Damo Ward's Top 5 Photography Books

Damo Ward's blog is a fantastic resource for digital creativity and art related information. This is a guest blog post about his favourite photography books. 

When you’re looking at resources to help develop a new course or just out of personal interest, often you browse Goodreads or Amazon looking for that perfect book. As can be read in a previous post, I found websites that really helped me focus essentials for a GCSE Photography course. Looking across my bookshelf, I realised I had quite a few photography resources already. How do they compare with supposedly more ‘current’ information on the web?

Here is a quick round up of my top five:

The Photography Book Ian Jeffrey

• Paperback: 520 pages
• Publisher: Phaidon Press; mini format edition (30 April 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 071483937X
• ISBN-13: 978-0714839370
• Product Dimensions: 12.7 x 3.2 x 16.5 cm
• Review: 5/5 Perfect! Pocket sized and alphabetical for quick finding inspiration.

The Photographer’s Eye Michael Freeman

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Ilex Press; First Edition edition (11 Jun. 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1905814046
• ISBN-13: 978-1905814046
• Product Dimensions: 23.7 x 1.4 x 25.9 cm
• Review 4.5/5 Superb for intruding design and composition creativity with the not-so artistic. Amazing examples.

Teaching Photography Rand & Steven

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Focal Press; 2 edition (8 April 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1138838543
• ISBN-13: 978-1138838543
• Product Dimensions: 24.1 x 18.5 x 2.3 cm
• Review: 4/5 Includes advice for questioning, photographic technique & creativity. Edtech section will date fast.

Collins’ Complete Photography Projects Garrett & Harris

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (7 Nov. 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 000750926X
• ISBN-13: 978-0007509263
• Product Dimensions: 1.9 x 17.8 x 22.2 cm
• Review: 4/5 Good catalogue of ideas and Quick Tips per section. Needs more Photoshop/Lightroom projects to be truly complete.

Understanding Exposure  Bryan Peterson

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Amphoto Books; 3 edition (7 Aug. 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0817439390
• ISBN-13: 978-0817439392
• Product Dimensions: 21.7 x 1.1 x 28.1 cm
• Review: 3.5/5 Comprehensive but would have benefitted from being bundled with his book on composition and further aperture advice.

​What would be in your Top 5 Photography teaching books?

The original version of this blog post appeared on Damo's blog.