Lighting for Digital Video and Television
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One of the best things about John Jackman is he doesn’t take an elitist approach when talking about lighting. Unlike hosts of a particular lighting forum located elsewhere on the net, Jackman doesn’t berate the reader for wondering such things as “how do I light a night scene?”, “Is a Lowel light a good light to use for such and such a shot?” or even “Are there alternatives to using expensive lights?”. While moderators of this particular forum would “yell” at you and call you an idiot for even thinking such things, or why your lights are not professional, Jackman goes about telling the reader what each light does, the benefits of particular lights (even praising the Lowel lights at times), and even offering cheap alternatives for those who are wanting to try guerilla film making.
The point of talking about lighting is not to toot your own horn and say how great you are and why your way is the only way of doing things, but rather to encourage those who may have little or no experience with lighting, or who have been lighting a certain way for years, and getting them to think and approach lighting differently and comfortably. Jackman does this exceptionally well in his book and needs recognition for that. As you read this book, Jackman comes off as a compassionate fellow who wants you to succeed rather than berating you for being a novice. [an error occurred while processing this directive]As you can probably tell, I really like this book and think it is a great way to learn for those who need to fine tune their lighting skills. The only other option is to pay an outrageous fee for a weekend lighting seminar where you won’t learn half of what is contained in this book.
Are there any bad things I can say? Of course… I know the cost of publishing a color book is very prohibitive, especially when the page count is just over 200, but come on CMP, you shelled out the money for the Meyer’s After Effects books, and you did the same for your Color Correction for Digital Video book – and that one only has less pages than the lighting book. Even though Jackman doesn’t have many images in his book that require color, having a color plate insert section would have been helpful in the many cases where the author is trying to point out specific techniques that don’t reproduce well in a black and white book.
The other thing I would have liked to have seen more of in the book were actual lighting diagrams of how certain shots are being done. If you show an image of a certain light set up, you should also include a lighting diagram along with it. I for one can learn more from looking at a lighting diagram (with wattages and positioning) than I can from looking at one photograph and saying “Ah yes, very clever, I see how you have placed your kicker.”
Even though Jackman does give a fair number of “real-world” examples and ways to light them, I would have liked to have seen the actual images to go along with the text. I would hope that he is currently working on a follow up book called “Lighting for Digital Video and Television in Production” where he takes a look at scenes from popular shows and actually shows how the shots were lit and why. Even though there is a section in the book that talks about creating specific lighting looks, nothing in that section shows the reader how the lighting for shows like NYPD Blue, Law and Order, etc. are actually lit.
At just over 200 pages, this book is packed with valuable information. I think if Jackman had been allowed to run free with his examples, and included more diagrams, this book could easily be 100 pages longer. Any level of user will gain knowledge from this book and I give it a must read recommendation.
When not working deep in the labs of the DMN Central Division testing the latest and greatest software/hardware products Stephen Schleicher can be found at the local university teaching a few courses on video and web production. He can be reached at schleicher@mindspring.com. You can also visit him on the web at www.mindspring.com/~schleicher
Source: Digital Media Online, Inc.
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