Customer Reviews
tedious but essential reading - By: Happy user, 30 Sep 2007 
The author picks his words very carefully & does not waste any; there is no light relief whatsoever. Still, if you want to learn a hell of a lot about photography, you just have to sit down, read the book slowly & carefully, listen to what's being said, & reap the enormous benefits of sharing the experience of a master. It's hard work, but unmissable.
An incredible book - By: Mr. M. A. J. Wells, 14 Nov 2005 
If you want to creat true masterpieces, regardless of whether you shoot large format, medium format, 35mm or digital, the method explained (and developed infact) by Adams in this book is essential.
Some people have accused this (and the two sister books) as being out of date. This is misleading because the main thrust of the whole trilogy (but especiallly The Negative) is the concept of visualisation of the final print & the techniques can be carried over into alll formats & are analagous. The Negative concentrates on the importance of visualising the desired end result at the time of exposure. This is so important, whether you shoot film or digitlly. You can't make a silk purse from a sows ear. You have to start with the best exposure you can possibly achieve.
I would highly recommend any aspiring (and experienced!) photographers to study this book, it certainly helped me an enourmous amount.
A book to have, to consult and to keep.. - By: guy.terwinghe@skynet.be, 26 Aug 2000 Everything has been said about this book & I agree completely. By it, read it & re-read it & be sure not to give it away. Keep it for the years to come!
An insight into the methods of a master - By: , 13 Jul 2000 This book, together with its' two companion volumes, shows how the craftmanship required to produce magnificent photography may be gained. 'Fashionable' photographers, many of whom are incapable of carrying out their own printing, should examine Adams' work & despair! Every photographer must have these invaluable books.
Great in-depth study of photography! - By: , 20 Dec 1999 Well, if you reallly want to spend alll those hours in the dark, you should reallly buy this one - the main lesson of Adams' "The Negative" is experiment, experimennt, experiment.
Even if you don't have time for that, there's always a good piece of advice in this one.
