A good photography book will help you improve your skills, give you a fresh perspective on how to approach a shoot, and provide a burst of inspiration and ideas for new projects.
So if you are looking to improve yourself in your craft, Here is a list of the best photography books for professionals you can find in the market today:
- Complete Digital Photography: 9th Edition.
- The Art of Photography 2nd edition: A Personal Approach to Artistic Expression.
- The Landscape Photography Workshop.
- Best Business Practices for Photographers: Third Edition.
- Mastering Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO & Exposure.
- The Filmmaker’s Handbook, 2013 Edition.
- The Book of Alternative Photographic Processes.
- Learning to See Creatively, Third Edition.
- Studio Anywhere: A Photographer’s Guide to Shooting in Unconventional Locations.
- The Complete Guide to Nature Photography: Professional Techniques.
Complete Digital Photography: 9th Edition
Has everything a photographer needs, starting from how to master the camera to learning about composition, lighting, image editing…etc.
The 9th edition includes a bunch of exercise about shooting at the start at the start of the book to make sure you get comfortable with every technique in the book.
The writer made sure to include a heavy step by step tutorial to let the reader learn at their own pace. Having an easy going and comprehensive teaching style you can be sure the results are going to be astonishing.
The Art of Photography 2nd edition: A Personal Approach to Artistic Expression
The art of photography book will go a long way to work on what you want to achieve in photography & understand some great detail on both compositional and technical part of photography.
The writer made sure to incorporate a lot of gold nuggets that an advanced photographer may need, from why taking pictures to how to make good prints, covering both color and B&W…etc.
The Landscape Photography Workshop
Considered one of the most thorough book on landscape photography. includes the typical sections on equipment, exposure, composition, filters and special techniques (HDR, panos, etc.).
It also has chapters on post processing and printing which are typically overlooked by many books in this genre. Nicely laid out and easy to understand with nice pics, this book is well worth the investment in time and money.
Best Business Practices for Photographers: Third Edition
Easily the best business book out there, Suited for photographers who work on assignment for commercial or editorial clients…etc.
The author shares multiple, detailed examples of paperwork, and his business policies as well as the reasoning behind them.
It has so much valuable information in it and I would definitely recommend it for anyone who wants a comprehensive read on how to start and maintain a profitable photography business.
Mastering Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO & Exposure
Short and sweet, This book clarified a lot of questions I had in regards to ISO, appitature, and shutter speeds. The author does a great job of explaining these key building blocks to great photography.
It is only a couple hours reading and very concise so it Gives you a nice understanding of these subjects without eating too much of your time.
The Filmmaker's Handbook, 2013 Edition
One of the biggest, most comprehensive and detailed book about filmmaking.
The author did a great job touching different topics and answering every question the readers may have in mind, from camera, sound and editing all the way to pre-production, post-production and scheduling…etc.
Highly technical but unpretentious and readable. The filmmaker’s handbook is a highly recommended book to anyone with an interest in the subject.
The Book of Alternative Photographic Processes
Written by Christopher James, an internationally known artist and photographer, He made sure to put every bit of detail he has about the subject while keeping the information easy and simple to read and comprehend.
It discusses a large range of topics regarding photogenic process and has a good mix of history, theory, and practical advice. Get this book if you have any interest in photography at all.
Learning to See Creatively, Third Edition: Design, Color and Composition in Photography
Friendly, informative, inspiring while still being very easy to digest, This book comes with a interesting pattern where it start with something very small and paint the bigger picture with it.
The author Bryan Peterson made sure to put some gems in this book starting from vision and design all the way to color patterns and framing.
In addition to the use of images to show different perspectives on the same subject, Creativity improving exercises are included in each chapter.
Studio Anywhere: A Photographer's Guide to Shooting in Unconventional Locations
The book’s goal is to prove to the readers that a studio and/or expensive photography gear sets are not needed for someone to improve the quality of their images.
Studio anywhere covered many interesting topics that don’t usually come in your typical photography book, topics such as how to use nature like shooting with water, bright sky and dark night portraits and hard light usage…etc.
The author also made sure to put quite a big chunk of practical tips so that you can implement what you learned right off the bat.
The Complete Guide to Nature Photography: Professional Techniques
One of the best books ever written by John Shaw. It doesn’t just describe nature photography, but also goes into many technical details about how to obtain the picture.
The author covered composition, closeups, working in the field and many other topics. And since this book was written over 10 years ago it discusses using film in a lot of instances.
At the end of the book, There’s a nice calendar with suggestions on recommended places to visit and shoot throughout the year.
Conclusion: Best Photography Books For Professionals
All in all, every book is the best in its own way since each one is conceived for a particular audience, You can also read the reviews of each book to get a better idea of what to expect.
If you enjoyed our buyer’s guide on the best Photography Books for professionals make sure to leave a comment down below telling us about it, If you have any book in mind that you think should be in this list make sure to leave it down bellow.
