Ansel Adams and his contemporaries, Edward Weston, and Eliot Porter pioneered the field of landscape photography, but it was Adams who, along with being one of the best known for his iconic images, was also recognized as a pioneer of technique, theory, as well as of teaching of photographic techniques.
The goal of Digital Landscape Photography: In The Footsteps Of Ansel Adams is to show you what can be learned from Adams' working process and how these lessons can be used today with modern digital techniques. The Adams philosophy is discussed and the use of the Zone system is related to the digital age. This book is 192 pages in length and divided into three main sections.
Section One, "Technical Foundations," begins with a look at some of Ansel Adams' techniques for creating images and how they relate to the digital equipment that we have today. Discussions on image quality include general examination of noise, noise reduction, RAW files, sharpening, and contrast.
Then you move to topics like controlling sharpness in the field to reduce shake, focus, depth of field, the use of different types of filters like poloraizing, graduated neutral density, warming, and filters for black and white, white balance, and exposure. It is in this later part that you will look at metering and the use of the Zone System.
Section Two, "Light, Composition, and the Art of Seeing," begins with an examination of the use of light, composition, mood, and directing the eye for building your image. Then you explore composition in greater detail using the rule of thirds and the golden mean.
Moving on will get you to looking at various techniques for simplifying your images, using the power of lines, working with patterns, and changing perspective. Finally you will use color, weather and atmosphere, and motion to capture a mood and feeling for your images.
Article comments