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· 2,939 ratings · 78 reviews

Start your review of Light: Science and Magic: An Introduction to Photographic Lighting

When looking for books on photographic techniques I ran into a bit of a problem.. many of them were heavily focused on 'so, you want to take pictures of half naked young girls, well here is how!'. Very few books focused on anything other then 'how to make skin look good'. I was VERY happy to find this book.

This book spends most of its time going over fundamentals. Rather then give recipes for various shoots, it attempts to teach you the underlying mechanisms of lighting so you can build your own

This book spends most of its time going over fundamentals. Rather then give recipes for various shoots, it attempts to teach you the underlying mechanisms of lighting so you can build your own setups. The authors encourage you to take their examples and recreate them (and post them to their flicker group), which I admit I did not do but I liked the idea.

For examples they used a wide variety of photographic fields... people, landscapes, product, so it really did not pigeonhole into a single type which really helped get across the whole 'fundamentals' aspect. They kept a good balance between humor and seriousness, and I think on the whole worked very well.

It is a book I highly recommend to anyone who wants to really learn about and understand lighting. However if what one wants is a quick set of patterns they can use and get on to other things, this really is not the book for them. This is for people who want to play with lighting, at least in part, for they joy of itself.

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Jan 10, 2008 Billrogers rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: all serious photographers.

This is the best book I've ever read on photographic lighting. It reads like a college textbook, and I believe it is used for this purpose.

Many lighting books are "light" on theory (sorry, couldn't resist ...), leaving the photographer without an understanding of why to do things a certain way.

The authors spend a great deal of time explaining the various types of reflections and their characteristics, emphasizing the key point that most photographs are images of reflected light.

Anyone who reads

This is the best book I've ever read on photographic lighting. It reads like a college textbook, and I believe it is used for this purpose.

Many lighting books are "light" on theory (sorry, couldn't resist ...), leaving the photographer without an understanding of why to do things a certain way.

The authors spend a great deal of time explaining the various types of reflections and their characteristics, emphasizing the key point that most photographs are images of reflected light.

Anyone who reads "Light: Science and Magic" will gain, as the authors state, a set of tools and ideas that may be applied to various situations in the future.

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the magical book I've ever read , I've extremely understood the reflections and how to manage them an much more , I suggest everybody wanting to go further into the matter of light and not just taking snaps , to everyone who wants to turn his journey into a melt of science and fun, it teaches you how to have fun in a scientific way. the magical book I've ever read , I've extremely understood the reflections and how to manage them an much more , I suggest everybody wanting to go further into the matter of light and not just taking snaps , to everyone who wants to turn his journey into a melt of science and fun, it teaches you how to have fun in a scientific way. ...more

Two philosophies broken for this book so far: I spent 40 bucks, on a book with an ATROCIOUSLY UGLY cover, which I picked it up in a CHAIN BOOKSTORE one bored afternoon. Nuts. I couldn't put it back down again and just abandon it there, like a mill puppy in a pet store -- it looked so ridiculously useful and accessibly written. "I will make your life so much better!" it promised with its weird bouncing silver balls and custard colored font. This is probably true. Guys I'm psyched. Two philosophies broken for this book so far: I spent 40 bucks, on a book with an ATROCIOUSLY UGLY cover, which I picked it up in a CHAIN BOOKSTORE one bored afternoon. Nuts. I couldn't put it back down again and just abandon it there, like a mill puppy in a pet store -- it looked so ridiculously useful and accessibly written. "I will make your life so much better!" it promised with its weird bouncing silver balls and custard colored font. This is probably true. Guys I'm psyched. ...more

Jun 28, 2008 Jedrek Kostecki rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: photographers.

Recommended to Jedrek Kostecki by: David Hobby.

The greatest book on light and photography I've ever seen. An excellent guide for anyone interested in controlled light photography and very handy for anyone who's interested in photography in general. The greatest book on light and photography I've ever seen. An excellent guide for anyone interested in controlled light photography and very handy for anyone who's interested in photography in general. ...more

Sep 22, 2008 Courtney rated it really liked it

There's a lot of fun light info. in this book. A lot that I will never use, but it's interesting nonetheless. I especially enjoyed the breakdown of RAW and what our eye prefers to see as far as curves are concerned. There's a lot of fun light info. in this book. A lot that I will never use, but it's interesting nonetheless. I especially enjoyed the breakdown of RAW and what our eye prefers to see as far as curves are concerned. ...more

I'm trying to work my way through this (I'm on chapter four), but this technical side of things is just too... technical for my taste I guess. I'm not sure what this says about my photography potential. I'm trying to work my way through this (I'm on chapter four), but this technical side of things is just too... technical for my taste I guess. I'm not sure what this says about my photography potential. ...more

A thought provoking book that talks in simple terms about light and how to work with it. Literally a revelation. I will be writing about it soon on my website. More to the point it has inspired me to learn more, practice more and understand the more I know the more I need to learn.

Jan 28, 2009 Aaron rated it it was amazing

This is more for Photographers than anything. Amazing book about what it all goes over.

