert museum. The book gives a glimpse of the thought processes that went in to that work. For the money it's an astonishing bargain.

Best so Far

This field guide will appeal to beginners through to the serious amateur. It covers all the technical stuff as well as some good guidance on photography in general. If you have recently purchased the 40D and wanted a good book then this is it. If I had to be picky then my only criticism is the continued reference to L series lenses, which whilst ideal are often out of financial reach for many. You can get some very good results with some cheaper lenses.<br />

Real world book, real worl author

I like the personal touch. I like someone who is fairly self depreciating, and can poke fun at himself and tohers, and I like the thought that someone is not teaching me, but a friend is sort of guiding me.<br />It is because of this that I like Scott Kelby's humour within his books. Maybe the target audiance are amateur photographers rather than the professional"this is my job so I'm being strict about everything" photographer. It really doesn't matter as this book is simply so good.<br /><br />The walk-throughs and lessons are short and simple to understand, and where possible, alternative ways to achieve the same results are also discussed.<br />A bonus for those who buy the book is the access to a support website which contains additional chapters from earlier books which have been dropped.<br /><br />Many"how-to" books can be heavy going. This one has all the content, but an easy going style. Simply excellent!