A super awesome book about photography indeed! 20 photographs by famous photographers lead readers to 20 fun and “snappy” challenges.

Carroll uses simple, straightforward language to share creative tips, as well as additional information on some basic photography components like light, composition, and more. His examples as well as the the accompanying know-how and facts for each picked example are sure to help readers (photographers) think differently; and sometimes take the box (thinking outside the box, I mean) out of the equation!

Concise, compact, creative, and cool! A book that is a perfect gift for a beginner photographer of any age, and even for those who love photography and books. I know I was inspired to try to take photos differently after reading this book.

Summary
A book that both the bibliophile and the photo-crazy-geek in me wholly recommend!!

Disclaimer: Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me a digital review copy. I was not compensated for my review. My thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist. They are my personal opinions formed when I read this book.

Informative and helpful for photography. A lot of common knowledge stuff in here but plenty of helpful tips and guides on how you can improve your skills as a photographer.

If you have a child interest in photography I recommend this book as a gift for them to get creative and have some fun. It goes through tips on how to compose photos, how to play with light, and how to think outside the box.

Fell short for me. I think mostly because I am more of a hand on learner . Lots of good tips for those who prefer to learn through reading.

This book is created to help those with no, or little, experience with a camera become apt quickly. There are just twenty short styles/challenges given. For the most part the book doesn't include difficult or confusing terminology. When terminology is used Carroll gives short easy to follow explanations.

Could this book possibly turn someone into the next Annie Leibovitz? I don't know but it is definitely a good place to start.

I found this book interesting even though I already have some experience with photography. It is the kind of book that can keep an adult interested but could also inspire a child, the text is really that easy to follow.

I enjoyed the diversity of the subject style and manner particularly Holly Andres, Yosumasa Morimura, Kathy Ryan, Yoshinori Mizutani, Larry Sultan and of course Carroll himself.

Would definitely read again.

First of all, I adore the title of this book! Who wouldn't want to be super awesome at what they love? I am definitely not a professional photographer by any means. I am not looking to become one either, but I am always looking for ways to improve my hobby.

The reason I want to improve is so I can continue to record our family's history. I love to scrapbook and have come to a point where I want to improve my photography skills.

This wonderful title has helped me look at things with some new perspective. When my girls were little, I did a good job of getting on their level, but beyond that, I really didn't have much change in how I took pictures. Recently I have been more mindful of my position in addition to the camera. This book definitely gave me the insights I was looking for!

The photo challenges are much like taking a class! Once a new concept is introduced, a new challenge is given to the reader. Here are a few of the photos I have taken after reading this title. Some are with my phone and others with my camera.


Used the room lighting creatively


Getting up close to my subject


Capturing light sources


Patience with animal photography!


This is my favorite!

With this last photo I sat for over an hour under a tree in our front yard and patient waited, taking picture after picture until I finally captured this!

If you are looking for a way to casually improve your photography with ease, check this out!

Easy to read book geared towards the younger generation who may be interested in getting into photography. With cool photos that make you more engaged with the book, it is a great guide for tips and tricks. The book challenges you to think outside the box and be creative in ways you wouldn't be otherwise. Gotta get that money shot!

Be a super Awesome Photographer gives some really great tips how to improve your photographs.

I’ve always loved taking pictures. I like learning new tricks and way to take better pictures, especially in the world of social media where good pictures can be critical for success of your page. This book is definitely easy to understand and easy to put into practice.

A simple straightforward book that will prompt fresh ideas for budding photographers. A great way to just get started with photography, by experimenting and trying new things, Not at all intimidating!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a nifty little book about photography that is perfect for kids in the later elementary school years and through middle school. I have two sons who have been interested in photography from a young age. I think a book like this would have been very helpful for them. Definitely recommend this book for kids who want to learn how to take awesome pictures!

3 1/2 Caffeinated Stars

I received this book in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.

This was a charming book that is sure to delight any child that is interested in photography. It gives some interesting photography tips that are sure to inspire kids. My one issue with the book was that the graphics (at least in the ARC) were not informative. When looking at shadows and light, it just used the same photo without showing any shadows and how the light will affect a photo. It would have been nice to have those infographics.

All in all, it explains photography in an easy to understand way that will inspire many kids.

Even those this book is meant for a younger readers, I took a lot of helpful tips from it. If you're interested in photography, it's a back to basics type of book that i highly recommend.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Thanks NetGalley!

Henry Carroll is absolutely amazing. My daughter is so excited for this book, she wants to be a photographer just like me.
this book offers challenges for children/young teens to explore their photography.

Great books for kids on the basics of photography, plus it helped this adult reflect on some of my photo habits. If you have a child interest in photography I recommend this book as a gift for them to get creative and have some fun:)! It goes through tips on how to compose photos, how to play with light, and how to think outside the box.

Thank you to NetGalley and Laurence King Publishing for a free digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

Henry Carroll, the Editor of the "IF you want to" photography series of books (If you want to be instagram famous, if you want to take great photographs of people, read this book, etc), uses a similar format to provide tips and instruction to children about photography. Well presented with appropriate tips, and slightly fuller sections on light, composition, perspective and a few other areas, the one annoyance is how often he uses SUPER-AWESOME (in all caps) within the text. Well chosen assignments and example photographs, would be a great addition to a gift of a camera or someone seeking to up their game. Age range mostly 8 to 15 or so.

This is a fun, engaging book about photography which is aimed at children and young people. The book offers 20 challenges to explore different ways of taking a photograph (from changing angles to the unexpected and much more). I found the words accompanying the text a bit grating and as if the author was trying too hard to be "down with the kids" but the basic premise of the book remains good nonetheless.

This is great for helping create inspiration and excitement in young new photographers.
It doesn't really contain much in the way of technique, but it is geared towards younger kids so I didn't expect much to begin with.
The pictures all look like something that kids would be able to recreate for themselves.
Great first step for youngsters to start enjoying photography.
Thank you NetGalley and Laurence King Publishing Ltd for my DRC.

I was very interested to check out this book as I am a photographer who teaches photography workshops. This book ended up being more about the creativity and composition parts of photography and not the technical aspects.

While this is fine, I think a lot of these creative exercises will be very frustrating for an amateur photographer to try and complete because many of them are not possible without knowing certain aspects of the technical side of photography...such as capturing movement and creating bokeh through your focus point and aperture.

I did really like the "nifty know-how" sections that were interspersed between the creative exercises. The author did a great job of explaining concepts such as soft light vs. hard light, leading lines and where to place your subject for a more interesting point of view.

Thank you to NetGalley and Laurence King Publishing for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.