I just finished reading one of Ian Plant’s new eBooks titled Chasing the Light: Essential Tips For Taking Great Photos. The book is nothing less than 240 pages of spectacular. Ian has knocked the ball out of the park once again.
Chasing the Light is an informational book full of photographic knowledge, image studies, and creative tips. Every page has something of value for the photographer to learn. What makes this book something special though, is how Ian has carefully balanced the information with gorgeous, inspirational wildlife and landscape photography that illustrates each topic being presented.
Broken into six sections, Ian discusses every aspect of light imaginable. Here are examples of what you can expect to learn from this eBook.
Essential Light (trading sleep for light) – Discusses the physical properties of light along with the characteristics of light at varying times of day and varying weather conditions.
Essential Position (knowing where to stand) – Discusses the key principles of making photos with the light coming from every angle imaginable, including Contre-Jour (a term I’ve never heard of before).
Essential Mood (magic resides at the tempest’s edge) – Discusses special conditions that create dramatic light such as storms, sunbeams, fog, rainbows, snow, and ice.
Essential Color (express your passion with color) – Discusses color theory, creative white balance, cool light, warm light, complementary color, chiaroscuro (another term I’ve never heard of), spot light, and artificial light.
Essential Vision (change your photography and change the world) – Discusses a fundamental shift in the way you see the world and in using specular highlights, atmosphere, creative exposure, creative shadows, creative flare, and fill light to improve your photography.
Essential Exploration (embracing creativity) – Discusses the best way to improve your skills, telling a story, using reflections, reflected light, and capturing time.
Although Ian Plant is a Nature and Wildlife Photographer, and Chasing the Light is illustrated with his photography, the education in this book applies to all photographic genres. The definition of photography is “writing with light” or “painting with light”, depending on the reference. If you understand light and how to best capture it, then you have cleared one of the major hurdles in your journey to digital photography mastery.
Ian Plant’s Chasing the Light does such a bang-up job of teaching important aspects of light, that I now consider it an essential part of my photographic library. I’m sure I will be referencing this eBook many times in my photographic adventures.
Do you want to improve your knowledge of light and how best to capture it? Then I highly recommend you head over to Outdoor Photography Guide and pick up your copy of Chasing the Light: Essential Tips For Taking Great Photos.