THE SOUL OF THE CAMERA

The Soul of the Camera is an exploration of your role as photographer in picture-making beyond merely focusing and exposing the image. You want to know what really makes compelling images? It's you—the photographer—and the way you approach and think about your craft.

Here's what Amazon says about The Soul of the Camera: As both an art form and a universal language, the photograph has an extraordinary ability to connect and communicate with others. But with over one trillion photos taken each year, why do so few of them truly connect? Why do so few of them grab our emotions or our imaginations? It is not because the images lack focus or proper exposure; with advances in technology, the camera does that so well these days. Photographer David duChemin believes the majority of our images fall short because they lack soul. And without soul, the images have no ability to resonate with others. They simply cannot connect with the viewer, or even―if we’re being truthful―with ourselves.

In The Soul of the Camera: The Photographer’s Place in Picture-Making, David explores what it means to make better photographs. Illustrated with a collection of beautiful black-and-white images, the book’s essays address topics such as craft, mastery, vision, audience, discipline, story, and authenticity. The Soul of the Camera is a personal and deeply pragmatic book that quietly yet forcefully challenges the idea that our cameras, lenses, and settings are anything more than dumb and mute tools. It is the photographer, not the camera, that can and must learn to make better photographs―photographs that convey our vision, connect with others, and, at their core, contain our humanity. The Soul of the Camera helps us do that.

Want a preview? Click here to download sample chapters.

This book is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Rocky Nook.

 Please note that your final price is determined by your country and currency.  

"David nails what is often elusive - the 'certain something' that some images have that others simply lack - not only through his images but through his understanding of photographic, artistic and personal craft. This book is an intimate look into the workings of someone who puts tremendous soul into his work, but it is also a guidebook, written ever-so-poetically, about the pivotal role the artist plays in what an image says and does to the person viewing it. I recommend anyone, even outside of traditional artistic crafts, read this book to put the soul back into your work and life." ~ Brooke Shaden

"David duChemin understands an important truth about photography; as photographers, what shapes our craft is how we see the world as humans, not the equipment we use or the situations we find ourselves in. The soul of the camera resides within our humanity, and duChemin does an amazing job of communicating how to access it." ~ Paul Nicklen, National Geographic Photographer

“The Soul of the camera is a long-overdue, and much-needed, book. David's words and images speak not only to his love of photography, but also to the great joys and meanings to be found in creative expression, in mindfulness and in living an artist's life. In a world rife with images and clatter, David offers one of the clearest, most thoughtful and most inspiring voices among today's photographers.” ~ Guy Tal