Entertainment Today

There is a lot of good background information in this book, and the accompanying video DVD provides excellent examples of the technical lessons in the text. The text includes deep technical details about many things (mostly related to film, including still photography). The only criticism I have about the book is that it may be mis-titled in the respect that much of the technical discussion in this book is specifically about still photography and film, some of it applicable in many ways to motion picture film, and some of it explicitly specific to still photography. My guess is that the author’s background is mostly in film, including still portrait photography, rather than video, as the book has a very strong bias toward film and relatively less detail applicable to video.
Rating: 3 / 5

This is a fantastic book. As someone who has shot a limited amount of both film and video, I wanted to learn more specifics about lighting, exposure theory, color theory, and so on. Brown’s book is PACKED with highly useful, very practical information, and comes at a much better price than some competing books which are not nearly as good. Plus, it includes a DVD with lighting demonstrations, technical tests, and short scenes illustrating the lighting principles covered in the book. Also, I really like the section of Brown’s book that lists all the major types of lights used on professional shoots (from Fresnels and HMIs to PARs, Dino’s, MaxiBrutes, FAYs, Soft Lights, Space Lights, fluorescents, and so on). Yes, Brown’s book is a bit more technical than some, but he also covers the basics very well.
Rating: 5 / 5

Very comprehensive coverage – initial chapter on the history of lighting may not interest many, though it is necessary to have an understanding of how lighting evolved. As the book progresses into subsequent chapters there are pearls of wisdom that capture the author’s life experience in this profession.
Rating: 5 / 5