I have always thought that the iPad (or any other tablet) would make the perfect home for textbooks. Prose and regular writing is the same on screen or paper, but textbooks--with all their diagrams, examples, sidebars and the like--really benefit from the "interactive multimedia" features of a video display.
It turns out I was right. And a new iPad book/app, Master Your DSLR Camera proves it. The app, by Gadget Lab alumnus David Becker (most noted for calling me an ignorant slut in 2007), comes on like a cross between a reference book and a full-on photography course.
Because you can tap and swipe pretty much anything, the tutorials can really show you how, say, aperture affects depth-of-field, and how different shutter speeds can freeze or blur motion. And just by touching various parts of a picture of a DSLR, you get pop-over descriptions of the various knobs and dials. It's way better than flipping paper pages back and forth in your user manual.
Thankfully, David decided not to put his own ugly mug into the app, instead casting photojournalist Mary F. Calvert in the video tutorials -- something else almost impossible with a regular book (sure, some come with a DVD, but who ever watches that?)
If you're a seasoned photographer, this might not be for you. But if you just got a new SLR, or you have had one for years and never shifted it off the "green square" idiot mode, then this could be a great way to spend $10. Available now.
Master Your DSLR Camera [Open Air. Thanks, David!]
