Customer Reviews

Lighting for TV and Film, Third Edition

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This skilfully illustrated book is a practical guide to lighting for television and film. It covers the principals, techniques and equipment involved in lighting for single-camera location shoots, as well as multi-camera studio productions. It is an excellent handbook to help film students understand all aspects of lighting, but can be retained throughout your career in the motion picture industry for reference purposes. It starts off with the basics and gradually moves on to more complicated aspects of lighting. The emphasis is on the practical application of the theory behind lighting. In this respect it is full of examples of common problems and how to solve them in practice. It is clear that this book was written with the knowledge gained from years of practical lighting experience.

This is a marvelous book as an advanced course in lighting. It provides a classic grounding in light effects and light theory. I would characterize it as an intermediate to advanced text book, so it is not a good choice for those just starting out. And while it is chocked full of valuable information, the writting style is very much text book as well, so many people may find the presentation a bit dry. Be aware that the focus is more on television, although most of the advice applies to film as well. If your interest is digital cinema, then this would be a plus for you. The book is also beginning to show it's age in the section on lighting instruments. There are a number of instruments in common use today that are not covered in this book. That information, however, is readily available from manufacturers. Buy this book for it's timeless information on light and its critical importance in the look of TV and film.

I'm about one third of the way through this book, and I'm really impressed! Most of the information is on lighting, but I'd never realized how important and complicated lighting could be. This book also covers some related topics for creating good looking video -- though I haven't gotten to those yet. The author has a lot of relevant technical expertise, and does a very good job of conveying that knowledge. No previous experience is required, but I wouldn't call this a beginner's book -- the depth of technical knowledge conveyed is impressive. This is a third edition, which tells you that "Lighting for TV and Film" has sold well over many decades.