Expressive Nature Photography: Design, Composition, and Color in Outdoor Imagery
Original price was: $30.00.$11.71Current price is: $11.71.
Photographer and teacher Brenda Tharp marries photography craft with artistic vision to help intermediate photographers translate what they see into a personal impression of a subject in nature.
Using single images, along with before-and-after and with-or-without examples, Expressive Nature Photography teaches how to make exposures that are creative, not necessarily correct. Inspiring photographers to get out early and stay out late, this book explains how to use light, an essential element of outdoor photography. Readers will learn how to “see in the dark,” use filters to create very long exposures, create a natural effect using light painting, photograph night skies and moonlit landscapes, and make the best use of available natural light.
This book also covers how to use shutter speeds to express motion and capture the energy of fast-moving subjects, such rushing streams, ocean swells, and bounding wildlife. A chapter on the art of visual flow discusses how to create compositions that direct the viewer’s eye through the frame for maximum impact. Photographers will develop a sense of when to break the “rules” of composition, how to use elements to frame subjects, what to include and exclude in the frame, how to create the feeling of depth and dimension in a scene, and how to push the boundaries of composition to make memorable nature images that capture and convey fresh viewpoints.
High-tech cameras can help create a good exposure and focused image, but they can’t replace the artist’s eye for composition, visual depth, and design, nor their instinct for knowing when to click the shutter. There are many books on photography technique focused on technical quality, but Expressive Nature Photography goes beyond the technical. It guides the way to pulling emotion and meaning out of a dynamic landscape, a delicate macro study, or an outstanding nighttime image.
Read more
74 reviews for Expressive Nature Photography: Design, Composition, and Color in Outdoor Imagery
Add a review
Original price was: $30.00.$11.71Current price is: $11.71.
MARGARET EVANS –
This is an excellent book for anyone wanting to expand their techniques and competency in photography under a wide variety of conditions. Beautifully written and the photos are fabulous!
Karen Horner –
Bought as new but obviously wasn’t as was creased
bluebird –
Hard read, Broad overview of visual deign and composition. Lots of pictures. It does cause you to pause and think.
Dave I. –
This is such a great album of nature shots. Brenda explains her techniques and the results are simply amazing. I hope I will learn how to do my own nature photos better by having studied these. Thanks.
Frederick Pilot –
Brenda Tharp is well known as an enthusiastic teacher and highly skilled nature photographer. I personally attended her workshop near Boston years ago. “Expressive Nature Photography” is a professionally done training book that at a minimum will help you fake it and just maybe you’ll make it.
Robert L. Clark –
An easy read, technical enough without being overly technical. It’s a book that describes how to photograph nature from a creative and expressive approach as opposed to purely documentation. The author shares many examples of her own work which I often found inspiring, making me ready to get out and make some photos.
Patricia A. Cale –
Brenda Tharp is an excellent photographer and teacher. This book showcases many of her outstanding photos and the story and technical details that went into making the image. She gives tips on how to use these techniques in your own photography. Good book to learn from!
Autumn –
As an amateur nature photographer, I love this book. There are beautiful pictures chapter after chapter with explanations about how to achieve lovely nature photos. Topics include lighting, color, composition, etc. I love that the author includes the camera settings. I have learned some key points. I also just love looking at the pictures alone. I am slowly working my way thru this beautiful book. It’s relaxing, educational, and easy to read. Was happy to find it on Amazon at a lower price than a local bookstore.
naturenut –
I really like this book and the creative ideas the author shares (so 3 stars) BUT I am reluctant to actually purchase it (Kindle) because I have tried checking out this book out 3 times from Overdrive–once in ePUB format and twice in Kindle format–and I have had problems with it every time. I wonder if it’s because it’s such a huge file? The Kindle versions took forever to download; the ePUB version downloaded OK but every time I’d move to a page with a photograph, it would take a LONG time just to load that page. And so many beautiful photos! The last time I tried checking it out (as Kindle), I never could get it to download beyond 5% so returned it. Not my internet connection as it was working fine. To reiterate, for the $10.99 Kindle version, I would love to own this book but am afraid it would end up being as inaccessible as the library editions (so “minus 2 stars”).
Karen Horner –
love this book, great read for anyone interested in photography!
Conrad J. Obregon –
“Expressive Nature Photography” comes close to being a portfolio of great Brenda Tharp photographs rather than an instructional manual. However, besides the text, the captions accompanying each of her photographs provide enough additional information that one can learn a great deal of practical information from them.
The book starts out with a point she has made in most of her other books: great nature photography starts out with learning to see. She then examines the nature of light; visual flow; color; the landscape, big and small; story telling; panning and multiple exposures; and night photography.
The book is about composition of the image, and only makes reference to basic subjects like exposure, focus and depth of field when the subject is tied to composition. On the other hand, for the most part, the approaches to nature photography are designed to be of most use to the photographer just starting in nature photography, although the book can serve as a good refresher for more experienced nature photographers. On the third hand, the chapter on night photography gave me a few techniques that I, at least had never considered using until now.
There are a few weaknesses in the book. The chapter on color seemed rather superficial, mostly describing the common associations people have with particular colors. A nature photographer assaying animals, particularly birds, will require a lot more advice to capture those special shots.
Perhaps nature photographers will learn the most by carefully studying Tharp’s images carefully to see how she has applied her suggestions. That will be well worth the time spent.
Kenneth F. Cook –
Excellent book with many good suggestions.I tried many of the ideas that were very well described. I would say this book is aimed at those who have a pretty good handle on their camera and lenses. Well worth the small price for the kindle edition.