When I looked at the three books of this series, The Camera, The Negative and the Print, I waded into each wanting to choose only the best one from the series. I quickly realised that neither of the other two had what The Negative had and I have subsequently realised that this was by far the best choice for me. The negative deals with Visualization and image values, Light and Film, Exposure, The Zone System, Filters and Pre-Exposure, Natural Light, Artifical Light, Darkroom processes, Dark Room equiptment and procedures and value control in processing.

This book is an absolute must for intermediate photographers who have mastered the basics and want to take a step up into the world of greater control over their imaging with an eye to developing and processing their own film and prints. Everything you need to know about getting your images right before you even hit the shutter is in this book, all you need to do now is accentuate the positive by going and buying The NEGATIVE!


The quintessential guide to exposure   May 20, 2002
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

This book is the second of Ansel Adams three instructional masterpieces (see the Camera and the Print). In it one will find everything they require to become masters of exposure and development. This is the greatest single book on the subject of black and white films ever written. And despite its age, it remains indispensable.


Great series   April 3, 2002
 2 out of 2 found this review helpful

This whole series (The Camera, The Negative, & The Print) are highly recommended for anyone seriously interested in learning more about photography and improving their skills. If you're not interested in that, then the books are probably still worth adding to your collection just to see all of Adams's stunning images.


demystifies 'correct exposure'   March 25, 2002
 2 out of 2 found this review helpful

With little doubt, this is the very best book on photographic technique I have read to date. This book does not insult one's intelligence nor does it mire one in excessive technical detail (practical information for the practical photographer). Upon reading just the first few chapters, one will be able to understand what 'correct' exposure is and how 99.9% of the camera metering systems calculate 'correct' exposure and why 99.9% of these camera metering systems fail under so many circumstances (i.e. backlighting, shooting in snow, etc.).

In lieu of buying cameras with 'smarter' meters (multi-segment, color sensing wonders) I would suggest that photographers read this book and learn how to make-do with the gear they currently have.


The complex negative   January 18, 2002
 4 out of 4 found this review helpful

I was really interested in getting to the bottom of how Adams has developed his Zone system for exposure control. My photography instructor had alluded to it's complexities. The book explains a huge range of technical details and the thinking behind them really clearly.

For those of us shooting in 35mm some of the lessons cannot be put into practice directly because pushing or pulling is limited to whole rolls of film rather than individual frames. However the insights are really valuable.

I recommend it.