If you’ve ever set out to learn how to do something using a computer you’ve more than likely come across (or may even own) one of the many books published by Pearson Technology Group (follow them on Twitter @ptgcanada) even if you didn’t know it. Pearson is the mothership that drives well known educational book series like the Sams (Teach Yourself) and QUE to name a few. But what many people don’t know is that they also have a huge lineup of books and other educational materials for creative professionals, photographers included.

To show their support for the creative arts Pearson has provided us with a huge pile of books for photographers that will be part of the winner prize packages handed out at the Gallery Showcase. These books are:

Visual Poetry: A Creative Guide for Making Engaging Digital Photographs

by Chris Orwig

A great photograph has the potential to transcend verbal and written language. But how do you create these photographs? It’s not the how that’s important, but the who and the what. Who you are as a person has a direct impact on what you capture as a photographer.

Whether you are an amateur or professional, architect or acupuncturist, physician or photographer, this guide provides inspiration, simple techniques, and assignments to boost your creative process and improve your digital images using natural light without additional gear.

Chris Orwig’s insights—to reduce and simplify, participate rather than critique, and capture a story—have made him an immensely popular workshop speaker and faculty member at the prestigious Brooks Institute. His engaging stories presented as lessons follow his classroom approach and highlight what students say is his contagious passion for life.

Within the Frame: The Journey of Photographic Vision

by David DuChemin

Within the Frame is a book about finding and expressing your photographic vision, specifically where people, places, and cultures are concerned. A personal book full of real-world wisdom and incredible images, author David duChemin (of pixelatedimage.com) shows you both the how and the why of finding, chasing, and expressing your vision with a camera to your eye. Vision leads to passion, and passion is a cornerstone of great photography. With it, photographs draw the eye in and create an emotional experience. Without it, a photograph is often not worth—and can’t capture—a viewer’s attention.

Both instructional and inspirational, Within the Frame helps you on your photographic journey to make better images of the places and people you love, whether they are around the world or in your own backyard. duChemin covers how to tell stories, and the technology and tools we have at our disposal in order to tell those narratives. Most importantly, he stresses the crucial theme of vision when it comes to photographing people, places, and cultures—and he helps you cultivate and find your own vision, and then fit it within the frame.

VisionMongers: Making a Life and a Living in Photography

by David DuChemin

For those who want to make the transition into the world of vocational photography—staying true to your craft and vision, while fusing that craft with commerce VisionMongers is a great place to begin your journey. With a voice equally realistic and encouraging, photographer David duChemin discusses the experiences he’s had, the lessons he’s learned, and the practices he’s adopted in his own winding journey to becoming a successful working photographer.

When it comes to this personal, honest combination of craft and commerce, there is no single path to success. Everyone’s goals are different, as is everyone’s definition of success. As such, VisionMongers does not prescribe a one size-fits-all program. Instead, duChemin candidly shares ideas, wisdom, and inspiration to introduce you to, and help you navigate, the many aspects of transforming your passion into your vocation. He addresses everything from the anxiety-riddled question “Am I good enough?” to the basics—and beyond—of marketing, business, and finance, as well as the core assumption that your product is great and your craft is always improving.

Along the way, duChemin features the stories of nine other photographers—including Chase Jarvis, Gavin Gough, and Zack Arias—whose paths, while unique, have all shared a commitment and passion for bringing their own vision to market. With VisionMongers, you’ll learn what paths have been taken—what has worked for these photographers—and you’ll be equipped to begin the process of forging your own.

Photographing Nature: A photo workshop from Brooks Institute’s top nature photography instructor

by Ralph Clevenger

Anyone can photograph nature—just step outside and you’re on location. But becoming a good nature photographer takes expert training. In Photographing Nature, Ralph Clevenger, whose images have appeared in such publications as Nature’s Best and National Geographic, shares the techniques he’s been personally using and teaching to aspiring photographers for the last 25 years in his popular nature photography course at the elite Brooks Institute.

In this stunning, four-color course-in-a-book, each chapter opens with a spectacular photo spread from the natural world that Clevenger uses to illustrate themes and techniques essential to mastering nature photography. Just as he does in his classroom at Brooks, Clevenger explains how each photo was captured, the tools and techniques used, and typical problems related to capturing such a photo, along with solutions. Chapters also include sample Q&A sessions as well as assignments you can try yourself.

By the time you’ve worked through all of the techniques in this beautiful, yet informative book, you’ll not only photograph the world differently, you’ll see it differently as well. With a foreword by George Lepp, one of North America’s best-known contemporary outdoor and nature photographers.

