DIGITAL CAMERAS You Need

Naturally, before you can begin to explore the tools and techniques of the masters, you need the right equipment Luckily, while if s possible to pour vast amounts of cash Into your digital toolbox, you don't have to spend a fortune to produce images of professional quality. Follow our guide to cameras, computers, software, and peripherals, then choose equipment that fits comfortably within your budget As pioneers such as Man Ray demonstrated, in surreal photography the equipment you use to create your Images is not as important as what you choose to do with it

It's easy to become bewildered by the sheer variety of digital cameras on the market, as every manufacturer offers many variations of megapixel rating, zoom lens, and form-factor. If you intend to produce images for print, you need a camera with a high resolution, but megapixels don't tell the whole'story. To produce high-quality images that can be later manipulated in an image-editing program, you need a flexible lens system and plenty of control, which often means a professional or a prosumer model.

At the low end of the digital camera spectrum are compact digital cameras. These are affordable, easy to use, and ideal for beginners or as a second camera for the serious photographer. If you wish to create images that will look professional when printed out, however, you will need to look farther up the price chain.

Prosumer Cameras

At first glance it's very difficult to spot any difference between prosumer digital cameras and professional models. Both types of camera usually have the lens mounted at the center of the camera, giving the impression that they are Single Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras, but this isn't the case. Many prosumer cameras take their pictures in a similar way to smaller compact models.

The viewfinder is a separate optical system, usually situated above the lens, and what it shows doesn't always reflect what the camera will actually capture. Other cameras use an electronic viewfinder, but this may lack detail or color depth, or blur with any movement Using the LCD screen will give you a more accurate picture, but will also drain the battery faster, and the screen might not be visible in all light conditions.

Apart from this minor issue, prosumer cameras offer a range of features that rival more expensive professional models. Most prosumer digital cameras, for example, come equipped with a respectable optical zoom, enabling you to pick out detail from a distance or include depth-of-field effects in your photographs.

Prosumer cameras also come equipped with a choice of automatic exposure controls to assist you when shooting in specific situations such as night-time, studio, or action shots. And most prosumer cameras also include a good built-in flash, a hot-shoe for an external flash, and a range of standard controls including automatic timer, macro function, and LCD view screen with image-editing functions.

If you decide to invest in a prosumer camera, one feature is a must-have: a full manual mode that allows you to adjust exposure settings and aperture. Without this, your prosumer camera will be no more useful than a cheaper compact camera.

All of this control means that you can shoot images that are often indistinguishable from images taken with a professional camera, and recent models from Canon, Sony, Fuji, Konica-Minolta, and Nikon offer resolutions beyond 6 megapixels, meaning they are capable of producing images that will print out at sizes larger than US Letter or A4.

Professional Digital Cameras

Professional digital cameras offer all of the functions of prosumer cameras and more. The extensive range of features and build quality are reflected in the expensive price tag. As well as providing the user with full manual control over almost every aspect of the camera, professional digital cameras also o.ffertrue SLR functionality.

For the photographer this has two advantages: firstly, because you are looking through the actual lens when you shoot, you can be sure that every image you take will be exactly what you saw. Secondly, SLR cameras allow you to attach other types of lens; this means that you can purchase extra lenses, such as fish-eye or wide-angle, and fit them to t e camera. This is ideal for traditional film photographers moving over to digital because it gives them the option of using their old lenses

A good compact digital camera, such as Sony's DSO-T10, can produce fantastic results, thanks to high resolutions and cutting-edge lens technology, but can't match the flexibility and fine control of prosumer and digital SLR models

Introduction into Surreal digital photography

A Surreal digital photography doesn't so much evolve as mutate, flowing like a Dali clock to fill every available niche as artists come up with new and even more incredible ideas. This volume presents a showcase of those new ideas. Some are so simple that you'll wonder why you've never attempted them before; others are so involved that you'll wonder why on earth anyone attempted them in the first place. All are magnificent examples of the surreal photographer's art.

Thanks to the Internet and the ease with which digital technology allows artists to ahare and exhibit their work, many thriving communities of surreal artists have sprung up, with members spread across the globe, This book alone features contributors) from the U.S., Groat Britain, Belgium, Croatia, Latvia, Slovenia, and Sweden, and there were many more that we just oouldn't squeeze In.

The reason for this abundance of Imagery Is that people like to take a break from the norm every now and then, and Just let their imagination run riot. Feel like combining a fish's face with that photo of your mother-in-law? Go right ahead (Just remember to work on a copy). Want to reimagine your friend as a fairy?

Left Guardian Angel by Domed Lombergar

Feel free-Photoshop will grant your wish. Got a hankering to add flailing tendrils and an extruded checkerboard skull to a Rodinesque thinker with a migraine? Well, you may need to spend some time learning some 30 basics first, but sure, It's possible. The tools are all there waiting Is be picked up and put to good use.

And that's the main thing: the tools to create any image are at your disposal-all you need is the spark of an idea to set them in motion. You don't need to be a Photoshop genius to create stunning images (although, admittedly, the more complex your idea, the more technical knowledge you're likely to need to complete it); a bit of forethought and planning will help to break down the most daunting of composite images into manageable chunks.

All of the source files for making these images are available to download from the Web address that you'll find on the inside cover of the book, so you can work through them for yourself and see how each of the surreal images was created from start to finish. Hopefu.ly you'll be inspired to create even more surreal images of your own.

Below The Gate of Eden by Ben Goossens