Five Indispensable Books for Digital Photographers

The quantum leaps made in quality digital photography have brought us to a point where the digital camera is a vital necessity. From printers to advanced SLRs and lenses, photo software to video-editing applications, our high-tech, gotta-have-it-now world benefits from digital cameras in ways that were not even imagined when they were first being sold.

Along with all the gadgets and toys comes a disappointing reality: the learning curve. We expect a lot from our digital cameras; after all, they are instantaneous – with preview screens, we can see what our image will look like right after we snap the photo. With this level of instant gratification, we also tend to expect that the quality of the images we take will be as quickly enhanced. It’s easy to forget the disappointment of flipping through a stack of newly printed photographs only to find a few of them acceptable.


Digital Photography Software

This is where photo software – and the dreaded learning curve – tend to come in. Programs for editing, enhancing, and even drastically altering the digital photos we take are on the rise. They help us do everything from color correction to sharpening, and if we take it a step further these same programs can help us take a simple photograph and turn it into a stunning work of art.

Photoshop remains the Industry Standard, and shows no signs of releasing its grip. When Adobe purchased Macromedia, developers of the Dreamweaver and Fireworks software, this idea of Adobe and Photoshop in general continuing to dominate the market was basically cemented. In short, if you want to be taken seriously as a digital photographer, you need to learn Photoshop.

First-time users of this massive and extremely powerful program are often shocked by the number of “things” revealed the second they first open it. With all that Photoshop can do for the digital photographer, where are we supposed to turn to learn the program and really harness its power?