Gary Friedman's Book on the Sony a99 transcends a mere manual on steroids. It's actually a great read.

I make the same mistake so many people in my age group/demographic/education level, etc., make: I think I am smarter than I really am. Like most people I'm sure I'm pretty close to the middle of the IQ Bell Curve but my ego keeps prodding me to believe that I must be nearer to the more valuable end. Every once in a while common sense wins over ego and I relent and actually do something beneficial for myself rather than presuming I already know everything already. (See how convoluted that paragraph is? Proof of my argument...).

When I bought my Sony a99 I presumed that my Vulcan-like intellect (often disproven) would make mastering all the nooks and crannies and crevices of the camera's potential child's play. And so I labored in blissful ignorance until yesterday. Only yesterday did I really start to unlock the secrets that are making that particular camera even better than I thought it would be. How did this happen? How did I break through the dam of ignorance in order to start realizing the potential of my $2800 purchase?

I took the advice of some people on the internet and bought a book by a guy named, Gary Friedman. He writes books about Sony cameras. If the a99 book is an typical example then he writes very, very good books about Sony cameras. I figured he would cover a lot of filler stuff and that I'd have to pick my way through a junkyard of trivia to find a few gems but I was smacked in the face by how good and how well aimed toward more advanced users the book is.

I've read some sections in their entirety and some I've skimmed over and will come back to. There were two areas about the camera that I hadn't really mastered. One was the use of the flashes that are available from Sony. And, especially, using the flashes in wireless modes and with groups. The second area is in setting the right autofocus combinations for best results. And I'll admit that, with my growing interest in video I read that section twice.

In just those readings I came away with a much enhanced understanding of how to get the best out of the a99 system. The e-book is over 600 pages. It contains lots of color illustrations and Gary gives it to buyers in three formats: a very nicely designed and indexed PDF format, a mobi format and an epub format for Nooks and other readers. Wow. Across all formats. Generous and amazing. Can you say, "Customer Service?"

He writes in a very fluid and humorous way. His understanding of every little detail is obvious. I have never been as happy with an e-book on so many levels. The design is superb. The layout and functionality (at least on an Apple computer, iPad and iPhone) is so good as to be invisible, transparent and buttoned up. I grabbed the information I was originally thirsty for and then went out for dinner. Now that I have the book loaded on my iPad I'll be settling in over the next few days to read it cover to cover like a novel.

The book is best read on a device that has an active connection to the internet. This is because Gary has provided numerous links about subjects you might want to dive into in more detail. Or he provides links to resources like Kurt Munger's excellent lens tests for Sony and Minolta lenses.

I can only recommend the e-books as that's what I've experienced. I wish I could put an affiliate link right here and benefit from his writing genius but I can't. You'll be best served to go directly to his site and order his book directly.  It's right here: Gary Friedman's Excellent a99 book.

Don't shoot with an a99? Browse his site and look at all the other books available. As soon as I digest this one I'm moving on to the Sony Nex7 book. Sorry to the Nikon, Canon and Olympus Shooters....I wish we had someone who writes this well covering those brands. But we don't.