The DAM Book: Digital Asset Management for Photographers (O'ReillyDigital Studio) Review & Ratings

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The DAM Book: Digital Asset Management for Photographers (O'Reilly Digital Studio) Review

When I first became a serious photographer back in the days of film, I stored my negatives and pictures in a shoebox. As my collection grew, I switched to contact sheets and coded negative files. Afterwards I filled a closet with special filing boxes of negatives and prints. But it was hard for me to find an older picture. I tried cross-filing but it never really worked. Then came digital.
By word of mouth, postings in on-line forums and an occasional magazine article I figured out that I'd better back up my photo files to non-erasable media and that I could more easily find old files by cataloging them with cataloging software. But I can't say that I developed a comprehensive system.
The DAM Book does that. (I wish they had taken a different title; the pun soon becomes boring.) Krough presents a system for sorting, archiving and finding photographs using Adobe Bridge and cataloging software. After defining digital asset management (DAM) and metadata, he talks about creating the digital archive both as an information structure and as a hardware configuration. Because he presumes that serious photographers will be using Photoshop, he discusses the use of Adobe Bridge as an asset management tool and describes a DAM workflow. He then discusses cataloging software, what he calls derivative files (which are generally files derived from a master copy) and strategies for file migration, including computer upgrades, software changes and even film migration.
The author's own system seems beyond the needs of most photographers. (He claims to catalog 135,000 pictures a year.) But even though his own system includes rack-mounted servers, raid configuration and multiple back-ups, he also suggests simpler systems that include a single computer, an external drive and DVD backups. But what is most important is not the description of systems but the presentation of concepts that most digital photographers can apply. For example, even though I could see the difference between browsers and cataloging software, articulating the distinction between the two makes it easier to analyze my own requirements. And understanding that for a digital cataloging system, that uses keywords, the title of a picture is not essential to finding it makes it easier to use titles that are system related rather then content related.
Krough describes useful software that supplements Bridge that can be downloaded for free and will make DAM easier. (Unfortunately he hasn't found a way to make Bridge run any faster, but he does suggest time-saving procedures.) He also suggests procedures that some photographers will not need, like embedding a rating in every photograph, and other procedures that might be a little premature, like converting every file to Adobe's DNG format to better preserve metadata. On the other hand, before I even finished the book, I had made several changes in my own DAM system. For example, although he uses iView MediaPro as an example of cataloging software, he made me wonder if my cataloging software had the same capabilities that I had never used. A little time with my software manual and I now have a place to store external metadata that are not embedded in a picture file, but are associated with particular pictures.
There are other books that discuss DAM but this is the first I've encountered aimed at photographers. I consider it essential reading for serious digital photographers.

The DAM Book: Digital Asset Management for Photographers (O'Reilly Digital Studio) Overview

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Photoshop Lightroom 2 Adventure: Mastering Adobe's Next-Generation Toolfor Digital Photographers Review & Ratings

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Photoshop Lightroom 2 Adventure: Mastering Adobe's Next-Generation Tool for Digital Photographers Review

I bought Scott Kelby's Lightroom book and I wasn't very happy with it because I think it is not very thorough. Not satisfied with Kelby's book, I bought Lightroom2Adventure and this book is way more thorough and very well organized. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn LR.

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Save 24% Off: Creative DSLR Photography: The ultimate creative workflowguide (Digital Workflow) Review & Ratings

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Creative DSLR Photography: The ultimate creative workflow guide (Digital Workflow) Review

The book title suggests that DSLR users are the only readers that may find this book useful are DSLR users. While there is an emphasis towards that type of user, I think the strengths of this book are more in its discussions on composition and the artistic side of photography, and that can benefit all photographers.
That being said, this book is basic, but not necessarily in the best way for the novice photographer. In terms of the technical aspects of photography, I think this book, in being basic, accomplishes it in being a bit vague. Leaving out details as this book sometimes does, only makes some topics seem a bit vague and will leave the novice photographer a little more confused. The book seems written to the user who may have purchased a DSLR on a whim or to improve from their point and shoot cameras, yet it doesn't provide enough detail to really benefit that user.
I am a more advanced user, so I found the value to be in the aspects on composition. Those aspects are presented well, they are presented in a simplified manner, and they will benefit the novice user. The technical aspects discussed I think will be a bit more useful to a user with some technical understanding already, not because they will teach you something but more because they will reinforce what you already know with respect to the technical and linking it to the art.
The truth though becomes that there are many better books out there. The true novice photographer should go after a book like Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson or similar books. This book here, is the type you may be better off checking out at a library after you have a bit more background and understanding or if you need fresh new ideas.

Creative DSLR Photography: The ultimate creative workflow guide (Digital Workflow) Overview

Amongst the wealth of books aimed at helping you to understand and use your camera equipment and software, Creative DSLR Photography is a rare gem that focuses on the real art of photography and the creative, design and composition skills needed to take your work to the next level.

