Very basic photo "how to" book for my 13 year old

[Pete JF]

Hey,

i wasn't sure where to post this.

I'm looking for recommends on a basic photo book for my son's 8th grade independant study project. We're going to cover a range of stuff over the course of the project. Basic concepts, pinhole w/film and type 55 pola, film and on to digital where he is going to finish with a series of photos.

I need a basic book to kick things off. I'm trying to avoid the internet as much as possible so...a book. Actually, perhaps, two books..one that offers a decent history of photgraphy and one that deals with learning how to...

please and thank you.

[DarkPenguin]

How about one of the National Geo books?

[howiesmith]

Photography, London and Upton.  Used to be Upton and Upton

[wolfnowl]

All of my photography books are in boxes right now, but I'd suggest your local library.  They may not have a manual on Photoshop curve techniques, but they may have a good book on basic photography.

Mike.

[larryg]

Actually the 4H  has a pretty good series from rank beginner to advanced.

I received copies of the materials when I judged at the fair a couple of years ago.  
I found the material excellent and also was impressed with the skill set of many 14 and 15 year olds.

You might check (if there is a area 4H office) and see if you could get your hands on some of them

[Gordon Buck]

There is a paperback book entitled "KODAK's Most Basic Book Of 35MM Photography" that might be just right.

[Lisa Nikodym]

Photography, London and Upton. Used to be Upton and Upton

Another vote for this one!

Lisa

[dbell]

I remember getting a lot out of the original edition of this book when I was about that age:

http://www.amazon.com/New-35MM-Photographe...g/dp/0609804227

Even though it's specifically about 35mm photography, a lot of the priciples and advice are not film-specific. This is mostly a technical book, but it also does a good job of imparting the ethos of a working photographer.

This is definitely on the "practical" side of things; not much history is covered.


--
Daniel Bell

[pixman63]

"Basic Photography" by Michael Langford is a pretty standard recommendation in the UK. There is a second volume called (surprisingly) "Advanced Photography".

I also picked up the other day a small volume by Ralph Gibson called "Refractions", which is a valuable insight into the methods of a great photographer. Recommended.

[BernardLanguillier]

I have found "The Camera" from Ansel Adams to be very easy to read, a 13 years old should be able to cope.

The only problem being that it is a bit weak on digital...

Cheers,
Bernard

[larkvi]

All of my photography books are in boxes right now, but I'd suggest your local library.  They may not have a manual on Photoshop curve techniques, but they may have a good book on basic photography.
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Going to the library and checking out a mess of books is also my suggestion, and essentially how I taught myself photography. Different books will illustrate different concepts differently, and there will be a wealth more examples of photographic styles. The other benefit to the library is that you can check out a large number of photo (not instructional) books and look at them in conjunction to the educational texts, to see how rules are applied or not in their images.

As far as specific books, I particularly like those by Lee Frost--but I have only read his B&W and Panoramic Photography books, not his introductory texts. The Camera is good in a classic education sense--you will be giving him a baseline that many people are familiar with and will have encountered in school or on their own. It is also good to read the camera when you still know little about photography, as it is (in my opinion) a bit tedious to read once you are already familiar with the concepts and are no longer experiencing them for the first time.

Also, check out the <a href="http://www.radiantvista.com/archive/video_tutorials/1/">composition tutorial</a> at the Radiant Vista for a visual vacation from static text.

[Pete JF]

Thanks peoples,

Sorry I haven't re'd this thread. I really appreciate all the suggestions. My son just called from the Library. He's the stacks as we speak and had a bunch of questions for me. I referred to this thread and some other sources and gave him a bunch of these titles. He was digging sitting on the floor looking through picture books...heh, he's probably looking at nudees...."yeah, landscapes, dad"