Rating: 
Summary: All good things end
Review: This book was in it's day a great book worthly of a 5 star rating but time has a way of making material irrelevant. Probably half the book deals with photography lessons that time won't change but the other half deals with equipment and how to use it. Having been published in 1984 all the equipment information in it has become outdated.
The book was written before digital photography was even a dream,eg: TTL flash metering was the new thing, but we have gone through D-TTL and now have I-TTL flash sysems out.
There is simply no reason to purchase a book that is simply so far out of date, a great book in it's day, but that day and come and gone.
Rating: 
Summary: Superb
Review: This is a GREAT book. I would highly recommend it as it makes photography understandable for the novice. It's not just nature, it's also great knowledge about EXPOSURE, with excellent examples of how it relates to nature. But, you could easily adapt the concepts to any type of photo op. Buy this book, you will love it.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book for beginners!
Review: This is an excellent book for budding photographers. John Shaw explains the fundamentals of photography lucidly and clearly with his own photographs along with nice anecdotes.
This book is just worth for it's great pictures! Great piece of work!! It is a great value for the money. Just buy it!
Rating:
Summary: A very comprehensive book on photography.
Review: This is more than just another book on nature photography. It is a solid guide on the equipment and knowledge required for photography in general. The information is easily understandable, yet provides much more depth than is usually found in how to books. This is a good solid course in 35mm photography, with an emphasis on nature. I have also read his close-up book, his landscape book, and his "Focus On Nature". The scope of this book is so broad, you will not need those others. If you only buy one book on outdoor photography, this should be the one.
Rating:
Summary: A great tool to improve your photos
Review: This is one great book. Want to understand exposure go thro this book. I have an F 80, I used to use the Matrix metering of the f80 almost all the time & print films most of the times, mainly becos i was not too sure of the exposures to make & I used print film becos vis-a- vis slide films they afford better exposure latitude. After reading this book I have confidently moved onto slide film completely & only use the manual exposure/a/s mode in the Nikon & believe me my pictures have improved. However this book is for people with some basic idea of photography. The author is also a nikon buff, this might put off other camera owners. But if you are looking forward to a book that will help u make the Quantum Jump from an amateur to an advanced amateur or a professional this is a must have/read.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Photography Guide
Review: This is one of the best guides for photography I've read with easy to follow instructions and very understandable language. Any beginner to photography would benefit from this guide and the photos are stunning. A definite "must buy" for any amateur photographers.
Rating:
Summary: This book answers all your nature photography questions!
Review: With the release of this updated Field Guide, Shaw presents his incredible photography, along with his personal opinions regarding gear, lighting, lenses, accessories. His discussions delve into all aspects of the each topic. For instance, under the chapter "Teleconverters," he not only explains the theory behind them, but he elaborates as to when and under what circumstances to consider using them--and when to avoid them. There are specific gear references and opinions throughout the book, for anyone looking to build or expand an equipment base (with a heavy Nikon emphasis). The photography, as expected, is absolutely amazing and inspiring. His photographs serve to illustrate any nature photography topic you could name--filters/ film speed/ depth of field/ telephotos/ macro photography/ composition, etc., and each topic is explained in concise, yet conversational language. He writes as though he's been asked to share his wealth of nature photography knowledge with a friend--very readable and yet technically detailed. This book deserves a place on any photographer's bookshelf--you won't be disappointed!
Rating:
Summary: A Must Have for a Serious Beginner
Review: Without doubt great photographers are abundant but great photographers who can write instructional books are rare. Having read several books on the mechanics of photography, John Shaw's work stands above the rest. His book is well organized, with the most important basics at the beginning where they should be placed. I liked how Shaw included direct questions to the reader as if he were actually teaching you in a classroom. He breaks the mechanics of exposure down in a way that makes sense. Unlike other books, Shaw does not shy away from going the extra step to explain why something is or how it came about from a mathematical standpoint. I also loved Shaw's occaisonal commentary on former workshop students or people he has seen in his travels. Granted it might come across as harsh at times, it adds comedy and personality. There's nothing worse than a dry photography book when it's obvious that most photographer's have strong opinions about their art and other people's blunders. In fact, I almost wish Shaw would have included more personal tidbits. I have no complaints about his body of work. He has basically answered the majority of my questions. Though I would have loved to see a section on basic camera care. For example, how he cleans a camera and lens (since it can be more challenging than you might think), what happens if you drop a lens and you want to make sure it's still working properly, how to clean the inside of a camera. I would have also loved a section on a typical day in the field with Shaw. He included so many entertaining side notes on workshops that I would have loved to read a typical day in his life. Otherwise, excellent book. I strongly recommend it.
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