Photographer's Eye

Over the years, I've read more than a few books on photography composition, graphic design, improving my photography, etc. Some of them are very good and I reference them frequently to refresh my memory on certain topics. Others have gone on the shelf after the first read and haven't been touched since.

This post is centered on a book called "The Photographer's Eye - Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos". The author, Michael Freeman, should scratch the word "digital" out of the title because this book is about photography, not just digital photography.

Here is a video about the book.

This book is so good that I would highly recommend it to anyone who's interested in gaining a better understanding of photography and the basics of visual design, photographic elements, compositional techniques, and how to utilize all of these concepts to design better photos.

When I first started to read this book, I got a little stalled due to what I perceived to be the complexity of the subject matter, or the way it was being presented, or both. It seemed like Freeman just dove right into the meat of the book without setting the table enough for me. I put the book aside to read some other books on my list, but soon returned to "Photographer's Eye".

The second time around I reset myself a bit, read the table of contents, re-read the intro, and with that new grounding I now find the book to be excellent. Examining the table of contents was particularly helpful because it gave me a good idea of where Freeman would be heading, and why.

The writing is clear with many well illustrated examples to support the text, and of course many good supporting photos as well. Looking at the photos and illustrations makes it easy to connect with Freeman's concepts.

Freeman walks through:
1) The Image Frame
2) Design Basics
3) Graphic and Photographic Elements
4) Composing With Light and Color
5) Intent
6) Process

Suffice to say, there's a lot of information, techniques, and concepts here. But the key thing is that it all fits together so well. You can almost make each chapter a study on its own and go out to shoot the techniques discussed to learn everything and connect with it. There's way too much to digest on a casual read...You really need to spend some time to absorb the great content in this book.

This book is so highly recommended because it makes you want to slow down, think about what you're doing when you're out photographing, and design better photos. For $20, this is is a steal! Get it and enjoy it!