Book Review - The Moment It Clicks by Joe McNally
Category Book Review Joe McNally The Moment It Clicks
I'm in awe of people who can take great pictures with seemingly little effort. But in reality, those pictures are a combination of skill, knowledge, and not a small measure of luck. Joe McNally, a very well-known photographer who has shot for Time, National Geographic, and others, "converses" with the reader in The Moment It Clicks: Photography secrets from one of the world's top shooters. You'll find out how his mind works to control lighting and scene to make those famous images.
Contents:
Shoot What You Love; Keep Your Eye in the Camera; The Logic of Light; There's Always Something to Bounce Light Off Of; Joe's Lighting Tips; Joe's Camera Bag; Joe's Grip and Lighting Gear; The Barroom; Glossary; Index
This book was born from a workshop where McNally was presenting. He was sharing gems of experience, when it dawned on one of the attendees that capturing these nuggets of wisdom could be a perfect method for letting everyone get into the mind of a great photographer. The format of the book consists mostly of two page spreads. The right side shows the photo, and the left side is McNally sharing the story behind the image. Not only does he share what it took to get the picture, but he also gets into the technical aspects of how it was lit and shot. So much of what he does is based on lighting. Too much, too little, bouncing off items, focussed lighting, ambient, etc... When you get done, you'll never look at light in quite the same way again.
Will this book allow you to replicate the same types of shots that have made McNally famous? No. For one, he has hundreds of thousands of dollars of equipment, and often has a budget to do things like renting elephants and hanging people from helicopters. My guess is that you don't have that working for you. Also, he doesn't use a "do this, then this, then this" approach. He does talk about the equipment and settings, the lighting and circumstances, but it's more as if you were sitting in a pub talking to a best mate. If you're not experienced on camera technology and terminology, you'll also miss a fair amount of the value. But if you've done some work and become more than just a tourist with a camera, this can take you up another level or two.
Or you can just look at the pictures and marvel that it's possible to do those kinds of things with a camera...
I'm in awe of people who can take great pictures with seemingly little effort. But in reality, those pictures are a combination of skill, knowledge, and not a small measure of luck. Joe McNally, a very well-known photographer who has shot for Time, National Geographic, and others, "converses" with the reader in The Moment It Clicks: Photography secrets from one of the world's top shooters. You'll find out how his mind works to control lighting and scene to make those famous images.
Contents:
Shoot What You Love; Keep Your Eye in the Camera; The Logic of Light; There's Always Something to Bounce Light Off Of; Joe's Lighting Tips; Joe's Camera Bag; Joe's Grip and Lighting Gear; The Barroom; Glossary; Index
This book was born from a workshop where McNally was presenting. He was sharing gems of experience, when it dawned on one of the attendees that capturing these nuggets of wisdom could be a perfect method for letting everyone get into the mind of a great photographer. The format of the book consists mostly of two page spreads. The right side shows the photo, and the left side is McNally sharing the story behind the image. Not only does he share what it took to get the picture, but he also gets into the technical aspects of how it was lit and shot. So much of what he does is based on lighting. Too much, too little, bouncing off items, focussed lighting, ambient, etc... When you get done, you'll never look at light in quite the same way again.
Will this book allow you to replicate the same types of shots that have made McNally famous? No. For one, he has hundreds of thousands of dollars of equipment, and often has a budget to do things like renting elephants and hanging people from helicopters. My guess is that you don't have that working for you. Also, he doesn't use a "do this, then this, then this" approach. He does talk about the equipment and settings, the lighting and circumstances, but it's more as if you were sitting in a pub talking to a best mate. If you're not experienced on camera technology and terminology, you'll also miss a fair amount of the value. But if you've done some work and become more than just a tourist with a camera, this can take you up another level or two.
Or you can just look at the pictures and marvel that it's possible to do those kinds of things with a camera...