Book Reviews

Portrait Photography: The Art Of Seeing Light; by Don Blair with Peter Skinner, Amherst Media, Inc., 175 Rano Street, Suite 200, Buffalo, NY 14207; soft cover; 128 pages; $29.95; (ISBN 1-58428-131-6)
Successful manipulation of light is a technique that photographers must master to capture magnificent portraits and legendary portrait photographer Don Blair can teach you how it's done. With the aid of 100 sample color images and highly detailed information on preparation, light positions, ratios, patterns, equipment selection, and props he breaks down each shot to it's basic elements so you can build your own unique portraits without all the fuss. This book will quickly prove to be an invaluable tool that will raise the quality of your work to new heights you've only dreamed of. This is a wonderful chance to learn the fine points of the craft from such an amazing artist, the photography world morns his untimely passing.

Photographer's Market Guide To Building Your Photography Business: Everything You Need To Know To Run A Successful Photography Business; by Vik Orenstein, Writers Digest Books an imprint of F+W Publications, Inc., 4700 East Galbraith Road, Cincinnati, OH 45236; soft cover; 320 pages; $18.99; (ISBN 1-58297-264-8)
Vik Orenstein is a successful photographer and owner of several studios which means that the advice contained in this book is based on practical experience and professional knowledge. Orenstein provides plenty of tips on finding the perfect niche, pricing your work, marketing, sales, public relations, legal matters, and the art of networking. All these elements combine to form a comprehensive text to getting your career off to a good start and ensuring that your hard work will produce a successful future.

Digital Photography Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools; by Derrick Story, O'Reilly Media Inc., 1005 Gravenstein Highway North, Sebastopol, CA 95472; soft cover; 309 pages; $29.95; (ISBN 0-596-00666-7)
If you're looking for quick and simple solutions to your digital dilemmas then Derrick Story has the information you need. He makes digital a breeze for both Mac and Windows users by supplying a bounty of tips on every thing from camera attachments and daytime or nighttime photography to flash, computer correction, Photoshop tricks, and weekend photo projects. It's all presented in a simple format with a generous supply of images to illustrate each hack. Story makes learning fun and effortless so add a copy of this interesting guide to your collection today.

Photographing Flowers: Inspiration-Equipment-Technique; by Sue Bishop, Photographers' Institute Press Books, distributed by Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., 387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016; hard cover; 156 pages; $24.95; (ISBN 1-86108-366-1)
Flowers are one of natures most perfect creations. These delicate masterpieces are often a favorite subject of photographers but capturing their subtle beauty is not always as simple as it may seem. That is where this book proves its value because Sue Bishop has condensed her 18 years of experience into an informative text to help you capture a top quality image with ease. Her lessons include a generous supply of color sample images and enough charts and notes to clarify exactly what it takes to shoot the image and get the results you desire so grab your gear and have a copy of this book in hand as you set out to photograph flowers in all their glory.