Sound for Film and Television, Second Edition [Paperback]

Tomlinson Holman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 27, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0240804538 | ISBN-13: 978-0240804538 | Edition: 2

Sound for Film and Television, Second Edition provides a thorough introduction to the fascinating field of recording, editing, mixing, and exhibiting film and television sound. It strikes a fine balance between aesthetic and technical content, combining theory and practice to approach sound as both an art and a science, as no other text has before. This edition includes new information on digital techniques as they have arisen in the industry, and expanded coverage of sound editing and design.


Written by one of Hollywood's leading sound experts, Sound for Film and Television, Second Edition provides a solid grounding in all aspects of the sound process. Basic principles are presented with illustrations demonstrating how they affect the day-to-day activities on a film or television set, in the editing room, and in the mix room.

*The only text to present sound design as both an art and a science *Bridges the gap between production books and design engineering books

*Accompanying audio DVD contains examples demonstrating key concepts from the book

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The best overall technical introduction to film sound...As one would expect from the developer of the THX Sound System, among many other achievements, this book has a comprehensive approach and features one of the best introductions to psychoacoustics that you'll read anywhere."
- Larry Blake, Mix Magazine

"The book provides a fascinating and incredibly informative introduction to the world of film and television sound and is well recommended."
- James Eade, Lighting and Sound International

From the Publisher

The book provides an overall introduction to the fascinating field of recording, editing, mixing, and exhibiting film and television audio. It strikes a balance between aesthetic and technical content, combining theory and practice, to approach sound as both an art and a science, as no other text has before. This edition includes new information on sound design, and covers such topics as sample rate and word length in digital audio. Coverage of the applications of digital technology has been expanded throughout the book.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 285 pages
• Publisher: Focal Press; 2 edition (December 27, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0240804538
• ISBN-13: 978-0240804538
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #258,853 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical and theoretical for sound design/theory., February 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Sound for Film and Television, with accompanying audio CD (Paperback)

Having read almost every book out on sound for film and television, from the most contemporary to the classics, it was a surprise to find both the theoretical/aesthetic use of sound and technical sound information (from one who really knows, the author, creator of the THX sound system.) The innovative thinking Homan put into the design of the THX system has been equally applied to this book. The book gives countless examples of both classic and contemporary films demonstrating practical application of sound theories.The information in the book has been of great value to me in my film work and to several students I know from USC School of Cinema-TV and its Summer Production Workshops. I also found the CD in the back of the book extremely helpful in actually "hearing" principles discussed in the book, another innovation from the author.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Intro to Sound for Film and Video, January 21, 2000

By 

Ralph Keyser (Albuquerque, NM USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sound for Film and Television, with accompanying audio CD (Paperback)

As a newcomer to the world of audio for video productions, I found this book to be an excellent introduction. The author has struck a very nice balance that explains the technical and science aspects without getting bogged down in complexity. The book covers everything from sound and how people perceive it, to equipment, to techniques, and it even has a CD that demonstrates principles discussed in the book. The author makes liberal use of examples from popular films that I found very helpful in gaining insight into the topics under discussion. In addition to being a terrific overview, I've found myself going back to it as a reference due to the clear explainations it contains on a wide variety of topics.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Lazy Writing Makes This More Grueling Than an Instruction Manual, November 10, 2007

By 

peachkinn "modern muse" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sound for Film and Television, Second Edition (Paperback)

This book is an excruciating read and, if it didn't hold information I need, I'd toss it from my book stacks with satisfaction. Holman is clearly not a gifted writer and appears to have little interest in attempting to achieve such status. What you get with SOUND for Film and Television is like a condensed instruction manual for the study, technical names and mechanics screwed together with lazy, careless language. Forget skipping through to the middle to read up on a particular microphone, the crammed description will be completely composed of references to complex information from past chapters. You will have to read it through, as arduous (and potentially impossible) as the task may be, to access any of the valuable details buried within.