Reviews

Wings of Spring: Courtship, Nesting, and Fledging by Tom Vezo and Chuck Hagner /  by Todd Henson

This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. This is at no extra cost to you.

Wings of Spring: Courtship, Nesting, and Fledging (book cover)

Wings of Spring: Courtship, Nesting, and Fledging (book cover)

Spring is a wonderful time to be a bird lover. This is often the time of year when birds look their best, when their colors are brightest, their feathers most spectacular. It is a time of such spectacular behavior, watching courtship displays, observing birds building nests, watching young grow, fledge, and leave the nest. Wings of Spring: Courtship, Nesting, and Fledging, is a celebration of birds in spring, bringing us into their world and showing some of the beauty and magic we can find there.

The book is organized into 4 major sections: Territory, Nesting, Nurturing, and Growing. Each section is full of beautiful photographs by Tom Vezo of many different species of birds from all over the world. Each photograph is accompanied by a paragraph written by Chuck Hagner describing details about the the species.

Territory

Wings of Spring (pages 16 - 17). Painted Bunting and Baltimore Oriole.

Wings of Spring (pages 16 - 17). Painted Bunting and Baltimore Oriole.

Many bird species migrate during the spring, moving from their wintering grounds to the place they will rear the next generation. Many species have particularly bright and vibrant plumage during this season, all the better to attract a mate. In the sample photo from this section we see a Painted Bunting on the left and a Baltimore Oriole on the right, both very colorful birds.

Nesting

Wings of Spring (pages 56 - 57). Burrowing Owl and Cliff Swallow.

Wings of Spring (pages 56 - 57). Burrowing Owl and Cliff Swallow.

Once birds establish their breeding territory they have to find a nesting location and build a nest. There are almost as many different ways of nesting as there are species of birds, from tree-top nests of twigs and grass to nests of mud built on a building or cliff. The example here shows a Burrowing Owl at the entrance to its burrow, and a grouping of nests built by Cliff Swallows. According to the text Cliff Swallows often lay eggs in the nests of their neighbors, or move eggs from nest to nest.

Nurturing

Wings of Spring (pages 88 - 89). Great Kiskadee, Broad-billed Hummingbird, and Eastern Bluebird.

Wings of Spring (pages 88 - 89). Great Kiskadee, Broad-billed Hummingbird, and Eastern Bluebird.

After their eggs hatch most young birds require some level of nurturing from their parents in order to grow enough to survive on their own. Some chicks are completely dependent on their parents, whereas others are more quickly able to move about on their own. In this sample photo we see three different species, the Great Kiskadee with a small lizard in its beak, a Broad-billed Hummingbird feeding chicks in the nest, and a couple photos of Eastern Bluebirds.

Growing

Wings of Spring (pages 140 - 141). Black-bellied Whistling-Duck and American Black Duck.

Wings of Spring (pages 140 - 141). Black-bellied Whistling-Duck and American Black Duck.

A young bird has a lot of growing to do. Many look very different when young than they will as adults. Most will eventually learn to fly, but need to first eat enough to gain the strength required to lift themselves from the ground or water. Some must learn to swim. In the sample photo here we see a family of Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks on the left and American Black Ducks on the right.

I very much enjoyed this book. The photography is beautiful, and the text is full of interesting facts, many of which I’d been unfamiliar with. This is not a field guide, nor is it strictly a photography book. Instead it is a book for those who love birds, who always look forward to spring, and who long to get back outside to watch (and perhaps photograph) the amazing colors, behaviors, and beauty of the Wings of Spring.

Used Photography Book Roundup - March 2018 /  by Todd Henson

Three photography books recently found in a used book store.

Used book stores can be fantastic places to find interesting photography books. I like to stop by various stores every so often to see if anything new has found its way to their shelves. This post is a roundup of books I’ve recently found and purchased. Maybe you’ll find one of these interesting enough to look for your own copy.

These books may be difficult to find new. In case you don't have a good local used book store, I've included links below to Amazon where you may find new or used copies. These links are affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. This is at no extra cost to you.

Steichen in Color: Portraits, Fashion & Experiments by Edward Steichen

I admire Edward Steichen’s work, even though my own photography differs greatly from his. The majority of his work was monochromatic, but in this book we get to see some of his color work, created using many different techniques. It’s a fascinating collection, and I look forward to reading the text that accompanies the photographs.

If you’re interested in Steichen’s work take a look at my review of the book, Edward Steichen: Lives in Photography, a book I highly recommend.

At First Sight: Photography and the Smithsonian by Merry A. Foresta

This book contains a fascinating collection of photographs from the Smithsonian Institution. It briefly discusses the history of photography, and then discusses in a little more depth the history of photography at the Smithsonian. The book includes a very diverse set of photographs from the Smithsonian’s collections. This book is a beautiful piece of history.

The Family of Man by Edward Steichen

The Family of Man was a huge photographic exhibition put together by Edward Steichen for the Museum of Modern Art in New York. It had been called (both in the book and elsewhere) the greatest photographic exhibition of all time. Through a collection of photographs by photographers from all over the world, the exhibition essentially tells the story of mankind. There are some very moving photographs in this collection.

I had read about this exhibition but had never seen much of the work from it. This book collects 503 pictures from the exhibition, and I’m very pleased to have found a copy. The paper in the edition I found is of low quality and has colored with age. I’d love to find a better copy one day.

I highly recommend frequenting any used book stores in your area with good photography sections. You never know what you may find. Leave a comment below if you’ve found anything interesting, or if you have a copy of any of these books.

