What makes a photograph iconic; three things every picture must have to stand out from any old snapshot; Sartore's introduction to photography; how a great picture does not rely on equipment; think critically about the surroundings.

Good equipment is necessary to take a picture; a guide to finding photography equipment including cameras, tripods, and camera bags; an in-depth look at a camera's controls and settings; aperture; shutter speed; ISO.

Lenses are the most critical tools of photography; different lenses in action; some lenses are good for blurring out distractions; rectilinear lenses are great for photographing things with minimal distortion; wide-angle lenses.

The camera's shutter speed controls how much light enters the lens in a shot; how to work with this critical tool of photography; when to use fast or slow shutter speeds; studying each speed's unique effects; panning and ghosting.

What different apertures mean; how aperture settings create different visual effects and solve specific compositional problems; examining Sartore's acclaimed work; the relationship between aperture and a photograph's depth of field.

How to tap into the power of ambient light which is not created in a studio; how to adjust the camera to make the most of found light; the best kind of ambient light; front lighting; hatchet lighting; zebra lighting.