Beginning with the basics of visualisation and perception, the book gives clear guidance on how to interpret a scene, define a subject and develop a personal style. It covers the key creative factors to be considered pre-capture, whilst shooting and post-capture, taking a practical approach and offering valuable pointers that you can incorporate into workflow immediately to dramatically improve results.

Written by two accomplished professional photographers, Creative DSLR Photography is packed with inspiring images from travel, nature and landscape photography, amongst other genres, and includes pro tips on how these stunning shots were created.

Part of Focal's Digital Workflow series, aimed at helping photographers to work faster, work smarter and creative great images. Current series titles include Canon DSLR: The Ultimate Photographer's Guide, Apple Aperture 2and Mac OS X for Photographers.

* Focuses on creative techniques rather than equipment or software to help you visualise great images and capture the perfect shot

* Written by two professional photographers and features inspiring images from a variety of genres

* Considers the complete creative workflow, from pre-capture through to output, with insightful tips to help improve your results in no time


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Save 34% Off: Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Workflow: The DigitalPhotographer's Guide (Tim Grey Guides) Review & Ratings

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Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Workflow: The Digital Photographer's Guide (Tim Grey Guides) Review

Lightroom is here and the blizzard of Lightroom books is upon us.
Lightroom is Adobe's new software for digital photographers which offers a built-from-the ground-up approach to enable photographers to turn their images into prints, slide shows or web graphics. While the program itself is not without flaws, the interface is much more intuitive then Photoshop, and allows somewhat faster handling of files.
Grey's book takes the reader through all of the steps a photographer would use from importing his or her pictures from a camera into a computer to printing the pictures or creating a website using Lightroom.
He describes what each of the buttons and functions provided by the software does, in the order that the average photographer would use them. His writing is concise and what he describes is for the most part clear. A photographer who picks up this book and follows it while processing pictures will have little trouble creating satisfactory output. The book certainly makes using the software more clear than the rather thin instruction manual that comes with Lightroom.
On the other hand, nothing that Grey tells you will help you create a great photograph. The book is aimed purely at the technique that it is necessary to use to create output, and little about the art. One of the great things about image processing software is that it can allow you to create not just images but art; to convert zeros and ones into the photographer's vision. You won't find that here, but maybe that's asking too much of this work.
I can complain about some of the shortfalls of the description of technique. For example, one of the great advantages of Lightroom is that it is a powerful asset management tool (although not as good as some standalone products). It has a well designed scheme for creating keywords that allows for easy recovery of images that I hope Adobe will eventually incorporate into the Bridge portion of Photoshop. It includes so-called parent-child relationships. But this powerful tool is hardly described. Similarly, Grey points out that the software allows for the creation of either HTML or Flash web galleries. I would have liked to know the advantages and disadvantages of each.
The Lightroom interface uses a combination of light grey and dark grey on many of its menus. That works on a monitor but the printed screen captures of the interface are often almost impossible to distinguish. While I commend the publisher for getting this book to the public so quickly, in the rush several typos seem to have slipped in.
Many photographers have been hungry for more information on the use of Lightroom. Grey's book is one of the first detailed explanations. It's useful, but hopefully even better volumes will follow.

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Save 38% Off: Practical Artistry: Light & Exposure for DigitalPhotographers Review & Ratings

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Practical Artistry: Light & Exposure for Digital Photographers Review

As Harold Davis so aptly demonstrates in this brilliant book, the modern photographer has to be "one part artist and one part photographer." Thus, it falls on the photographer to have a strong understanding of light and exposure in order to create memorable works of photographic art.
For newcomers, this book can provide a wealth of information about how it is not the camera, nor the lens, but the use of light that separates the amateur from the pro. Mr. Davis has written this book with the digital photographer in mind, and it surely will become the classic treatise on the subject for digital imagery.
The book is richly illustrated with great photography by the author, but what I really enjoyed was that each of the subjects - white balance, creative exposure, shutter speed, etc. - was explained in detail and then a representative photo was used to "show" the effect of decisions that the photographer can make as they compose the shot. Whether you are a visual learner or prefer to read well written prose, this book delivers each in a well thought out manner that is easy to understand.
I also found the author's discussion of how to use the RAW digital format to capture the true nuances of light and color to be particularly informative. Initially, the RAW format can seem mystifying to a digital photographer who has not experienced the power that RAW can bring to a situation, and this book does as fine a job as any I've ever encountered at explaining how to harness RAW for best effect.
Additionally, I found that the three chapters on front, back and side lighting to have the best explanations I have ever read on the differences each of these lighting situations brings to an image.
I would heartily recommend this terrific book to any photographer - from the newcomer to digital imagery to the advanced pro - because it captures wonderfully the true building block steps that can turn a simple image into a true work of art.

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