Customer Reviews

The Grip Book, Fourth Edition

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

 

 

I am probably not the best person to review this book because I bought it confused thinking that it was about using grip equipment creatively for photography and video production. I was thinking that it was, more or less, something in the line of Manfrotto's DYI pdf.

What I found is an encyclopedia of equipment made for grips. Yes you read it right, GRIP is a job title in movie production. Grips are the individuals that build the cinematic stage, setup lighting and shooting platforms used in movie production. I was not aware that term was used to describe a position in the work crew of movie production until I bought this book.

That being said the book covers an impressive collection of equipment ranging from bolts and brackets to cranes and platforms reaching 20 feet high in the air. As I go through the book, I sense it covers two areas. The first area includes Introduction, first chapter (Big Break), seventeenth (General Tricks of the Trade) and eightieth (The Rental House) chapters. All of those chapters describe the job of a grip and provide advice on how to be one and how to deal with employers and vendors.

The second area includes all other chapters starting from chapter two (Essential equipments) and ending with chapter 19 (Field Operation). Within those chapters you will find detailed description of every imaginable grip tool including minibooms, fluid heads, butterflies, lifts, filters, expendables such as dulling spray, and much more. The descriptions along with reference for associated accessories are usually detailed and through. Some tools were left with very short descriptions. Such descriptions are only useful to identify the item, not much more.

The book does not explain when to use grip tools. Rather, the author focuses on providing a complete description of what such tools are used for and in some cases how to technically operate them. Hence, this book is not a "how to" type of book, it's mainly a reference.

If not, than this one isn't for you.
It is a ok book, but majority of people that buy this kind of books wont get their hands on most of the equipment described in the Grip book. I found the lighting technician handbook much much better written, and more comprehensive. You can find a thing or two in the book, but if you are a low buget, small production guy, than it is not worth it. But also with it you get an access to their video tutorials, which is cool.

This book was very helpful identifying some of the components to the position of a grip and some of the tools to familiarize yourself with to preform the duties accurately.

If you are at all interested in doing grip work, this will give you a operations manual and a solid foundation to work with.

really had no idea there were books on gripping and really never considered the necessity of one, but its useful for a grip. definitely.