Nikon Lenses: From Snapshots to Great Shots 1st Edition

They say, "don't judge a book by its cover", and this would be a good book to prove that old saying true. I pre-ordered this book, based only on the title, when Amazon recommended it to me based on my past purchases of photography books. I was less than thrilled when I saw that this book is not a compendium of the current Nikon glass, but mostly the opinions of a single photographer (the author) about what he uses and why.This would have been fine if the title was "how I shoot", or "what gear I find useful", but a book called "Nikon Lenses", that as a minimum does not even have a list of those lenses, nor any narrative explaining the attributes lens-by-lens is not properly titled. As an example, if you buy this book to see which 35mm lens would be better for your needs, the f/1.8 or the f/1.4 model, as well as some examples of images made with these lenses, you will find that neither of them are even mentioned, much less reviewed or rated. If you like prime lenses, you better like 50mm and 85mm lenses, but don't look for anything on most other non-zoom focal lengths for the classic workhorse prime lenses that are still in Nikon's line-up. When explaining the value of the 50mm focal length, the author tells users of the DX format that they should use a 33mm focal length to get this angle of view. Nikon makes a fine 35mm f/1.8 DX lens to allow crop-sensor users to get the benefits of a 50mm (speed and angle), yet this lens is not even mentioned in a book called "Nikon Lenses"; where do I find this 33mm lens?If this was a general photography book, I'd give it one more star for the examples of how to compose, work the perspective, and play with depth of field. The problem is that I already knew most of that information. I bought this book for the information on "Nikon lenses", and that left me feeling less than satisfied. I own a dozen books from many decades on Nikon lenses, each one with a wide to tele explanation of what was in the Nikon line-up at that time. My intention was to put this book on the shelf next to those older books to complete the span of what Nikon (had and) has for photographers to use to capture their vision. This book will not be joining the others, since they are about a different subject... Nikon lenses.EDITED Dec 20, 2014: Wow! I made the above review (initially three stars) after reading the book after it arrived. My rating was based on my impression that it was less than a good book on Nikon lenses, with major gaps in the range of focal lengths that are currently in the inventory. Now I came across more information that makes me feel even less satisfied. This same author has a book out called "Canon Lenses", and many, many of the photos are in both books but are attributed to either Canon or Nikon depending on the book. Whole sections and examples are exactly the same, but with only the name brand being different. This makes me question everything in both books. While reading the Nikon book, there is a portrait demonstrating the optical quality and very narrow DOF of the Nikon 50mm f/1.2 manual focus Nikkor lens. In the Canon book is the same photo but supposedly made with the Canon f/1.2 L lens. If you see a photo that you like, you may not even be buying the same lens that took that photo. This is a misrepresentation of what this book (by virtue of the title) is really about, so I now reject this entire book.

Thanks to this well written book, I have a much better understanding of the various kinds of dslr lenses. This book not only covers many of the Nikon lenses available, but more importantly, thoroughly explains kinds of lens categories that would apply to third party lenses as well. In addition, the author provides tips on best practices using the different lenses. This was a kindle version of the book. I'm extremely pleased with this purchase.

Throughout each chapter were wonderful images with easy to follow descriptions and instruction. Mr. Foster treats lens care and application with the utmost respect.

A terrific overview of Nikon lenses and their uses, strengths, weaknesses, best features, etc. Well worth having on my photography bookshelf. It has already influenced my purchase of 2 lenses - both of which I rented first as suggested in this book.

Love this author. He writes well and conveys the information you need in a manner that makes you want to continue to read the rest of the book. This is my 4th book by this author.

Good explanations of the lenses and what they are used for.

Helpful in understanding Nikon lenses.

Good basic book

Really useful book for Nikon users. It teaches some very useful things about the lenses, and then carries on with some very general valuable advice around photography. It's always good to hear from different professionals how they do it, and what techniques they execute. Very pleased I bought this book.

As a complete novice to digital photography I found this book very informative. Recommended

Great book

Useful for a beginner like me.

Precise info on the various Nikon lens, how to use them and when to use them. Recommended for all beginners or intermediate users of Nikon cameras.