SC-Photog Natl Things

Freeman Patterson's words and photographs have been a constant inspiration and motivation for me as a beginning photographer. His belief in exploration make the craft of photography more than just a method of documentation, and his in-depth explanation of how to apply basic visual design principles to photographs have been invaluable to me in my development as an artist. This and all his books are wonderful, and I use them all the time for both ideas and advice.

Freeman Patterson's books are always worth reading because his style and approach are different than that of most photographers. His images don't really bowl you over like the super-saturated pictures most nature photographers employ. They are much more subtle - almost pastel - pictures some might term impressionistic, although most are straight-forward documentary images of subjects within their enviroments. The subject as a part of its enviroment is very important in Patterson's presentations. The book also is a good lesson in ecology. Although not as instructive as several of his book, it is a good indoctrination about what to look for in nature. The images themselves, while most are not dramatic, are pleasing to look at might change your idea about what good nature photography is all about.

Many books about nature photography seem to concentrate on capturing a mood, capturing all the details; almost like taking photographs to a customer's specifications on a paid assignment. If you are interested in taking that perfect photo of a flower or an animal for a calendar or post card, this is not a helpful book. If you want to take photographs that tell others your story of what it was like being there, this book is ideal.Without a doubt, Patterson is very much an impressionist with a camera and this book provides some techniques and guidelines for photographing nature according to your own interpretation. More importanly, he tries to inspire you to photograph nature with your feelings and convey that mood to others. If you see photography more as art and less as a journal, this is a useful book.

Wonderful book! As everything I read by Freeman Peterson, I enjoyed it since the first minute. How to take great pictures with a non professional equipment.