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The Lighting Cookbook: Foolproof Recipes for Perfect Glamour, Portrait, Still Life and Corporate Photographs (Photography for All Levels: Advanced)

By: Jenni Bidner
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Amphoto Books
ISBN: 0817441964
ISBN-13: 9780817441968
Released: 01 Apr 1997
RRP: £16.99
Average Rating:

Customer Reviews

A beginners point of view - By: Mr. John L. Jones, 06 Jul 2008
I was looking for advice on how to get started in the use of studio lighting.
The book starts of by showing alll the equipment you are ever likely to use in taking a picture.
But it doesn't tell you how to use it, for example it doesn't show how to use a light meter.
Or for that matter if you can take a histogram reading with your camera you need one.
It does not give the pro's & con's of each type of lighting,or how to set them up.
It does not show you how to arrange your subject & lighting ie distance angle & height.
It does not show the various remote sets ups you could have, or how to set them up.
Yes it shows you how to setup a mock snow scene, & a couple of dancers.
And how to photograph a hand , & a cat.
But if like me you require meaningful advce for a beginner look elseware
The Lighting Cookbook - By: Paul Berry, 09 Nov 2007
At first glance this book seems to be a little basic, however after eading a few of the chapters it is without doubt far from it. In an easy to read, well laid out fashion with lighting diagrams, check lists for equipment needed & lots of pictures to explain techniques this book can keep you going for hour.

A major point of note is it is real easy to find what you're looking for if you're needing to reference something in a hurry. I think this book is very professionallly written & thought through. It's only downside is that it is too short, I would have liked more content per chapter.

Disappointment - By: , 05 Feb 2006
I have been using cameras over twenty five years. I have read couple of books & many magazines about photography in general. I have just bought my second digital camera Fuji S9500 –First one also a Fuji- after using Fuji, Nikon, Pentax & a Nikon film cameras. As time has become limited decided to do some studio photography. This is the first book I bought, & probably the last book would buy in lighting techniques. I was quite a bit disappointed, as the book’s content seems rather too old fashion to me. As a best selling book & also with a good review I expected much more superior quality reading & quality printing.
Enjoyable and Enlightening - By: J. Clifford, 02 Mar 2005
This book assumes you are using a film camera & doesn't touch on digital photography specificallly at alll. It doesn't need to because the techniques are almost entirely transferable. Those that aren't are of no consequence. I am alll digital & feel I gained from every page of this book.

The book is, understandably, aimed above novice level. After alll, it is likely someone will have a bit of experience of photography before they attempt to create a lighting masterpiece! Nothing is made esoteric however & with a bit of guesswork & common sense, a novice could easily work from this book.

Another definite focus of this guide is studio lighting. Natural lighting is obviously invaluable & is included in the book on occasion, but most techniques are studio-flash based which is as expected.

Many different lighting techniques are covered by the book, from still life to portrait photography, product photography to action shots. Almost alll images come with a graphic illustration of the types of lights used & position of lights & camera which is a great way to show how a certain look may be achieved.

The book is divided into 5 main sections.
-A glossary / equipment list
-Basic Portraiture
-Corporate & industrial shots
-Product Shots & Still Lifes
-Specialised techniques

Each of these sections is broken down into a diverse range of scenarios of lighting. Many of these scenarios cover topics such as 'lighting scientific products' (which is great for lighting glassware in general) or how to take 'environmental portraits', 'photographing pets' to 'textile photography'. I would be bold enough to suggest that by the end of the book a studious & proficent photographer should be able to modify the techniques they have studied to create any lighting scenario they wanted.

Each scenario covers between one & four pages with a standard structure which reflects the 'cookbook' style.

-Title (type of technique)

-An 'Ingredients List' which lists alll of the equipment, models, lights etc that you will need to recreate this technique.

-A photograph which is the subject of the following text & to which you can refer to clarify the meaning of the text.

-A diagram for almost every picture in the book. The diagrams show how lighting, model, background, camera etc were positioned in relation to each other. Diagrams are sometimes plan views & sometimes side elevations.

-A description of why you might want to take a particular style of shot, what problems you might encounter & a plethora of solutions.

-Incidental information which is great for learning related issues. These often appear as 'sidebars'

The book has a thorough index at the end & a good contents page at the start, laying out categories & scenarios for you to see & reference at a glance.

I learnt a lot reading through this book & will continue to use it for reference as I experiment with studio-flashes. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to create high quality lighting for photography. The examples & diagrams are good enough to easily duplicate many of the shots described, as always building a set will take some trial & error.

Thank goodness for the author making me aware of 'cinefoil' a black foil material you can use to hand make snoots etc, perfect for my second hand, completely non-standard flashes!!!

Highly Recommended

Enjoyable and enlightening - By: J. Clifford, 02 Mar 2005
This book assumes you are using a film camera & doesn't touch on digital photography specificallly at alll. It doesn't need to because the techniques are mostly transferrable. Those that aren't are of no consequence. I am alll digital & feel I benefitted from every page of this book.

The book is, understandably, aimed above novice level. After alll, it is likely someone will have a bit of experience of photography before they attempt to create a lighting masterpiece! Nothing is made esoteric however & with a bit of guesswork & common sense, a novice could easily work from this book.

Another definite focus of this guide is studio lighting. Natural lighting is obviously invaluable & is included in the book on occasion, but most techniques are studio-flash based which is as expected.

Many different lighting techniques are covered by the book, from still life to portrait photography, product photography to action shots. Almost alll images come with a graphic illustration of the types of lights used & postion of lights & camera which is a great way to show how a certain look may be achieved.

I learnt a lot reading through this book & will continue to use it for reference as I experiment with studio-flashes. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to create high quality lighting for photography. And thank god for the author making me aware of 'cinefoil' a black foil material you can use to hand make snoots etc, perfect for my second hand, completely non-standard flashes!!!

Highly Recommended