An ebook about photography: tips & techniques

Every summer, I try to produce some extra content in the form of ebooks. Last year I wrote three ebooks about Instagram, travel writing, and solo traveling (the bundle is in offer here), and I was glad to receive such positive feedback from the readers. This year though, I thought of focusing on something different. Writing an ebook about photography was something that I planned for several months. However, I always postponed writing it.

It was only after some of my readers asked me questions about my photos (thank you guys!) that I finally decided to start writing. Of course, writing an ebook about photography is not an easy task. With so many free photography ebooks online, was there really a need for another one? Topics like landscape photography, portrait photography, or even art photography seemed saturated to me. There are so many great photographers in the world, so should I really publish another photography ebook?

I kept thinking a lot about how I could possibly write an ebook about photography that could still create value for the readers. Sure, one can always offer photography tips. But if you want to create something original, you should always try to add new elements and not just repeat the known ones. That said, for many weeks in a row, I tried to imagine the ebook without typing a single word.

An ebook about photography: Life through the lens

Then, one night in Berlin, everything became clear. In this blog, I always try to listen carefully to what the readers say. Answering questions or helping people are both noble acts. Therefore, I decided to write an ebook that will solve the most frequently asked questions I received about my photography. A couple of days later, I collected every single question, and I wrote everything down. The structure of the ebook was there. People wanted to know more about my photos, and from my side, I wanted to reply.

Then, I tried to read between the lines. Behind every single question, I thought, there was some lack of motivation and some insecurity. Every artist out there has tons of insecurities, and I’m not an exemption either. But what if your insecurities are too big and they discourage you? How can you overcome the things that put you in limbo? Here, I must admit that I’m among the lucky ones. My insecurities never demotivated me. Even though I could feel them torturing me, I somehow always used them to try harder. Whenever I thought I’m not good enough (fun fact: it happens daily), I’d try more. Or, if I felt that one article sucks or some photos are horrible, I’d write more, and I’d photograph more.

So, apart from answering the questions, I also thought of presenting some things about my mindset. There are rituals that I follow every time before I go out shooting, but don’t imagine anything that has to do with superstition. It’s more of a couple of processes that keep me motivated. Sometimes it’s how I prepare in advance before visiting a place; other times, it’s all about the settings I keep in mind. No matter what, though, whenever I take my camera in hand, I know that I have to remain focused. To achieve that, I always keep specific things in mind. Nowadays, I take these things for granted, but this wasn’t always the case. It took me years, and by sharing them, I thought I’m offering some inspiration to each one of you.

All that said, this ebook about photography called Life through the lens is based on two pillars. The first one is to reply to the questions, while the second is a presentation of how to build a photographer’s spirit. However, you shouldn’t imagine these two pillars as two separate book sections. Instead, both things are blended in the ebook because I believe that this is the only way to make the book more useful.

What you’ll read in this photography ebook

I tried to cover a wide array of topics in Life through the lens. I wrote about how I approach digital photography, what is the process, I included a step by step guide on how I take photos, and I explained my post-processing workflow. Of course, I talk a lot about settings, and I have created an additional section with my photography tips. Last but not least, there are also 35 of my photos with their settings and an explanation oh how I took each one of them. My goal is to give you a better idea of how to take full control of your camera and which are the essential camera skills.

Under every section mentioned above, there are several topics that I thought of covering. The topics include (among others) night photography and star trails, things like noise reduction and my workarounds, or stuff like the most important camera settings and why mastering one focal length matters. Of course, there is info about making use of natural light and some behind the scenes stories like the photography books that changed my life. Also, since some of my photos fall into the street photography category, I included tips on how to work the scenes in general. I didn’t want this to be a street photography ebook, though; therefore, everything you’ll read in Life through the lens is valid for any type of photography.

At this point, I want to clear a couple of things out. In my ebook about photography, I narrate and explain the things that worked for me throughout the years. That said, I’m explaining how I take my photos and not how everyone should do it. There’s never one way to do things; on the contrary, there are multiple. Therefore, in Life through the lens, you should expect my best tips and techniques but not some universal rules.

A couple of facts regarding my ebook about photography

Life through the lens is already available for sale on my online shop. By following this link, you can see some extra info about it and read a short excerpt. I’m sharing here just a couple of quick facts about the ebook.

• Life through the lens has a total of 60 pages.
• The ebook contains 35 of my images. For some of them, I’m proud, for a couple of them not so much. The reason that I included a few photos that I initially rejected is that I wanted you to see how one develops as a photographer. No one is born knowing everything. The process is slow. Remember: this ebook’s goal is to motivate you, not to discourage you. By adding photos that didn’t work, I thought that you’d also understand why sometimes we should reject photos.
• There is an additional section at the end of the ebook where I explain how I took every single photo.
• The ebook costs 12,50 euros, and you can buy it here.
• You can pay via Paypal or by using your credit card. Payment by credit card is handled by Stripe, which is the most trustworthy platform for online purchases.
• The ebook is only available in PDF.
• Visit the product’s page here for even more info about the topics of the ebook.

Final thoughts

Writing an ebook about photography was definitely challenging. But it was also fun. As I said, I tried to write down everything I learned during the last decade. Yes, it takes trial and error to develop as a photographer -but that’s actually the same in every field of artistic expression. In this ebook, I didn’t want to focus on sub-genres; instead, I preferred to talk about photography in general. I might also write one or two more ebooks about photography, with a stronger focus on sub-genres. But for the time being, this is an ebook full of photography tips and techniques, with lots of settings and ways to build your mindset.

Moreover, I want to assure you that while this is not your typical photography guide or a Photography 101, it’s going to be a useful tool for your future images. I’m pretty sure that this ebook is something for both beginners and advanced photographers. If you need inspiration, I’m sure that you’ll find the ideas you need in this ebook. Moreover, you will see my settings and you can keep them in mind when you are out taking photos.

So, buy your copy here and let me know what you think. And remember: you don’t have to own an expensive camera in order to shoot good photos. It’s all about the person taking the photos that counts.

Happy reading and happy photo-shooting 🙂

More about photography: Reviewing my all-around camera, Exploring light, Ferry tales

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Last Updated on July 11, 2020 by George Pavlopoulos