TT's Tips on Photography

By Tim Talbot

This book is intended to encourage newcomers to the activity. It provides details of the kinds of photographic subjects available as specializations. The choices can be matched to the existing skills of participants. There is also information about the equipment needed and comments on the modern digital techniques. Anyone can enjoy photography and the hobby can be as simple or as technical as the hobbyist prefers. It is possible to subsidize the costs of the activity by selling the output whether or not one wants to become a professional. The book moves from the history of photography to the "selfies" made possible by the use of smart 'phones.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Les Johns
• Release date: Apr 11, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310442445

Tim Talbot

Tim has travelled extensively and lived longer than many. He likes to pass on his experience in many fields to others. Tim has tried many hobbies and the books he writes are intended to help new entrants to these past-times. Occasionally even someone experienced in the hobby may learn a new wrinkle. The books are intentionally fairly short although hopefully not lacking in the information provided. There is no intention to produce exhaustive details of the subject matter. The books are intended to provide initial interest for those who may have only thought about trying the activity. Encouragement is the objective.

Book preview

TT's Tips on

Photography

by

Tim Talbot

Smashwords Edition

All Rights Reserved © 2015 Tim Talbot

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 -- The Beginnings

Chapter 2 -- Street Photography

Chapter 3 -- Candid Personal Photography

Chapter 4 -- Landscape Photography

Chapter 5 -- Still Life Photography

Chapter 6 -- Wildlife Photography

Chapter 7 -- Portrait Photography

Chapter 8 -- Choosing What to Snap

Chapter 9 -- Lighting

Chapter 10 -- Lenses

Chapter 11 -- Filters

Chapter 12 -- Digital Photography

Chapter 13 -- Stock Photography

Chapter 1

The Beginnings

Photography predates flight but by less than a century. In some ways their development paths coincided. From the Wright brothers initial flimsy creation which managed a flight of a few hundred metres in 1908 the jet engine was realized by the end of World War II. Modern high definition photography played an important role in reconnaissance before and after missions by the end of this conflict. From then until now further developments have been beyond anyone's imagination in both areas of endeavor.

The single engine Meteor jet fighter with a crew of one was the precursor of the current multi-engine airliners carrying up to four hundred passengers. Designs which allowed for fast flying machines enabled progress to devices such as the space shuttle.

The cameras and film used in Mosquito reconnaissance aircraft subsequently developed into the modern SLR 35 mm cameras and film available to the general public after the War. Photography has also developed further with digital techniques which dispense with a film medium altogether. It is this kind of progress which now requires choices of photographers with respect to cameras, film and digital processes. It all began with the indistinct, sometimes blurry, monotone, sepia daguerérotype pictures produced with large clumsy cameras on fragile glass media which are now museum exhibits. These were unique pictures. No reproduction or re-printing was possible. Eventually Daguerre was able to produce high quality pictures but the convenience of pictures on paper, although poorer in quality, fragile and still printed from glass negatives, overtook daguerréotype prints for the general public. This occurred as early as the 1860s from when the popularity of photography may be said to be dated.

The name daguerréotype comes from one of the inventors of photographic processes Louis Daguerre. A contemporary of his, although he preceded Daguerre in chemical techniques and work with light sensitive media, was Nicéphore (Joseph) Niépce. These two pioneers concentrated on chemical processes and viewing media rather than on cameras. Niépce is credited with being the first to use a device that would now be called a camera. Their work originated in the search for an improvement in recording life situations more precisely and immediately than had been possible previously by drawing, painting and particularly by lithographic methods. In effect they managed to produce pictures via the exposure to light of chemically treated metal or glass sheets. The resultant images were transferred to paper after an etching