Preface

Photography has a rich history, from the personal family snapshot to Earth rising over the moon’s horizon. In its brief 170-year history, photography has played many roles to a wide variety of people—from memory keeper to human condition revealer to personal exploration companion. Photography reveals how we perceive and is so important that we are compelled to capture, process, and share our experiences with family and friends, and now—via social media—with complete strangers. Digital photography allows us to take more pictures, more easily, and more quickly. But before we delve into the nuts and bolts of digital photography with the third edition of Real World Digital Photography, allow us to address some of the essential assumptions and desires that come with the act of creating images out of light and shadow.

What Is Predictable

Taking pictures is fun; taking good pictures is gratifying; consistently taking great pictures can be both a lifelong passion and a rewarding profession.

The foundation of contemporary digital photography remains rooted in the nineteenth century brilliance of George Eastman, inventor and founder of the Eastman Kodak Company and the company’s slogan—You take the picture, we do the rest. Eastman realized that if the time-consuming technical aspects of making a photograph were provided as a service, more people would enjoy taking pictures—billions and billions of pictures.

Of course, Eastman’s premise would only work if the resulting photographs were acceptable and reasonably priced. In essence, for millions of people to enjoy photography, it had to provide more than fun, and it had to produce successful and pleasing results, time after time.

The sale of each roll of film was based on the following assumptions. The great majority of photographers would take pictures outside, during the daylight hours, with clear, brightly scattered clouds. The subject matter would most likely be a portrait, a group of people, a landscape, or a close-up. When photographers worked within these basic assumptions, chances were greater for photographic success and personal enjoyment, which led to the taking of even more pictures.

Of course, photographers are more than button pushers. To increase the rate of success, a photographer carried the responsibility of choosing a subject, composing the shot, focusing, and setting the exposure relative to the light conditions and film sensitivity, all while working with a steady hand and an eye for the moment. From the hundreds of thousands of miles of exposed and processed amateur roll film to the Kodak Instamatic cameras to the disposable cameras still sold near every international tourist attraction, the rate of photographic and personal success has been incredibly high and gratifying.

What Is Anticipated

Successful, repeatable, and reliable results are also at the core of the digital photography experience. Being a photographer in the digital age echoes Eastman’s premise made more than a century ago. But as echoes pass, they change to express the times. Today, the assumption is: I take the picture. The rest is already done. Taking, seeing, and sharing pictures is now a split second of instant gratification with nearly instant distribution.

In all honesty, all we really want is for the picture to look like the subject we perceived and photographed. The closer the photograph resembles our point of view or memory of a moment, the more successful the photograph is and the more satisfied we are. Of course, we still do our best to hold the camera steady and point it at a meaningful subject, but the settings required for a successful exposure and a sharp image are all calculated by the camera much more quickly than we can even press the shutter. On occasion, we read the camera instruction manual, but just as often, most of us figure out through trial and error how to make the camera work. Actually, unless we really put effort into making the latest digital cameras fail by overriding the recommended settings, the cameras will perform very well, resulting in a well-exposed and in-focus rendition of the scene in front of the camera.

When you pick up a digital camera—be it in your cell phone or a professional digital camera—and then press the shutter button, you are relying on countless scientists, engineers, and software developers whose goal is for you to get optimum and repeatable results in a variety of situations. As digital camera development advances, the greater the manufacturers’ baseline predictions in terms of light, color, motion, exposure, and whether to shoot stills or video footage must be. If you work within the manufacturers’ predictions, your results will be as good as the equipment you have chosen.

If, however, you want to get the optimum quality from your equipment or you want your images to be more expressive of your experience, you must understand that the defaults and digital imaging Auto settings are only starting points. For your images to be uniquely yours, you have a world of options to choose from and from which you can create.

If you opt to just take the pictures and let others do the rest, you can stop reading these pages. If you create a photograph and you want to do the rest—to be part of the creative process—then please do continue reading and growing through learning, experimentation, and being open to seeing what your photographs show you about the world and yourself.

What Is Desired

During the writing of the first edition of Real World Digital Photography in 1999, the authors approached digital photography with the (somewhat naïve) enthusiasm for the imaging technologies that were clearly the future, but the potential certainly outweighed the tangible results. The cameras were cumbersome, limited, and expensive, and quite frankly the pictures weren’t very good either.

With the release of the second edition in 2004, the technical issues of resolution, dynamic range, and color rendition of digital in comparison to film were close to being settled but at an extreme cost that primarily professional photographers with hefty client lists or dedicated amateurs with disposable income were able to delve into.

Now, with the third edition of Real World Digital Photography in 2010, we no longer compare digital with film. For most photographic processes, digital is the clear winner in terms of quality, ease of use, reliability, and price performance. Many photographers working today have never even bought a roll of film. The quality, performance, and price ratios are refreshingly balanced. Cost is relatively low, and digital image quality is very high.

Real World Digital Photography serves photographers who want more from their experience of taking pictures than simply pressing the shutter. With Real World Digital Photography you will learn the vocabulary, technical considerations, and skills to improve your photography. This is an essential introduction to a wonderfully complex and creative endeavor that is written by three artists, educators, and passionate photographers—Katrin Eismann, Seán Duggan, and Tim Grey. Each author has taken the time to consider and condense what each feels are the essential skills and considerations for you to be a highly successful photographer who appreciates and enjoys the idea of: You take the picture. You gladly do the rest. This book guides you to create compelling images with the confidence that your technical decisions are sound and your creative results best reflect your unique vision. Taking pictures is a positive endeavor that allows you to see yourself and the world more clearly.

—Katrin Eismann with John McIntosh