Books, Blogs, and Other Stuff

I thought I'd end the year with a look at the books, blogs, and other things that I turn to when I have a technical question, when I need inspiration, or to keep developing my skills both in the field and in the digital darkroom.  This list is by no means all inclusive, I'm just trying to cover what I've found to be the best (and/or most useful).  

Books - For the beginner (that I keep referring back to):

Scott Kelby's The Digital Photography Book Series - I consider these books an essential resource.  They cover a variety of topics and although they are written for the beginning photographer, I still find myself referring back to these books.  This series has been recently refreshed (volume one was first published in 2009) so make sure you get the  updated version.

Bryan Peterson's books, esp. Learning To See Creatively - Another series of books for the beginning photographer.  Although I don't refer to these as much as I used to, Learning To See Creatively is still a good resource.

Landscape Photography - From Snapshots to Great Shots - Rob Sheppard - A good introduction to the subject.  I've also found that as a whole the Snapshots to Great Shots series is a good introduction to a variety of photography related subjects.

Books - That focus on the technical, particularly composition: 

Within The Frame - David duChemin - duChemin is both one of my favorite photographers and an excellent teacher when it comes to (his) thoughts on composition.  This is probably my favorite book on photography.

Vision & Voice: Refining Your Vision in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom - David duChemin - Another excellent book from duChemin about photography and composition.  duChemin states early on in the book: “My vision for this book is that readers learn to approach digital development as a craft in service of their vision."  What does that mean?  I won't even try to explain put that in my own words - you'll have to check it out yourself...  The one caveat is that he wrote this using examples with Adobe Lightroom 3 (which was the most recent version at the time) so when reading it now you have to "interpret" some of the examples into Lightroom 4 or 5 "speak." 

The Photographer's Eye - Michael Freeman - An excellent book on composition that focuses on the technical aspects of photographic composition - subjects like the rule of thirds, the golden ratio, the appearance of the Fibonacci sequence in nature and how these concepts lead the eye through a photograph. 

Books - That focus on a specific topic:

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 Book for Digital Photographers - Scott Kelby - A good overview of Adobe Lightroom 4, that covers a variety of topics.
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5 Book for Digital Photographers - Scott Kelby - Basically the same book, revamped for Lightroom 5. 

EBooks

Pretty much anything from Craft&Vision, but in particular anything by David duChemin or Piet Van den Eynde - duChemin for thoughts on composition and den Eynde for technical information, specifically info relating to Adobe Lightroom.  Anything by Craft&Vision is well written, beautifully illustrated, and available as an affordable, downloadable PDF.  

Blogs - By excellent photographers that cover a variety of topics: 

Moose Peterson - Wildlife photographer extraordinaire, also a master of landscape and aviation photography.  For years I have read his blog religiously, and I'm still learning something new or viewing awesome photos often enough to keep coming back. 

Scott Kelby's Photoshop Insider - Although called the Photoshop Insider, that's only one of the topics covered.  What I like about this blog is that in addition to being an excellent (and very versatile) photographer, Scott Kelby is a great teacher, and he always shares the technical details of his photos shoots, be it landscapes, a wedding, football game, and it's always done with a bit of a sense of humor, and he shares the good, the bad, and the ugly of what happened.

David duChemin - As noted above, duChemin is one of my favorite photographers.  He blogs on an occasionally infrequent basis, but I'm always checking for his latest post because when he does share his thoughts, he rarely disappoints.

Photofocus - Started by Scott Bourne (who has recently turned over the reigns to a capable team) this blog covers a variety of topics daily.

Blogs - That mainly focus on technical issues:

Focus on Singh-Ray Filters - Singh-Ray produces top quality camera lens filters.  This blog features a variety of photographers who write about how and why they use these filters.  Usually a good read and always great photographs. 

Matt Kloskowski - A good source for the latest tips on using Adobe Lightroom (and other software).  

Lightroom Killer Tips - Another blog from Matt Kloskowski that focuses specifically on Lightroom.  There's enough difference between this and Matt's other blog that I check both on a regular basis.

Equipment 

B&H Photo Video - The choice of professional photographers.  Anything and everything a photographer could ever want - or need.

This list also serves as a point in time of sorts, in that it covers everything I've discovered from the first day I picked up a DSLR until now.  This will allow me to, from this point forward, share my thoughts on books, blogs, and other stuff as they arise, or to do a yearly wrap up of the best of the best.