Customer Reviews

Sculpting with Light: Techniques for Portrait Photographers

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When you pick up a book like this, what is your real intention? Is your goal to work for your local portrait studio? Is your goal to build your own studio and take portraits there? If you answered YES to either of these questions, then I think this is a great book for you to consider reading. If your goal is to take better pictures of your family members using your flash gun, or reach the elite level of fashion photography, then your search for the right book isn't over yet.

Allison Earnest takes you on a journey into her world of what I would call common private studio photography. This is actually the type of professional photographer that most of interact with at some point in our lives, be it our first family portrait, Senior portraits, or our wedding studio shoot. There's people like Allison in every city of the country, some of whom work independently and other who work for a large studio which sees hundreds of families daily. The techniques described in this book will teach you how to work in that industry to get results that you once paid what you thought was a lot of money for (your perception changes when you're the photographer :).

When I first skimmed through this book my first thought was "these pictures aren't that great," so I admit I went in with a negative attitude when I read this book. I quickly got annoyed with the author seemingly trying to sell me on Hensel lights throughout the book (note to editor - skip brand names if there is a next edition). However, as I read on I appreciated the authors middle chapters that offered some really good advice and tips that aren't always easy to find. Had I been the editor, I would have cut chapters 1 and 8 from the book and enhanced chapters 2 & 6. That leaves chapters 3, 4, 5, & 7 as being the real useful content in this book. For many that will be enough, especially if you don't have exposure to those concepts. I appreciated what was there, and suspect you will as well.

Skill Level: Any

Value: At retail, too much - but the going rate on Amazon is fair

Recommendation: If you are new to studio lighting and want to improve your portraiture then chapters 3 through 5 will be useful to you and probably worth the price of the book. If that isn't your goal then you shouldn't bother with this one. In the end, I say pick it up on sale and skip to the good stuff.

Photography literally means "writing with light" and here you have it - how you do exactly that - in words you can understand and concepts you can immediately put into practice, no matter what your proficiency with a camera. If you don't invest the time to understand light and how it affects your images - learning how to control the light to achieve the image you see in your head - you are doomed to be a snapshot shooter forever. Cameras don't take pictures; people do. Here is a conversational approach to light control - with wonderful images to illustrate her direction - that tells the story in words and pictures. Allison has a easy to read writing style and the production values - the reproduction of colour images - are very impressive. Someone watched over this project with a careful eye. Nice job. Good book. Great execution.

There are many books out there dealing with lighting for portrait photography. This one stands out among the rest because of the accessible way Ms. Earnest presents the information. It's as if you are having a one-on-one workshop with her. She uses both photographs and diagrams to explain various lighting situations. She discusses the camera settings that produced the various photos. She provides some background about the models, which lends a human touch to the technical information. I especially like the "before and after" photos - very helpful in understanding what the light really is doing. The "info arrows" in the photos of the lighting setups are an excellent teaching device!!

Bottom line - I'm very glad I purchased this book. I know it will help me grow as a photographer, even though I, as a fine art photographer, photograph "things" more than "people." Having a better understanding of how to use light doing people portraits transfers readily to doing portraits of things: still lifes, trees, flowers, trains, etc.!!! I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in expanding his/her understanding of light in photography.

As an experienced wedding photographer of 13 years, this is an outstanding book that is very helpful in improving my work. I really like the fact Allison Earnest incorperated the science of photogaphy into practical and easy to understand advise. I highly recommend this book if you are just starting in photography and even if you are a master photographer. This will be one of those books on my book shelf that I will be referring to frequently.

Chapters 1 thru 4 were fairly basic review of technical photo physics, chapters 5 thru 7 are the meat of the book and contain the best the author has to offer. Chapters 8 and the Conclusion were filler and detract from the overall purpose of the book. Chapters 5 thru 7 would be good review for photographers working in areas like the Senior Portrait area, especially for corrective lighting for tough subjects.

This book is very well written, it has great information that both amateurs and professionals will benefit from. The author speaks well to the reader and provides great visual representation's of what she is explaining.
There are a lot of books on lighting and photography, but none really touch on the critical techniques to flatter a subject quite so well.
I would strongly recommend this book to anyone looking to improve their lighting techniques.

Today's photographers are taught many aspects about capturing images, light, posing, etc. Allison's book is more about making the image, given the raw materials and tools, conform to the artist's vision -- and that is what she shares with us. Allison's direct, easy style gives invaluable insight to methods of adding, subtracting, and modifying light for a better image.

A book versed on how to manipulate light for maximum appeal in portrait photography. How the author explains this is also what makes this a stand out book. After a scientific description of light, how to meter it and tools used to generate it, some of the basics are covered such as lighting ratios and high and low key lighting. It is the techniques given on lighting requirements for various shapes of faces that is a real strength of this book. This along with corrective measures for some common issues will help any photographer ensure the most flattering results possible.

The cover might lead you to believe this book only covers studio lighting, but that is not the case. It is a very comprehensive book about sculpting with all kinds of light -- studio strobes, camera flashes, and ambient light.

The photos are gorgeous and clearly demonstrate the different lighting scenarios. There is plenty of information about studio portrait photography (open-loop lighting, butterfly lighting, rembrant lighting, etc...). You will learn how to flatter different facial structures with studio lighting patterns.

The author also discusses lighting different skin tones, shaping sunlight with scrims, gobos, etc..., and balancing artificial light and ambient light for portraits.

Highly recommended for those still learning the language of light.

I just got Allison's book, "Sculpting with Light" and my initial impression is that it's OUTSTANDING!!! I've been in photography for quite some time and this book is what has been needed for a long time, wish I had it many years ago. Learning how to light a subject and understanding the physics of lighting is absolutely a must for the true professional portrait photographer, whether environmental or studio. Allison does a magnificent job of presenting the information without overwhelming the reader with "techno-speak". She also describes some great techniques for dealing with different face types and skin tones. Too many so-called "professionals" these days simply don't understand lighting or the basics of photography at all, rather relying on their Photoshop skills, call me a purest but that's not photography. If you feel that way too, then buy Allison's book, you won't be disappointed.