the art of iphoneography (and a giveaway!)

A confession:  I've always been really bad with point-and-shoot cameras.  And don't even start me on the iPhone shots.

I'm not sure what's wrong with me.  In theory, these cameras are supposed to be easy to use, right?  And yet, if you were to watch me with a point-and-shoot or an iPhone camera, you'd wonder if there was something clinically wrong with me:  I keep forgetting that I don't need to put the camera to my eye, and can look at the screen instead.  I'm always frustrated by the fact that I can't change the aperture, ISO or shutter speed to optimize the shot.  And honestly, when I see some of the amazing shots that other photographs can get with their iPhones -- like this, or this, or, God help me, this -- I just want to go to my nearest Apple store and ask them to remove the camera feature from my phone, and give it instead to someone who deserves it.

But then my friend Stephanie sent me a copy of her brand-spanking-new book, The Art of iPhoneography.

I haven't read the book in its entirety yet, but honestly, just with the quick scan I've done with it, I've already picked up some tips that have upped my iPhone-picture-taking game.  This is a stellar book, shot entirely with Stephanie's iPhone.  It is the photography manual you wish came with your iPhone.  Just check out the table of contents:

• iPhone camera basics -- teaching you how to shoot, organize, access, back up and share images
• Craft your toolkit -- expands your creative shooting and image processing capabilities with apps available for your iPhone
• Spark your creativity -- a list of "secret missions" to inspire you to shoot
• Shoot how you feel -- adding heart to your photographs
• Find your focus -- featuring the work of iPhoneographers from around the world
• Join the community -- journaling with your iPhone images
• And a list of resources.

This is a seriously great book.  And because it's so awesome, I asked Stephanie if she would allow me to do a giveaway on my site.  She happily agreed, and her publisher sent me not one, not two, but three books to give away here.

So simply leave a comment below, and I'll pick three commenters at random to each win a copy of the book, no matter where in the world you are.  And even if you don't have an iPhone, chances are you know someone who does -- so trust me, this would make an awesome gift, and you will look like a rock star for thinking of this person and entering this contest.  And for what it's worth, it doesn't matter what model of iPhone you have -- this book works for all of them.

So good luck, and have a great weekend, everyone.  I'll announce the winner in Monday's post.  Don't forget to leave a comment!

Images:  Both shot with my iPhone 3GS.

Song:  So I clicked on Chris' awesome photoblog, and happily found the video below -- live footage of Taylor McFerrin, who happens to be the son of the inimitable Bobby McFerrin.  Taylor does beautiful work -- enjoy.

Taylor McFerrin Live Solo Preformance 03.03.11 from Theo Jemison on Vimeo.