A Photographic Guide to the Birds of India : And the Indian Subcontinent, Including Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives

Rating:
Summary: "A" for effort, "B plus" for results
Review: This book is a very noble effort at a photographic field guide to Indian birds. Not surprisingly, the quality of the photos varies from excellent to marginal-at-best; a few species could not possibly be intentified from the photos provided. Having said that, this book does contain several valuable features lacking from the other Indian bird guides. The range maps are displayed along with each species, with symbols and notes on the relative rarity of each species. Another very nice feature is the inclusion of the older, common (English) names which is great for those who have birded in India for awhile. I also like the smaller size and portablility of this book. The bottom line: if you are going to take one bird field guide to India, I wouldn't take this one- the Grimmett/Inskipps or Kazmeirczak "non-photo" guides are better bets. However, if you are a serious birder and don't mind packing two bird books, I'd highly recommned taking this one along to supplement the information in the other field guides.

Rating:
Summary: Avoid
Review: wORTH aVOIDING - BAD PICTURES ( A FEW GOOD) NO MATCH FOR THE INSKIPP - NOT A GUIDE BUT A PICTURE BOOK