Hot Shoe Diaries, The: Big Light from Small Flashes

by Joe McNally

After spending more than thirty years behind the lens—working for National Geographic, Time, Life, and Sports Illustrated—Joe McNally knows about light. He knows how to talk about it, shape it, color it, control it, and direct it. Most importantly, he knows how to create it…using small hot shoe flashes.

In The Hot Shoe Diaries, Joe brings you behind the scenes to candidly share his lighting solutions for a ton of great images. Using Nikon Speedlights, Joe lets you in on his uncensored thought process—often funny, sometimes serious, always fascinating—to demonstrate how he makes his pictures with these small flashes. Whether he’s photographing a gymnast on the Great Wall, an alligator in a swamp, or a fire truck careening through Times Square, Joe uses these flashes to create great light that makes his pictures sing.

The Moment It Clicks: Photography secrets from one of the world’s top shooters

by Joe McNally

Joe McNally, one of the world’s top pro digital photographers, whose celebrated work has graced the pages of Sports Illustrated, Time, and National Geographic (to name a few), breaks new ground by doing something no photography book has ever done—blending the rich, stunning images and elegant layout of a coffee-table book with the invaluable training, no-nonsense insights, and photography secrets usually found only in those rare, best-of-breed educational books.

When Joe’s not on assignment for the biggest-name magazines and Fortune 500 clients, he’s in the classroom teaching location lighting, environmental portraiture, and how to “get the shot” at workshops around the world. These on-location workshops are usually reserved for a handful of photographers each year, but now you can learn the same techniques that Joe shares in his seminars and lectures in a book that brings Joe’s sessions to life.

The Photoshop CS4 Book for Digital Photographers

by Scott Kelby

Scott Kelby, the best-selling Photoshop author in the world today, once again takes this book to a whole new level as he uncovers the latest, most important, and most exciting new Adobe Photoshop CS4 techniques for digital photographers. This major update to his award-winning, record-breaking book does something for digital photographers that’s never been done before—it cuts through the bull and shows you exactly “how to do it.” It’s not a bunch of theory; it doesn’t challenge you to come up with your own settings or figure it out on your own. Instead, Scott shows you step-by-step the exact techniques used by today’s cutting-edge digital photographers, and best of all, he shows you flat-out exactly which settings to use, when to use them, and why. That’s why the previous editions of this book are widely used as the official study guide in photography courses at colleges and universities around the world.

The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 Book for Digital Photographers

by Scott Kelby

Written in concert with Adobe’s development of the Photoshop Lightroom 2 Beta, The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 Book for Digital Photographers – by #1 bestselling computer and technology author, Scott Kelby – is the most complete and concise Lightroom “how-to” book for digital photographers of all skill levels.

In The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 Book for Digital Photographers, Scott walks readers through the basics of Lightroom use, leading them to a brilliantly devised and super efficient digital photography workflow that dramatically improves productivity and allows photographers to spend less time processing photos and more time shooting them.

Throughout the book Scott shares his personal camera and Lightroom settings, as well as the studio-tested techniques he’s developed for his own photography workflow. The book is written in his trademark step-by-step, plain English style, and because he knows what really works and what doesn’t, he isn’t shy to tell you flat out which tools to use, which to avoid, and why. This allows digital photographers of any skill level to jump right in using Lightroom like a pro from the very start, sidestepping a lot of the frustrations that typically haunt those unfamiliar with new applications…especially those as powerful as Lightroom.

About Pearson

Pearson Technology Group Canada (PTGC) is the premier distributor of books and training materials for today’s business and IT professional. PTGC represents the publishing industry’s leading imprints for authoritative and cutting edge technical and professional information. Our imprints include: Financial Times Press,Addison-Wesley, Prentice-Hall Professional, Cisco Press, Peachpit Press, Que Publishing, and Sams Publishing. In addition PTGC has corporate alliances with Cisco Systems, Adobe Systems, Sun, and IBM.

PTGC is a division of Pearson Education Canada, one of the global education publishing business of Pearson plc., the international media group.

You can get more information about Pearson and their extensive lineup of educational products (including Morten’s two books) check out their Canadian website. You can also follow them on Twitter @ptgcanada for the latest updates. Remember to check out their huge selection of books, DVDs and other learning materials for creative professionals by visiting PeachPit.com.

We are thrilled to have Pearson on board as a sponsor and hugely jealous of the winners who get to walk away with these fantastic books.