Composition: From Snapshots to Great Shots

by Laurie S. Excell, John Batdorff

Now that you’ve bought that amazing new DSLR, you need a book that goes beyond the camera manual to teach you how to take those great shots. One key element is composition—the creative arrangement of components in the shot, and the way a viewer’s eye travels through an image. With From Snapshots to Great Shots, author and photographer Laurie Excell starts with the basics of composition and explores how the elements of color, shape, angles, and contrast work to create compelling images. Contributing photographers, John Batdorff, David Brommer, Rick Rickman, and Steve Simon, provide unique perspectives on black and white, sports, art history, and other subjects related to composition. Beautifully illustrated with large, vibrant photos, this book teaches you how to take control of your photography to get the image you want every time you pick up the camera. Follow along with your friendly and knowledgeable guides, and you will learn Key camera features that affect composition, including the exposure triangle (ISO, aperture, and shutter speed) Shadow and light and how to direct the viewer’s eye to your subject Lines and shapes that create visual paths to points of interest in your image The role of color—using complementary or contrasting colors—to add your own unique artistic expression Spatial relationship and placing your subject within the frame for portraits, action shots, or landscapes And once you’ve got the shot, show it off! Join the book’s Flickr group, share your photos, and discuss how you use your camera to get great shots at flickr.com/groups/composition_fromsna....

Genres: Photography, Reference, Nonfiction, Art, Business

406 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 17, 2010

Reviews

[Random · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat torn on this book. I feel for something which claims to focus on composition, it spends too much time talking about large amounts of expensive photography equipment.

While ISO, aperture, depth of field, etc have a part to play in photography, the author spends a lot of time on these subjects and not very much dealing with lines, form, color, texture, point of view, and other elements of true composition. And while these elements are spoken of, we often get a voodoo answer of "you just get it when you get it". The book never really covers the exact elements of composition. They are alluded to, but we're never really told what they are. The author mentions that sometimes its ok to break the rules, but we're never really told what the rules are (other than don't stick the horizon in the middle of the picture) and other than a couple example pictures, we never really learn anything about when and why it is a good idea to break the rules.

I do have to add, the author did spend a good amount of time discussing point of view/position and how moving the camera, even just a little bit, can make a significant different in the quality of an image.

A pet peeve of mine on most books on photography, even the ones aimed at amateurs, is that everyone has access to not only a semi expensive DSLR, a myriad of expensive lenses, and often not just one but multiple bodies. In this specific case, composition is a subject that can be used and explored with any equipment, be it the simple camera of your phone to professional grade DSLRs.

Overall, this isn't a bad book, and many of the photographs are lovely, but I really came away with very little new knowledge. As an amateur, I should be able to walk away with more than I managed to get.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I Know I finished this a while ago... and recall being somewhat inspired but not overwhelming 'taught' on composition... I guess I have a specific void I'm working to fill when it comes to composition and this book didn't cover it for me.

As a beginning photographer, however this would have provided great insight on how to truly take my snapshots and make them better..

[Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

ma ei tea, miks pealkiri lubab kompositsiooni, tegelikult on see täismahus fotograafiaõpik algajatele - ses mõttes, et hakatakse pihta vajaminevast varustusest ja kaameratüüpidest ja avast ja särist ja ISOst, vahepeal on mõned peatükid kompositsioonist ja siis tuleb juba fototöötlus ja muud üldised nõuanded. siia-sinna on pikitud autori enda tehtud ilusaid fotosid koos analüüsiga, kuidas nad täpselt nii ilusaks saadi.

see kõik oli okei, sest ma olen oma oskustelt täpselt sedasorti õpiku sihtgrupp. pime kana leidis tera. kui oleks tõesti ainult kompositsiooni jahil olnud, oleks vast pettunud, sest ega siin neist põhiasjadest kaugemale ei jõuta, et kolmandike reegel ja paaritu arv objekte pildil ja et kuhu jooned jooksevad ja kuhu horisont sättida. (pluss siis järgmine peatükk, mis muidugi ütleb, et kõiki neid reegleid võib ignoreerida, kui sul tegelt oma pildiga mingi muu plaan on. JAA! tahaks selle peatüki sisse suruda kõigi nende inimeste ninad, kes mõnda mu fotot vaadates on küsinud "kas sa kolmandike reeglist oled kuulnud?" - korduvalt olen, mis siis?)

viimasel leheküljel on kena pilt autorist endast koos tema lemmikobjektiividega ja kogu see kompositsiooni- ja särijutt on kena küll, aga selge on, et tema pilte ma niipea järele ei hakka tegema, sest ma ei jaksa nii suuri asju tõstagi (mhmh, muidugi on tal statiiv selle jaoks. mul ei ole.)

siiski, mööda külgi alla ei jooksnud siin eriti miski peale peatüki mustvalgetest fotodest, mis mind üldse ei intrigeeri. kõik muu oli päris abiks.

[Mikko Saari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yksi hyvän valokuvan keskeisistä elementeistä on sommittelu. Täydellinen valotus tai tarkka fokus ei auta, jos kuvan asettelu on pielessä tai yksinkertaisesti tylsä.

