Here are some wonderful guidelines and essays by photographers which offer insight into their process and which many instructors at CDS include in their course readings:
Beyond the Snapshot: Basic Photography Techniques: http://beginningmultimedia.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/beyond-the-snapshot_handout.pdf by Elena Rue and Catherine Orr
Shooting for Multimedia: http://beginningmultimedia.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/shooting-for-multimedia_handout.pdf by Elena Rue and Catherine Orr
From The Youngest Parents: Afterword by John Moses (Book by Robert Coles)
Extraordinary Child: Photographs by Mary Ellen Mark
Garden of Eden by Bruce Kessler
A Positive Life: Portraits of Women Living with HIV by River Huston and Mary Berridge
Good podcast for learning photography basics: “Photography 101” by Scott Wittenburg
Good source for lighting and flash questions: http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/02/welcome-to-strobist.html