This book distills everything you need to know about photographic lighting into just over 300 pages. Through repetition of key principles, and the gradual layering of more details into the example scenes at a pace that we can all cope with, it is easy to follow and full of tricks. Through clear diagrams and text, I found myself enjoying the discussion of different surfaces and how they reflect light, how small and large lights create different kinds of shadows, on to how to make perfect copies u This book distills everything you need to know about photographic lighting into just over 300 pages. Through repetition of key principles, and the gradual layering of more details into the example scenes at a pace that we can all cope with, it is easy to follow and full of tricks. Through clear diagrams and text, I found myself enjoying the discussion of different surfaces and how they reflect light, how small and large lights create different kinds of shadows, on to how to make perfect copies using some basic principles.
Overall an excellent book, accessible for its teaching of fundamentals that every photographer should know, while providing a path to more advanced learning. ...more

Photographers need light, and this book is a sort of Bible to master the light.

Not light to read (we're talking about light, right?), but heavily good to study and understand.

No matter your level of experience in photos, this books will help you go further.

Not perfect, but rather close...

PS: Sorry, it seems like an advertising slogan: I swear it's not

Photographers need light, and this book is a sort of Bible to master the light.

Not light to read (we're talking about light, right?), but heavily good to study and understand.

No matter your level of experience in photos, this books will help you go further.

Not perfect, but rather close...

PS: Sorry, it seems like an advertising slogan: I swear it's not

...more

Do you need to understand light? You will, after reading this.

By far the most useful book on understanding light. Plenty of examples and really useful advice. It is one thing to look at recipes videos, and quite another to get the required knowledge to light your subject, which will always be different.

Mar 10, 2018 Gerry Pelser rated it it was amazing

I would not be the photographer I am without this book. This is the literal bible for anything lighting related. If you are serious about your photography, get this book, read, it study, and study it constantly.

Great primer on the subtle techniques and theory for controlling lighting to get better photographs. Can be used as a textbook or lab book to practice the techniques or a handy reference for common situations.

Nov 30, 2018 Tim Dumol rated it it was amazing

Fantastic treatment of how to get the perfect lighting for your shot. Starts from first principles (diffusion, direct reflection, polarized reflection) and goes through sample setups for different subjects (metal, glass, white on white, ...)

Apr 05, 2020 Adil rated it it was amazing

An excellent primer on photographic lighting for all sorts of subjects from product photography to portraits to landscapes. I'm drawn towards instructional books like these, which seek to explore topics by starting from the fundamentals and building upon them. An excellent primer on photographic lighting for all sorts of subjects from product photography to portraits to landscapes. I'm drawn towards instructional books like these, which seek to explore topics by starting from the fundamentals and building upon them. ...more

Good Information

Good information from clearly qualified photographers, but the text is wordier than necessary! Overall I have gained so much from this that it is well worth the read!!

A great introduction to studio lighting. The power of this book lies in its usefulness for different scenarios — you can find there a lot of resources and tips for any style or subject of photography. I recommend this book for photographers or painters, both casual or professional.

Sep 11, 2017 Kimberly rated it it was amazing

My editor at my college newspaper job in the early 90s told me to get this book. It is a practical course in light and shadow that I think still holds relevance for today's digital age. My editor at my college newspaper job in the early 90s told me to get this book. It is a practical course in light and shadow that I think still holds relevance for today's digital age. ...more

Jun 23, 2018 Satya rated it it was amazing

If lighting is the language of photography, the book "Light: Science & Magic" is the heart of the language belaboring on grammar and vocabulary for good photographers. If lighting is the language of photography, the book "Light: Science & Magic" is the heart of the language belaboring on grammar and vocabulary for good photographers. ...more

Feb 03, 2019 Kelly rated it it was amazing

Great information! Now, if only I could find more time for actually taking photos...

Sep 12, 2019 Matthew Walls rated it really liked it

Very good book for photographic lighting. It covers basic concepts to allow the reader to figure out their own lighting situations.

Nov 13, 2019 Travis rated it it was amazing

Very good explanation on how light works and how to use it in photography. Really surprised me with how many tiny but very important things explained within.

this one is the key light for all those fills out there. Look no further

Dec 29, 2020 Amlan rated it really liked it

A throwback to all the engineering light physics with some very cool breakdowns of how things are lit. Will need to experiment a bit to ensure that i actually try and experiment with all these lighting styles

Dec 07, 2020 Jake rated it it was amazing

This is the definitive guide to light and as a photographer it helped me to see and understand light in new ways. Definitely recommend it for natural light, or studio light photographers wanting to understand the science behind the magic of light!

Excellent book on light and how it works. This is universal... it's applied physics. From this solid foundation the authors show how to light various common photographic situations.
This first edition from 1990 doesn't cover more recent developments such as digital cameras... and only briefly touches on colour film. That said - it does this concisely and does discuss colour correction of lights and lens. There were quite a few annoying editorial errors (references to wrong figures, etc.) but I as Excellent book on light and how it works. This is universal... it's applied physics. From this solid foundation the authors show how to light various common photographic situations.
This first edition from 1990 doesn't cover more recent developments such as digital cameras... and only briefly touches on colour film. That said - it does this concisely and does discuss colour correction of lights and lens. There were quite a few annoying editorial errors (references to wrong figures, etc.) but I assume these have been addressed in later editions. The fifth edition was published in 2015 and is on my to-read list already. It has 100 more pages of detail plus an extra co-author! ...more