New Photography Book Roundup - March 2018 /  by Todd Henson

Five new books I've acquired as of the beginning of March, 2018.

I absolutely love books. And I absolutely love photography. So who would guess I also happen to absolutely love photography books?!?!

I’m constantly on the lookout for new and interesting books to purchase. This post is a roundup of the new photography books I’ve recently purchased. Maybe you’ll find something of interest in the list.

This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. This is at no extra cost to you.

The Landscape Photographer’s Guide to Photoshop: A Visualization-Driven Workflow by Guy Tal

I have always considered myself weak at landscape photography, though I really enjoy it. And I’m a fairly new practitioner of Photoshop and most often find myself frustrated trying to figure out how to perform various actions. I was drawn to this book for those reasons. I’ve seen examples of Guy Tal’s photography and admire his work, so I thought this might be a good book to learn from.

The subtitle of the book is A Visualization-Driven Workflow, and it speaks to the overall theme of approaching your photography with intention. First, visualize an image in your mind, imagine how you’d like the image to look. Use your technical skills to capture that image, as best you can, in the camera. Then take that image into Photoshop and further realize your original vision.

The book is split into 2 parts. The first is titled Theory. It takes the reader through a short history of photography as art, then talks about visualization, and finally goes into more technical topics, talking about the digital studio, analyzing images, and an overview of workflow.

The second part of the book is titled Practice, and goes into details about working in Photoshop. It covers topics from the initial raw conversion process to Photoshop basics and then on to more specific techniques and topics.

I’ve begun reading this book and really look forward to diving in deeper.

Mastering Photographic Composition, Creativity, and Personal Style by Alain Briot

Who can’t benefit from a few extra lessons on composition? I know I certainly can. Alain Briot is a very talented fine art landscape photographer whose work I admire. I purchased this book for similar reasons to Guy Tal’s book: I would like to improve my landscape photography.

The book contains many sections about different aspects of composition, such as learning the differences between how we see and how the camera sees, how to compose with light, with color, and in black and white. It discusses many elements typical of strong compositions.

It also covers various topics related to the creative process, with sections on finding inspiration, exercising your creativity, developing your vision, and achieving your personal style.

Being a fine art photographer, Briot is familiar with interacting with an audience. He has sections in the book about doing this, and about understanding your audience, and how to find an audience. Are you marketing your work to audiences that appreciate numbered prints? He has a section about this topic, as well.

The final section of the book is about the relationship between technical and artistic aspects of photography. He provides a checklist to help guide you to better photographs, to remind you of things to consider when creating your photographs. It includes a technical checklist and an artistic checklist. This section also covers what he calls image maladies, which is a list of problems that can occur with our photographs. He talks about the problems and how to overcome them.

The Art of Photography: A Personal Approach to Artistic Expression by Bruce Barnbaum

This is the 2nd edition of this classic, and it is a monster of a book, coming in at just under 400 pages in a slightly oversized format (10” x 10” versus the more common 8” x 10”). This feels like a text book for a multi-semester class on all aspects of photography as an art form.

The chapters cover all the expected topics, such as composition, visualization, light, color, the use of filters, exposure, control of contrast, printing, image adjustments, presenting your photography, and topics on photography as fine art. The final chapters are about approaching creativity intuitively, and moving toward a personal philosophy.

I already own books that cover most of these topics, but I had read great things about Bruce Barnbaum and have been drawn to the images of his I’ve seen. And even if I’ve already read about some of these topics from other authors and photographers, each person brings their own experiences and methods of conveying topics. I wanted to see how Barnbaum approached them.

I have not yet read the book, but having flipped through it several times I’m very pleased with the purchase so far. It looks fantastic and I can’t wait to get into it. This is the largest of the books in this roundup, so it may take me a while to get through it. I tend to work through these sorts of books slowly, trying to absorb small sections at a time before moving on.

Fine Art Inkjet Printing: The Craft and Art of the Fine Digital Print by Jim Nickelson

I have a very nice inkjet printer, a Canon PIXMA Pro-10. But creating pleasing physical prints can be a challenge. I have experimented a little producing various prints, but haven’t spent the time I think I need to really excel with the printer. So I picked up this book to inspire me to learn more about creating quality prints.

This may be the most technical of the books in the roundup. The book covers all the necessary topics, such as hardware, software, color management, how to edit for the print instead of just for the screen, how to create, evaluate, and correct the print, choice of papers, topics specific to black and white printing, handling the print, storage, and signing and numbering. It contains an appendix with a slew of other topics.

I have read the first few chapters of the book and I’m pleased with the purchase to far. I know I have a lot to learn and I’m hoping this book will push me in the right direction.

The Soul of the Camera: The Photographer’s Place in Picture-Making by David duChemin

I really enjoy David duChemin’s work, both his photography, and his writing. He is very skilled at expressing himself with the written word. I’ve purchased most of his books to date, many in print versions and some as e-books.

He often writes about the softer topics versus the more technical aspects of photography. One of the first books of his I read was Within the Frame, where he wrote about vision and how it can be used to create more emotional photographs, ones that draw in the viewer, make them feel something. In Photographically Speaking he wrote about developing a visual language and how to use this to help better express ourselves photographically.

Now, in The Soul of the Camera, he writes about what’s missing from so many photographs. He says they lack soul. And the book contains many chapters, really a collection of essays, on how to create stronger, more expressive photographs that have soul. A quote from the beginning of the book: “It is time now to turn our attention to what is ultimately responsible for the making of photographs — the photographer’s themselves.”

I look forward to spending some time reading all of these books. I hope some of them may interest you, as well. Let me know in the comments below if you own any of these or which you think you might enjoy.