Hi,

Could anyone suggest a great book for learning about home studio lighting for product shots, concept and creative images? I heard once of a book consisting of a load of images, each displayed alongside a diagram of lighting setup and exposure details etc. Sounds like the sort of thing I'm looking for but can't find anything like it on amazon.

I've experimented a fair bit but need some clear instruction to gain confidence in creating a shot.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Cheers,

Terry

http://swellphotographyuk.blogspot.com/

Try Light Science and Magic. Seems excellent, a great read, though I haven't actually used it. 

The Strobist (website) http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/03/lighting-101.html

David Hobby dvd's are real good...

I'd recommend Amherst Media publications (available from Amazon).  They usually have detailed diagrams of the set-up of each shot displayed. I have 'Lighting for Interiors', 'Lighting for Portraits' and 'Lighting for Glamour', all of which are excellent.

http://www.amherstmedia.com/

You can't really learn photography from a book though. There is simply no substitute for experimentation and practice ... over years not days or weeks.

Not, a book, but http://guessthelighting.com/

I have a copy of the "Still Life and Special Effects Photography: A Guide to Professional Lighting Techniques", Second Edition
by Roger Hicks and Frances Schultz. I thought it was a pretty useful book with good setup/plenty of illustrations and images.

I bought mine at Barnes and Nobles. Amazon carries it but through one of their sellers http://tinyurl.com/68q48cr

Thanks for all your help. I'll check them out.

I know there is no substitute for just taking pictures and experimenting, but I really want a bit of theory to guide my experiments and make the process a bit more efficient.

Thanks again,

Terry

By the way the strobist blog and the guessthelighting blog are great! The books look good too. I'll try some experiments from the blogs before buying any books.

Cheers,

Terry