Good Reads

I typically read non-fiction or biographies. Books that make me feel good and inspired. Authors like Eckhart Tolle, Michael A Singer, and Brene Brown fill my bookshelf and are books that I read over and over again.

I also enjoy listening to Audible books when I’m driving or just casually walking around creating pictures. In particular, biographies where the author reads the book themselves. In that way, I feel a lot more connected to the person and comprehend them better when I can hear the inflections in their voice.

There was a point where I tried to read more books on art. But for some reason, those never really stuck with me. They weren’t about photography, but art in general. I’ve even read a book about creativity from a dance choreographer. I just didn’t connect as much with those books.

So earlier this year in March, when the Coronavirus quarantine came in place to those of us in Northern Virginia, I found way more time on my hands. I decided that I would take that time to improve my photography skills. I bought a CreativeLive membership that gave me access to such great content. Just like with Audible books, I really enjoyed listening to photographers speak about their images. I’m currently in the middle of a 24 hr Lightroom class. It so detailed and I’m learning so much every time I sit down to watch these videos.

But sometimes, I just don’t feel like being in front of a screen. I spend most of my days sitting at the desk and sometimes all I want to do is have a good book to cuddle up to and just enjoy. So, I started looking into art books again with a focus on photography.

Up until last week, I didn’t even realize how many books I’ve ordered and consumed during this quarantine. It’s so funny because I have so many more on my Amazon Wish List where I use it as a place to bookmark the books I want to get in the future. For some reason, I can’t handle having books wait for me on my bookshelf.

So in case you’re like me with a passion for photography and want to learn more about it, here are the books I’ve read in the last few months about making pictures.

The Soul of the Camera: The Photographer’s Place in Picture-Making
by David duChemin

Link on Amazon

I started out on my photography book search by googling some book recommendations and somehow I stumbled onto the fact that David duChemin was having a sale on his books. I had heard of him before and knew he was a great author. I believe out of all his books I saw on Amazon, this was the one that interested me the most. I had never imagined a camera having a soul. I’ve thought about photographs having souls, the photographer obviously has a soul, but not the camera. So I picked it up.

This is a hardback book that has more images than text and a majority of the images are portraits. I’m not usually a portrait photographer but I’ve become more and more interested in incorporating people into my images. So I thought it was interesting how he has presented his ideas. I have not studied portraiture as much so I think some of the ideas he has can apply to all genres of photography considering I have heard some of them before. Others were brand new to me.

I copied down some of the more striking quotes to me. Here are a few of my favorites:

“Perfection is counter human”

“Maybe that’s why we chase perfection. Maybe we do it because it’s so much easier to define.”

“Knowledge of the subject leads to make openness, more recognition and this makes more opportunities for strong photographs.”

Click here to read more

All photos available for print and licensing >

From the other day when I was going through old photographs of the US Capitol, I ran across this one. This on the other hand, I do remember photographing. It was earlier this year, I don’t remember what season, but I do remember it being cold. I also remember that I was the only photographer out while there were severals runners all around me. Do you see that person in the blue? I think she kept on running by me to see what I was actually doing. She’s in several of my shots but decided to not really include her in the final image since I think the compass is the main focus here. I also remember just walking around the Capitol grounds and just having a great time listening to my earphones.

Sometimes I listen to music in my earphones but other times I’m listening to audiobooks. I just finished my latest earlier this week. It was Tiffany Haddish’s book, The Last Black Unicorn. It reminded me a lot of Kevin Hart’s book, I Can’t Make This Up: Life Lessons because it’s all about how Tiffany became a comedian. I love how she reads the book herself. I feel like it gives me a way better feeling of who she is in real life. I feel like if we met, I would be cracking up laughing the entire time.

The book is funny but I was not cracking up laughing the entire time. Tiffany has gone through some crazy stuff in her life that makes you realize how amazingly strong this woman is. She’s definietly a role model to someone who needs to look on the brighter side of things. A little warning: It does get a little raunchy at times but overall I’d recommend it to my friends if they’re looking for an interesting book to read/listen to.

If any of you have any other book recommendations, please let me know. If you’ve been following my blog for a while you’ll know that I read/listen to a lot of motivational, self improvement or biography type books. I love a good non-fiction story.

My camera settings for this image is F8 at 1/15 sec at ISO 500 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm wide angle lens.

All photos available for print and licensing >

Like I said yesterday, I’ve been consuming so much information. However listening to audiobooks was something I’ve always done. I didn’t need to go on an instabreak to appreciate a good story. I love listening to books when I’m in the car or even on photoshoots. It’s a great way to get your mind off of things going around you and just focus on what you’re doing.

To be honest, I had never heard of Phil Knight. I think the first time I ever heard his name was in the song by Wale with Lady Gaga called, “Chillin” (as an added bonus, Wale is from Washington DC and the music video is filmed all around the city). But Andrew and I share an audible account and he had previously listened to Shoe Dog and was telling me so many great things about the book. We’re both huge fans of Nikes. So about a month ago I decided to download it and listen to it.

