It's that time of year again and if you're looking for that perfect gift for the photographer on your list, consider one of these books by Tony and Rob.
Light And Shadow: Dynamic Lighting Design for Location Portrait Photography
Natural light portraiture is hugely popular. The light source is free, malleable, and available anywhere. Mastering its use requires a specific skill set, however. Fortunately, Tony Corbell is up to the task of showing readers how to harness its full power. He sets a foundation for mastering this powerful source, beginning with a discussion on how to set camera controls to ensure the right amount of light is allowed to strike the image sensor to create the portrait and how to read a histogram to ensure that a subject-appropriate (versus so-called “correct”) exposure results.
Next, he moves on to discuss light quantity and quality and how each can be modified and manipulated to produce dimensional lifelike portraits. Readers will learn techniques for using hard/soft light, working with window light, ensuring a proper white balance (so that colors in the scene are true-to-life in the final image), and adding or subtracting light to achieve the desired effect. Corbell’s images and instructions show readers how to produce the flattering, highly salable portraits they’re after—indoors and out.
Light and Shadow: Dynamic Lighting Design for Studio Portraits
Studio lighting offers portrait photographers unlimited creative control. Mastering its use requires a specific skill set, however. Fortunately, portrait photography legend Tony Corbell is up to the task of showing readers how to harness its full power. He sets a foundation for mastering the use of strobes and continuous lighting sources (LEDs, tungsten lights, and fluorescent sources), creating effective lighting setups (with the aid of detailed, yet simple-to-understand diagrams), metering and adjusting the light, correcting color imbalances, softening harsh shadows, and more. He also introduces readers to the proper use of standard photographic modifiers — softboxes, umbrellas, octoboxes, beauty dishes, and other tools — so that they can sculpt their every portrait subject with incredibly flattering light.
This book is filled with over 150 inspiring and instructive images from a true master of the craft. In these pages, readers will learn step-by-step instructions for mastering the many critical concepts one must understand to gain mastery over light. Armed with simple strategies for studio lighting, readers can repeatedly re-create Corbell’s award-winning portrait lighting looks with their own clients.
How To Take Great Photographs
Rob introduces the powerful creative controls that DSLR cameras offers—from exposure settings, to focusing controls, to metering, file format options, white balance, and more—providing simple tips and strategies that will allow you to capture the image you have in mind, artfully.
Next, he introduces scenes that the average photographer will encounter as he/she begins to capture the outdoors. Readers will learn how to shoot in fog and mist, create silhouettes, ensure sunrise and sunset pictures have color that sings, how to capture waterfalls, fireworks, and more. He also introduces the use of flash, explaining how to best use it to ensure sharp images, lighten too-dark shadows, and bring out the color of your subjects. In summary, readers will learn to identify a great subject and learn how to capture it in a way that makes viewers delve into the story behind the subject and scene.