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Reviews (10)
03 Dec, 2009
An odd approach to learning photo lighting.
This has to be the oddest book I have read in a long time. It is supposed to be a textbook for intermediate photography students, teaching them to understand the nature and use of lighting in photography, and teaching a method of seeing. The author attempts to explain light scientifically, but has a pathetic grasp of the science involved. For example: "It is generally assumed that light is what results when energy is speeded up to a certain point--the energy turns into light and escapes the gravitational pull of the light source..." This goes on for most of the book. It strikes me as the efforts of creative types to be analytical, inventing their own explanations and trying to convey them to their students. I guess on a practical level it works, but it's pretty bogus.
The scope of the book is limited to intentionally simplistic aspects, in the interest of getting the student to learn one thing at a time. The author dismisses color as being uninteresting, and only goes into black and white photography. The equipment used is limited to two photoflood lamps, a few panels of foam-core painted black and white, and a roll of wide plain paper. Much of the book is taken up with discussion of how to expose and develop film and make prints in the darkroom, which is of course getting pretty obsolete now.
His main interest seems to center on representing space and solid volume in black and white photographs by means of lighting.
The book finally gets interesting at the very end where he proposes various projects. The explanations of portrait lighting are not bad, though since he does not use such items as softboxes and umbrellas, he ends up suggesting wall bounce and ceiling bounce lighting.
It's an interesting book, but it just makes you wonder what he was smoking.
08 Oct, 2014
The best book on mastering the art of photography.
This is far and away the best book on mastering the art of photography that I have found, having read dozens from the public library. The book starts where most of the others leave off. It doesn't get bogged down in the basics, nor in esoterica. It tells how to do something, and explains the reasoning behind the how-to. It shows lots of images with analysis of what is good and not-so-good. It has an assignment in each section for you to pursue. This is the only photography book that I have found reason to recommend to anybody.
04 Jun, 2009
Getting started for would-be studio photographers
This book is slanted towards intermediate-level amateur photographers who are wanting to set up their own studio, whether full-time or in the living room at home. It shares a lot of practical information on how to do it. At places it is already a little dated, when discussing specifics of cameras and other gear. It still talks a lot about film, and digital cameras maxed out at 5 Megapixels when this was written. But it has lots of good illustrative photos, and takes the apprehension out of stepping out into new territory for the amateur. Even though the title is Studio Lighting, there is a lot of additional relevant information on setting up your own studio. It definitely is not aimed at seasoned professionals, they won't learn anything new from it.