Total Digital Photography: The Shoot to Print Workflow Handbook

The information in this book is a must have for anyone who takes more than just a few snapshots. Workflow is a major consideration for digital photography and this book helps you make sence out of it.

We own a full-service photography studio in the Midwest. Each holiday season, we give ourselves a book or books on photography. This year, we decided to get two books by the same author(s): Total Digital Photography and Digital Sports Photography. We bought these after reading the reviews and looking at them at a local bookstore. We converted from film to digital about three years ago, and workflow has been an issue for us as we've expanded and grown our studio, and dealt with all the factors involved with adding computers, archiving, etc. We do commercial, sports, and portrait photography so these books were right in-line with what we were doing. Normally we have not written reviews on books in the past, but we felt it only fair to give these books a synopsis that we think more accurately matches the audience for which they are intended - and not all the reviews do that. Reading the other reviews of these books, most of the complaints seemed nit-picky and not very substantial, and the overall impression was positive. A few of the technical points are well-taken, but seem a bit out of proportion to the overall spirit and gist of the books - which aren't intended to be deep technical works. We've used the books now for a bit more than a month, and we've found them both to be, for the most part, technically accurate, well-written, and very helpful for our work. A few of the reviewers questioned the authors' use of fencing images, but we found these to be an interesting way to take an unusual and interesting subject, describe personal experience, and apply it to a variety of sports. And the images of all types were well done - good examples, well-composed, and applicable to a variety of photographers. We liked the use of a wide variety of sports photogrpahers' images in the sports book. We must point out that these books aren't meant to be coffee-table books. One reviewer said many images are like snapshots. We disagree - they are like standard, everyday professional shots we might take, and aren't meant to be "haute" art photos. A few are of this caliber, but it's clear the authors' are attempting to reach ordinary photography enthusiasts and working professionals, not gallery artists. One of the things we liked most was how personal and readable the books are - way more than just a reference where you'd read a snippet or two from various pages. These books have helped us understand digital photography much more deeply, and put into place a workflow and method for managing our studio more efficiently and profitably. We recommend the book to anyone seriously interested in photography as a regular pursuit-whether you're in it for the money or just as an active pursuit.

I was looking for a book to better understand how to maintain an effective workflow from start to finish without wasting time at each stage. Key for me was getting a better understanding what was necessary at each stage (procedures and tools to accomplish them) vs. what was optional or simply unnecessary. This book did an excellent job of that. It was quite readable, which I did over a couple of weeks time in many short reading sessions. While the book tries to deliberately avoid being another Photoshop book and tries to be balanced, presenting comparable aspects of other programs, it does describe key actions where Photoshop excels.

I have been using this book in teaching photography workshops for about three months. My students love it because it helps them understand the method and process of digital photography. It's been great for helping beginning and intermediate photographers understand the process of photography, especially how to get a digital final from an idea to either print or on the web. For advanced photographers and professionals, it's great especially for those who are transitioning from film to digital. It's written in conversational language, but it's got lots of detail and it does a lot to "de-mystify" the concept of workflow. The only suggest I'd really have for second editions would be to add a center section with photos ... there are lots of great photos, but it would be nice to critique them side-by-side.

As a serious photographer just now getting into digital, this book has been a godsend, clearly explaining and providing useful context to the often daunting new world of digital workflow issues. The all-color approach with plenty of photographic examples is an added, eminently useful benefit. I'm a Mac-based guy, but this book is platform-agnostic. Bottom line: When it comes to real world digital photo issues, Timacheff and Karlins cover it all beautifully.