A unique, full-color guide to the art of taking amazing photos with a digital camera Aimed at photographers of all levels and ranges of interest, this new edition of Aaland's popular guide takes readers beyond the technology of the latest cameras and equipment to teach them the unique aesthetics of the digital image. Helpful examples explain how to take full advantage of RAW file formats, JPEG 2000, panorama automation, and more. Mikkel Aaland (San Francisco, CA) is an award-winning photographer and author whose photography has been published in magazines and exhibited around the world.

Photography has been the business and the passion of LIFE since the original weekly magazine's inception in 1936, and it continues to be the business and passion of LIFE Books and LIFE.com in the new millennium. But photography has surely changed during these many decades. The rigs and gear of old have given way-first slowly, then all at once-to sleek miracle machines that process pixels and have made the darkroom obsolete. The casual photog puts eye to lens, sets everything on auto and captures a photograph that is . . . perfectly fine. One of LIFE's master shooters-in fact, the final in the long line of distinguished LIFE staff photographers-was Joe McNally, and he has always believed that with a little preparation and care, with a dash of enthusiasm and daring added to the equation, anyone can make a better photo-anyone can turn a "keeper" into a treasure. This was true in days of yore, and it's true in the digital age. Your marvelous new camera, fresh from its box, can indeed perform splendid feats. Joe explains in this book how to take best advantage of what it was designed to do, and also when it is wise to outthink your camera or push your camera-to go for the gold, to create that indelible family memory that you will have blown up as large as the technology will allow, and that will hang on the wall forevermore. As the storied LIFE photographer and photo editor John Loengard points out in his eloquent foreword to this volume, there are cameras and there are cameras, and they've always been able to do tricks. And then there is photography. Other guides may give you the one, two, three of producing a reasonably well exposed shot, but Joe McNally and the editors of LIFE can give you that, and then can show you how to make a picture. In a detailed, friendly, conversational, anecdotal, sometimes rollicking way, that's what they do in these pages. Prepare to click.

Furnishes an overview of digital photography, covering such topics as cameras, exposure, lighting, shutter speed, depth of field, and resolution--and tips on how to avoid hours of photo-editing by taking great photographs the first time.

Learn how to take professional-quality photographs using the same tricks today’s top photographers use (surprisingly, it’s easier than you’d think)!

This is a completely, totally updated version of the #1 best-selling digital photography book of all time! It’s the award winning, worldwide smash hit, written by Scott Kelby, that’s been translated into dozens of different languages.

Here’s how Scott describes this book’s brilliant premise: “If you and I were out on a shoot, and you asked me, ‘Hey, how do I get this flower to be in focus, with the background out of focus?,’ I wouldn’t stand there and give you a photography lecture. In real life, I’d just say, ‘Put on your zoom lens, set your f-stop to f/2.8, focus on the flower, and fire away.’ That’s what this book is all about: you and I out shooting where I answer questions, give you advice, and share the secrets I’ve learned just like I would with a friend—without all the technical explanations and techie photo speak.”

This isn’t a book of theory—full of confusing jargon and detailed concepts. This is a book on which button to push, which setting to use, and when to use it. With over 200 of the most closely guarded photographic “tricks of the trade,” this book gets you shooting dramatically better-looking, sharper, more colorful, more professional-looking photos every time.

Each page covers a single concept that makes your photography better. Every time you turn the page, you’ll learn another pro setting, tool, or trick to transform your work from snapshots into gallery prints. If you’re tired of taking shots that look “okay,” and if you’re tired of looking in photography magazines and thinking, “Why don’t my shots look like that?” then this is the book for you.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Pro Tips for Getting Sharp Photos
Chapter 2: The Scoop on Lenses
Chapter 3: Shooting Landscapes Like a Pro
Chapter 4: Shooting Travel Like a Pro
Chapter 5: Making Portraits Like a Pro
Chapter 6: Making Portraits with Flash Like a Pro
Chapter 7: Shooting Weddings Like a Pro
Chapter 8: Shooting Sports Like a Pro
Chapter 9: Shooting Other Stuff Like a Pro
Chapter 10: Pro Tips for Getting Better Photos
Chapter 11: How to Print Like a Pro
Chapter 12: Photo Recipes to Help You Get the Shot

Since the dawn of film, novices and experts have used quick-and-dirty workarounds and audiovisual tricks to improve their motion pictures, from home movies to feature films. Today, the tools have certainly changed, as have the quality and scope of the results. With digital video, the hacking possibilities are now limitless, for both amateurs and professional artists. From acquiring footage, mixing, editing, and adding effects to final distribution, Digital Video Hacks provides unique tips, tools, and techniques for every stage of video production. You'll learn how to: Get your projects started right using creative preparation tools and techniques,from making your own steadicam, boom, or dolly to effective storyboarding, timecoding, and tape labeling Troubleshoot common shooting problems, including using stop-motion and time-lapse techniques, lighting effects, colored screens and gels, and household objects to establish mood or otherwise wow an audience Create stunning visual effects, such as satellite zooming, surreal scenes, Matrix-like bullet-time, and green screen illusions Fool your audience with audio tricks, replacing flubbed dialogue, smoothing over cuts, and covering missing audio with room tone Add professional features with post-production tricks, including color correction, soundtrack cleanup, opening sequences, and DVD bookmarks Distribute final content in a variety of creative ways, from exporting to basic videotape or DVD to streaming over the internet or even via cell phone Use the web to provide interactivity and dynamic content, attend a remote conference, or vlog your life. Whether you're looking for a new technique to include in your next project, a solution to a common problem, or just a little inspiration, this book reintroduces you to the digital video you only thought you knew.

Take photos like a pro without breaking the bank by using FREE and nearly FREE software and hardware explained in this book. Get professional looking shots from a low-cost camera Save money by building your own lighting rigs, tripods, monopods and stabilisers for next to nothing Learn how to use older lenses on modern digital cameras, and make your own macro lens, lens hoods, flash diffusers, flash concentrators, decorative Bokeh effect lenses and more Use dozens of FREE and low cost photo applications for processing, viewing, cataloguing, editing, creating HDR, and photo stitching Build powerful photography processing and editing suites with free software and plugins that go head to head with expensive tools like Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom

This full-color title is designed to be a classic reference for the millions of photographers going to digital, from enthusiasts shooting family events and vacations with their SLRs, to professionals creating journalistic prints and fine art. It?s the only book on the market with a focus on complete, end-to-end workflow from shoot to print. It?s tied to Adobe?s latest version of Photoshop, which boasts an installed base of 4 million! Serge Timacheff is a professional photographer living in Pacific Northwest. He is the official photographer for the International Fencing Federation, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, and he photographs fencing at World Championships and the Summer Olympics. His 100-percent digital studio provides portraiture, event, commercial, and boudoir photography, and his fine art photographs appear in galleries and individual collections worldwide. David Karlins is a digital imaging expert, Web designer, teacher, consultant and author of numerous books and magazine articles.