Photo supplied by Angie Patterson

By Shaun Penner

Making Photography Easy and Fun

Grande Prairie photographer’s new book aims to provide self-help to beginning photographers

Dec 21, 2020 | 12:50 PM

A local photographer has recently published a book which she hopes will give budding and beginning photographers the basics for taking the perfect photo.

Grande Prairie’s Angie Patterson recently released her book Making Photography Easy and Fun, which is meant to provide new photographers with the essential information they need to get themselves started on the right foot.

Patterson, who has been a long-time photographer and photography teacher in the area, says her own experiences in trying to get started with photography gave her the idea for the book.

“I would just remember my frustrations with trying to figure out the camera manual, looking at the buttons and dials and thinking ‘I have no idea how this works’,” recalled Patterson to EverythingGP.

“So, I got to the point where I thought ‘maybe this would be a cool idea, just to help other beginner photographers deal with their frustrations, and just want to be able to take the kinds of photos they would like to take or just to learn more.

The book, which was released at the end of September, is broken down into ten essential tips. Patterson says the tips help explain how to use and understand a digital camera.

“We set it out so that it is step-by-step, lots of explanations, practice exercises,” said Patterson. “So, it’s like ‘turn this dial, push this button, look for these numbers, this is what you’re looking for’, with all kinds of examples.”

Patterson says she and her partner, Wendy Nurcombe, have been working on this project for the better part of a decade. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the two decided to resurrect the project in an e-book format. After seeking out the advice of a publisher to help get the project completed, Patterson says it quickly turned into having a full book published.

Now that she is a published author, Patterson is still in a bit of disbelief that she carries the title of author.

“It really just seems quite surreal, just having the book in my hand.”

The book is available in Grande Prairie at Watson’s Foto Source. It can also be purchased online.