Product Review: Low Cost High Impact Photography eBook

In my away-from-the computer life, I’m an avid bicyclist. Talk about a gadget-centric activity. It seems as though there’s always another nifty, lightweight bike to buy. Or, if you already have a bike or two, there’s some must-have accessory that you just can’t live without.

Which means that an affordable form of transportation "" or recreation "" can get pretty expensive. Same goes for photography. If it isn’t a new camera to buy, it’s one of those gizmos that will improve your shooting.

Enter Steve Johnson. An Englishman who now lives near Chicago. Johnson is the creator of the popular Minimalist Photography 101 blog. It’s the sort of place that frugal creatives will feel very comfortable visiting because Johnson’s into getting the highest level of results at the lowest cost. He’s just written an eBook that presents his minimalist photographic philosophy in a very readable format.

Johnson defines the following five groups as his audience:

• Those who want to move on from the simple snapshot.
• Those who have started to move on, but feel overwhelmed by the potential expense and learning curve.
• More experienced photographers who may feel that they are in a rut.
• Visual artists who are thinking of the camera as a potential creative tool rather than just a recording device.
• Just about anyone who is interested in the creative process.

What’s his goal? To keep the money that the photography industry wants in its coffers in yours. Nothing like a minimalist approach to spending money. As an example, if you’ve ever shot photos in low light, you’ve probably struggled with the challenge of getting a sharp image. And you’ve wondered if, maybe one of those expensive f/1.4 lenses might be the solution to your problem. Steve Johnson to the rescue:

Paying attention to breathing and posture makes a big difference when shooting photos in low light, yet it is an area that never seems to get enough attention. A gun owner at any level will learn about these aspects yet photography treats them as optional. Maybe it is because there is no profit to be made – much more lucrative to have someone dump $300 on a new lens than to have them spend a few minutes learning how to stand and how to breathe.

Take that, photography industry! Oh, I might add that some of this eBook’s most interesting low-light shots were done with a point and shoot camera.

For those of you who are starting to feel that your point and shoot has become, ahem, inadequate, Johnson offers some very helpful advice on upgrading from a first camera to a second and third. Warning: Big spending ahead.

About that second camera purchase, he has this to say: "Don’t be rushed into this stage and don’t get a grown up camera because you think it is the right thing to do. The point and shoot is capable of taking extremely good photographs under most conditions."

Speaking as someone who recently went through the camera upgrade process, I heartily concur with Johnson’s advice, especially the "don’t be rushed" part. When it’s time, you’ll know.