From Snapshots to Great Shots -sarjaan kuuluva Composition antaa konsteja kuvien asetteluun niin, että tuloksena on toimivia otoksia. Aiheina ovat välineet, valotuksen perusteet, valot, muodot, väri, tilasuhteet, mustavalkokuvaus, urheilukuvaus, positiivisen ja negatiivisen tilan käyttö ja kuvakulmien hakeminen.

Sekalainen kattaus asiaa siis, alkaen aivan perusteista. Kirja on suunnattu aloittelijalle, tosin ihan ensimmäiseksi kamerakirjaksi sopii paremmin joku muu (jälleen kerran: Understanding Exposure). Composition on vähän pinnallisen oloinen, osa aiheista ei tunnu hirveästi liittyvän kirjan otsikon mukaiseen aiheeseen.

Kirja onkin enemmän yleistä jutustelua valokuvaamisesta ja siinä sivussa sommittelusta kuin tiukkaan fokusoitunutta asiaa ja oppia nimenomaan sommittelusta. Omat odotukseni olivat vähän toisenlaiset ja siksi kirja tuntui alkuun hieman pettymykseltä.

Kirjassa on kuitenkin hyvien valokuvakirjojen tapaan runsas ja inspiroiva kuvitus. Se herättää ajatuksia kuvaamisesta ja innostaa kokeilemaan. Jokaiseen lukuun liittyy nippu tehtäviä, joita voi halutessaan tehdä ja sisäistää luvun oppia sitä kautta. (24.2.2011)

[Larraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't realize how much I already knew. I've had this book for a while and probably should have read it when I first got it. It's definitely a good one for the person who is past the beginner stage in photography, and working in the intermediate stage. Most of what is written here are things I do pretty much every day. I don't get to go to really exciting places for some of the shots shown here, but there are plenty of examples of good shots taken at places like parks and wheat fields. This is an excellent book for the someone who has gone beyond the basics.

[Nattapon Chotsisuparat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Composition: From Snapshots to Great Shots by Laurie Excell. DSLR cameras are somewhat outdated in 2024 as the trend has shifted towards mirrorless professional cameras. However, the basics of photography remain the same, so this book is not outdated at all. It will teach you basic concepts of photography and then move on to compositions related to light, ISO, shutter speed, the exposure triangle, line, shape, color, area, position, and more. Overall, it is a good book. 9/10

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book took me a while to digest since I am fairly new to photography. It deals in part about what lens to use, based on what type of scene you are photographing, how much of a scene you are trying to capture, etc.Iit's what I call " rather technical"! Nonetheless, I learned a lot and will read it again sometime in the future when I have more experience and a deeper understanding of photography.

BY THE WAY: The description of this book, posted on this page, does NOT describe this book. It is actually the description of another book in this series on black and white photography. Just an FYI.

[Stephen Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad book on composition. There is a lot of technical points in the book that are important for beginners and intermediates to know about how their camera's work. I think the thng I enjoyed the most was the chapters by other photographers like Steve Simon and John Batdorff and their takes on composition.
I would say that this is a good book for Beginner and Intermediate photographers, but if you are fairly experienced and want something on artistic development look elsewhere

[Aubree · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book to teach photography. It was the perfect level for me, not so beginning that it explained what every little word meant, but not too advanced. Each chapter has homework assignments to help you practice what you studied in the chapter. Now that I have read the entire book, I need to go back over each chapter in detail and get the motivation to go out and really put to practice what I have learned.

[Sharon Wilbur · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you're looking for basic instruction in photography, the first four chapters can be useful. But if you already understand your camera, skip them. I question her "full-frame" claim in a couple of images, so expect a different result if you shoot with one, but overall Chapters 4-10 are good discussions about composition. I particularly loved 6-10; I have been shooting for a while. It's a great beginning book.

[Márton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice book. The first chapters are a good introduction to photography, taking care of themes like exposure, aperture, shutter speed and other basics. Then the author enters a good explanation of several principles for good composition, like framing, the rule of thirds, colors, and others. The chapter on sports photography is a good insight on the author's composition thinking process. Very good book for those beginning to study composition on a more serious level.

[Kristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oddly focused on aperture priority (to me, blurry background is SO wedding photo), but otherwise nice and contains some good tips for the just-starting-out. Particularly suited for aspiring nature photographers.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is packed with good photography information. It was a little too beginner for me but I definitely would suggest this to someone just starting out. I do feel like the title is a little misleading though as there is more about general photography than composition.

[Donald Schopflocher · Rating 3 out of 5]

A more elementary exposition than Bryan Peterson's Understanding Composition Field Guide, but I liked the emphasis on the photographer's workflow, and the 'Poring over pictures' sections in which many specific comments are made about a single image on the image itself.

[XO · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book to introduce you to the reflex camera world. Keep taking awesome pictures and enjoy!

[Jakenv · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is excellent reference for both first time photographers and more advanced as refresher. Author has clear concise style with excellent photos to illustrate each point. Highly recommend.

[Jessica Nguyen · Rating 4 out of 5]

skimmed through for good photos and skipped most of tech parts (e.g. iso, speed & focus settings)

[Jennifer Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good basic book for beginners, couple decent tips for intermediate photographers.

[Shila Iris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. As a beginner photographer it taught me a lot.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

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