This book is all about taking risks, following your passion and not letting anything get in your way. I love how Nike did not start off with the goal to make billions of dollars. It started off by Phil Knight being a super passionate runner and basically just wanted to bring good footwear to athletes everywhere. To me, he didn’t seem like anyone special growing up. Just a regular guy who loved sports. But it was his determination, his will to make his company a success and overall love of running that made Nike what it is today.

The book was inspiring and at times an emotional roller coaster. I’m not afraid to admit that I cried at the end, twice. If you plan on reading it, I won’t ruin the ending for you but one time when something tragic happened and the second time was when he was summarizing his life and Nike as a company. I could not help but feel so proud and happy for him and I don’t even know the guy. 10 minutes ago was the first time I googled him just so I could see what he looks like. If you ask me, kinda like a Richard Branson looking guy. But he is definietly someone I look up to now. One of my favorite parts of the book was hearing about his personal relationships with the Nike athletes like Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and Steve Prefontaine. It just goes to show how much he cared for everyone who was around him. I wish I could give him a hug.

Overall, I highly recommend reading or listening to this book if you like learning about how people made it. 4.7 stars out of 5. I still think Steve Jobs is my favorite biography but this is a close second.

As for the image, this was taken at the National Art Gallery in Washington DC. My camera settings are F6.3 at 0.8 seconds at ISO 200 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm wide angle lens.

All photos available for print and licensing >

I finished reading Big Magic a couple of weeks ago and it’s a book that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since. If you haven’t read it then I’d highly recommend it. It’s a book for creatives but when it comes down to it, it’s a book for everyone because we all have hidden treasures inside of us. You just have to be brave enough to seek them out. (A little tidbit I learned from the book.)

One of the biggest ideas that I got from this book is that there are other people out there like me! Sometimes you get frustrated or discouraged by your art and sometimes it can be labeled as suffering for your art. Another word to use instead of “suffering” is “dedication”. Dedication to what makes me happy and also what keeps me feeling alive. If an image I created is less than perfect, it’s ok. I’ll still keep on working on it because it’s what I love to do.

“My work loves me as much as I love it.” – Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic.

All photos available for print and licensing >

If you ask me what is one of my all time favorite books ever, the first book that comes to mind is Steve Jobs by Walter Issacson.

I have to admit that I was already a big fan of apple products before I read this book. I mean, I’m currently using my Macbook Pro to write this blog post and sitting right next to me is the 5th or 6th iPhone I’ve owned. We have old iPads, iPods, and basically anything else that apple sells besides the iWatch (only because I don’t really wear watches).

But I didn’t actually read this book, I listened to it on audible. So one evening I was preparing for a long drive the next morning and I knew I wanted to download a book. Sometimes music can get kinda boring so I wanted something that’d keep me entertained for at least 4-6 hrs. Then I remembered Andrew Warner saying how he loves to read biographies. So the first ever biography I decided to “read” was Steve Jobs.

Before listening, I already knew a little bit about him. I knew about his tantrums, he was a little crazy but overall super smart. Man, as soon as I started listening to the first 10 minutes or so, I was HOOKED! Initially, it was the part where Issacson pointed out the fact that Jobs knew he was already smarter than his parents at a very young age. Like, before he even started going to school. That’s insane but there is something so authentic about that statement that it really wanted me to get to know Steve even more.

As the book went on I became more and more interested in the way he cared so much about his work and everything he did. At times it made me wonder if I have the capacity to pay attention to so much detail like Jobs did. I could see why people thought he was a little crazy but I think it’s only because he cared so much about quality. Of course he’s human so he has made his own share of mistakes but he was definitely an artist in his own way. To that I am definitely appreciative of him and his genius for helping to improve my technological life. And of course for Finding Nemo 🙂

So, if you want a good book to really get lost into, I’d highly highly suggest, Steve Jobs by Walter Issacson.

All photos available for print and licensing >

I like to read. This hasn’t always been the case. I remember when I was in school it was my least favorite thing to do. Talk about snooze fest.

But in the past few years, I’ve been craving books. Non-fiction, self improvement types in particular. So, I thought it’d be fun to talk about some of my favorites or books I’m currently reading.

Right before I left to Europe, I started reading A New Earth
by Eckhard Tolle recommended to me by Trey Ratcliff. Talk about eye opening. Geez Louise! I never knew how MUCH my inner most thoughts were due to my ego. Before this book I didn’t even think I had much of an ego. After reading it I can see how some of my actions or thoughts may have seemed like I do.

The biggest things I’ve taken away from this book:
– You can’t take yourself too seriously, things happen for a reason and you just gotta roll with the punches
-My possessions don’t define me
-Flowers are here on earth for no other reason that to be admired and to be beautiful.

If that sounds like something you’d be interested in, check it out on Amazon

If you have any recommendations for me, please let me know! I’m always on the hunt for a good book and I usually just read books that have been recommended to me by friends. I feel like I can trust their opinons more, or something like that.