# Photo books advice



## Enrico (Feb 20, 2012)

Tried searching (remembering someone in another thread got advice on some books) but couldn't find any good advice. So here goes.

I am quite comfortable shooting candids using natural light and bouncing a flash. And I know my ISO, aperture focal length etc.

However, I am trying to challenge myself into taking portraits, just not documenting what's going on... I know this is hard to master but I like challenges and I feel it is time for my next project. So I wonder if anyone have good advice on photbooks that is not covering just the basics but reaches out a little further?

The book(s) can definetely cover composition and body language etc. I like Anton Corbijn's work (although some of his images is mainly "great" just since the person is famous) and I am planning for doing the same things of friends and family. Ie not just the ordinary pleasing I-am-smiling-portrait, I want to create something more. Perhaps introducing a subject next to them or trying to have them expressioning a feeling that is beyond their natural pose... etc. 

Any advice on blogs, sites, books etc are more than welcome!

(The current project idea is "10 years"... that would be me in 2012 trying to portrait how myself and others interprets the person and then doing the same thing in another 10 years and then print a(!) book (yes, most liekly one book for myself) the reason being I am 35 and people seems to be going through alot of changes, the same way we did when we were 25 and I wish I had those shoots of people from back then)


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## tt (Feb 20, 2012)

The more specific you can be about where you want to channel time, practise and energy the more likely the more niche and potentially better match of a book - there are thousands of general books.

Some potential areas from your OP 
Portraits - Adults, children, candid, street photography, studio portraits, headshots

If you like a certain style - glamour, natural light, shock, wow, etc - there's likely a photographer's book for it - whether it be Bressant, Vogue or Rankin.

Don't rule out videos also
Composition - Scott Kelby's Crush the Composition (great to see the process of improving a shot, working the scene); Lynda on Composition with Ben Long - more in depth for a given Composition concept with illustrations.
Headshots - Peter Hurley's videos on headshots - good watch to see how he interacts to get approachable confident good headshots.

An interesting project - to multiple people with their portraits, and then shots of their life and priorities in photos at that time in their life!
Children, houses, relationships, parents, families, friends - all change through time and it'd make a very interesting look back.


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## Enrico (Feb 21, 2012)

Good points. I will try to be more specific. The photos in the project will of course vary. But there are some aspects that I think will be general.

- not studio 
- prefferably the shot will be at their home/work/hobby-place. perhaps 1-2 flashes will be used, though I prefer natural light.

- not overly postprocessed for wow-effect (rather black and whites to let the time between the shots focus on the person and not the colour of the clothes / shooting style at that moment)

What I would like to learn more about is how to work with the full body shots and people expressing their feelings. IE not just headshot / head and shoudlers. I want to be able to include, their hands expressing something, people smoking, people crying... I know there are codes in body language etc and I am after learning about these + portraits.

Some shots will probably be more portrais head shot style where as in some cases I will want the person and his house + car + cat in the same shot...

Perhaps overambitous. And perhaps there is no book. Just simple har work and looking at others for inspiration?


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