Customer Reviews

The Bare Bones Camera Course for Film and Video

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Tom Schroeppel is an experienced film editor. Originally written for film cameras, the 2002 edition has been updated to apply also to video cameras. It's amazing how, in this short book, he is able to explain in simple language and illustrations almost everything you need to know in order to make a film or video. If you read your video camera's manual and this one book you will have all the tools you need to make excellent videos. I bought this book in the USC bookstore - it's used in a film class.

I recently picked up this book at a college bookstore, and I read it in about two hours. This is a fabulous book to get all the basic information needed to start making movies. It's littered with helpful diagrams and good examples. Buy it now!

The bare bones camera course is an amazing book. There is no fluff, just good, honest, workable techniques; all well explained. I wish i had come across this years ago.

Unlike many training books The Bare Bones Camera Course for Film and Video does not attempt to suggest what camera you should buy, nor does it tell you how to shoot Aunt Alice's 80th birthday party. This book, in its 89 pages, is a beautiful example of a subject that has been pared down to the essential information needed to learn it----and the subject is how to operate your video camera to get the best images you can.

The book's table of contents lists eight sections:

· Basics (such as camera functions, lenses, depth of field)
· Composition
· Basic Sequence
· Screen Direction
· Camera Moves
· Montages
· Lighting
· Doing It (how to plan for a shoot)

Each section is covered concisely, and there are over 200 simple, but effective, black and white line art illustrations to accompany the topic being discussed. This book is perfect for the person who wants to concentrate on improving their video camera operating skills.

This book was the text used in my first production class in college while pursuing my Journalism degree. This book and that class made me realize early on that I wanted to be behind the camera instead of in front of it. That was 1992. I'm now a Production Manager and Senior Editor making training videos for the US Army. We have 23 field shooters, most of which came to us with little to no experience. I've been at my job for 10 years now, and to this day, this book is the first thing we give to our new videographers in training them. It is written in a simple and to the point manner. It's not flashy by any stretch of the imagination, but when you need to convey simple principles like the "rule of thirds", depth of field, focal length, and other basic principles-- this book is indispensable. If you can still find a copy and need a quick, easy to read and digest guide to the fundamentals of harnessing light with a lens, this book is still on the top of my list.

This was a requirement at my classes when I went to USC film school. Everyone loved it. I knew nothing about camerawork, composition or the basics, and this book just taught the essential tools and tricks to get started. If you're interested in making movies or camerawork, this book is your first stop. I loved it so much, it inspired me to write The Bare Bones Book of Screenwriting

This is one of the simplest, and best books I've ever seen for beginner filmmakers. It is able to very clearly explain complicated concepts, without writing any more than necessary. It's a very slender book, and a very quick read, and well worth your time.

Very good book that explains things as if you were a child, or maybe a teenager.

As someone who orders a lot of books and then reads and highlights the first chapter, then puts them on a shelf, I was glad that I was actually able to read this entire book. Most of it is very useful information, and best of all no extra padding.

Definitely one of the best books I've read on making film. Should be essential reading for anyone who wants to get involved in filmmaking.

Bare bones get straight to the point! If you were to compile a book of only highlighted text after reading through a 1000 page book on how to set lights, lenses, and cameras, this book would be the resultant! It's hard to eliminate a single sentence from this book. This book is great learning tool for beginners and a great resource for pro's!

I'm currently reading this book for a video class and find it very easy reading, with illustrations that accurately describe the basic fundamentals needed for shooting. At first I thought it looked a little "too" basic, but when you're learning how to capture the right shot for video, it's much nicer to have a book describe it in lay terms rather than industry jargon that confuses you. That being said, it defines some of the jargon for you that is needed for future education courses in Video.