Any homebrewers into photography?

I was wondering if anyone out there could recommend a good photography book for someone that is into photography, but has probably never taken any classes. Something that had techniques and cool ideas. Anything like that exist out there? I'm trying to find a good gift for my brother in law. Thanks for any help!

What type of shots does he typically take? Do you know the camera he has?

I wish I knew what camera he was using these days, I'll try to find out. He takes a pretty wide range of shots - most of it is just for general use. They like the outdoors, so a lot of landscapes and just whatever they see when they're out and traveling.

I should say that I know I can walk into any bookstore and find a ton of choices, but was hoping for a recommendation since I don't know what to look for. I'd hate to get a crappy book that he never uses.

You should at least find out if he uses either a DSLR, point and shot or a traditional film camera.

Tough one without knowing what he already has. Most pros have a few special tools, like filters and lenses, lighting equipment, etc. Some of it is pretty pricey.

I started to get into Kite Aerial Photography, but kind of dropped it due to house projects that came up. Fly a kite up in the air with a special mount attached and have it fire off shots from the sky. Lots of different ways to fire the camera, from a single shot on a mechanical timer, to remote control shutter release via RC controller. You kind of gotta have a decent amount of steady breeze to pull it off though...

If you are looking for a great general phtography book that isn't camera or even digital/film specific then this is the book you are looking for.

BargainMugs said:

You should at least find out if he uses either a DSLR, point and shot or a traditional film camera.

Click to expand...

He definitely uses a digital camera, that I know. The last one he handed down to me was a Cybershot DSC-F707. No idea what he upgraded to though.

dataz722 said:

If you are looking for a great general phtography book that isn't camera or even digital/film specific then this is the book you are looking for.

Click to expand...

That is great, exactly what I was looking for. Kind of like the Palmer of homebrewing.

I'm being told he uses a Nikon D200. Thanks for all of the quick replies.

If that is the case there is a good chance that book will be a little too remidial for him. That book pretty much teaches you how to use the camera in a manual mode. It is possible that he still uses manaul but most people that have one of the mid-upper level cameras will know what they are doing.

This is what I would recommend http://www.amazon.com/dp/0240802756/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

dataz722 said:

If you are looking for a great general phtography book that isn't camera or even digital/film specific then this is the book you are looking for.

Click to expand...

+1 on Understanding Exposure.

Peterson's "Learning to see creatively" is a good book as well.

dataz722 said:

If that is the case there is a good chance that book will be a little too remidial for him. That book pretty much teaches you how to use the camera in a manual mode. It is possible that he still uses manaul but most people that have one of the mid-upper level cameras will know what they are doing.

Click to expand...

You would be amazed at the number of "photographers" that never take a camera out of "full auto".

KurtB said:

You would be amazed at the number of "photographers" that never take a camera out of "full auto".

Click to expand...

Ha. You know not with whom you speak.

Trust me. He is not even surprised. Amazed would imply that it concerns him.

Despite taking photography classes in college, I would be one of those people. I just can't make myself learn the ins and outs of digital cameras.

Thanks again everyone, you're actually starting to make this difficult with all of the good suggestions.

drewski459 said:

Despite taking photography classes in college, I would be one of those people. I just can't make myself learn the ins and outs of digital cameras.

Thanks again everyone, you're actually starting to make this difficult with all of the good suggestions.

Click to expand...

The best way to learn photography and a camera, as I am told, is to take a camera with you just about everywhere you go and each day play with on setting only, then compose photo's of anything that catches your eye but do your best to compose then in such a way that the setting chosen emphasizes the shot.

Once the camera settings/options are learned then you move into more fo the gear. A specific lens. A specific aperture or focal length. a specific filter, etc....

This is the beauty of digital. No film to develope means once the shot is taken you don;t have any expense lost if it's bad and removal is a click away.

The problem, is finding the time and maintaining an interest. Then the struggle is deepend when the interest is heightened and you realise how expensive it can get to expand on your kitted camera set.

Or so I am told.

dataz722 said:

If you are looking for a great general phtography book that isn't camera or even digital/film specific then this is the book you are looking for.

Click to expand...

I definitely second this book. It is a very good basic book that every photographer should read.

dataz722 said:

If that is the case there is a good chance that book will be a little too remidial for him. That book pretty much teaches you how to use the camera in a manual mode. It is possible that he still uses manaul but most people that have one of the mid-upper level cameras will know what they are doing.

Click to expand...

On the other hand if he recently upgraded from a Cybershot to a full-dSLR it's the exact perfect book for him. I endorse it.

Rick, another idea if you wanted go to away from the book is a gift certificate to his local camera shop. Digital photography has vastly lowered the marginal cost per picture but there are still enough consumables (lens cleaners and the like), semi-consumables (UV filters for example) and accessories/toys (don't even get me started) that photography makes homebrewing look like a cheap hobby.

KurtB said:

You would be amazed at the number of "photographers" that never take a camera out of "full auto".

Click to expand...

Oh trust me I know. Most will usually just buy a cheaper dslr though. As long as it is one of the "big fancy cameras" they have no idea the difference and go for an entry level. D200 is a mid to upper range model, at least when it was new. Don't get me wrong some people will go out and drop 5k on a body and have no clue what they are doing, but that is rare.

There are so many great free resources on the Internet, it's hard to recommend a book. One of my favorites to start with would be the video tutorials here: http://www.prophotolife.com/video-library/

i really like John Shaw's stuff:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0817440593/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

http://www.amazon.com/dp/081743710X/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20