2011-07-30T21:00:00
Rated 4 out of 5
Too much info, then not enough
Overall, I give Mark a lot of credit for putting together a pretty comprehensive DVD, complete with lighting setups and how-to-use light modifiers (grids, softboxes, umbrellas, etc.) Its well put together and well thought out for both novices and advanced amateurs in studio lighting. It it'll leave you saying, "OH, that's how they do that." So in that sense, this is an excellent DVD.On the negative side, I only have a few minor nitpicks, that I view more as oversights by Mark and Crew, rather than out right omissions.1. The entire DVD comes off as a promotional video for Profoto products, which makes sense, since it says right on the cover "sponsored by Profoto", what isn't known is how expensive Profoto lighting actually is, I found myself salivating over the D1 airs utilized in the videos, only to find out they cost more than my camera system. Not Mark's fault, I know, but just the same, some more info on Profoto pricing would have been helpful and perhaps some alternative lighting systems. Hard to imagine that being possible when Profoto sponsored it.2. During some of the lighting setups Mark goes into almost painful detail at times (F-Stops, Which D1 light he's using, why there's GOBOS and Flags, how to use the light meter in the situation, etc) and in others, he sort of just glosses over them. For example, in the lighting setup called "The Box" - he as a model standing in a 3-sided white foam box, he tells us that there's a Profoto D1 pointed away from the model at a white wall at 'full power.' Then he takes the picture and the result is awesome, then it goes on to the next lighting set up. I played it again to see if I missed something and I didn't. I was left with questions like, which D1 did you use here? 250 Watt seconds, 500 or 1,000? What f-Stop? EtcOn the whole he covers those details in most of the lighting setups, but on a few, he just shows the setup and the result and on to the next. A little frustrating, because they're usually on the more basic lighting set ups which is what the majority of us have (without renting) in our kit.Again, the bulk of the lighting setups are more than detailed enough, its just on a few that i wish Mark gave some more detail. All in all, its a solid effort and worth the price if you want to learn studio lighting!If you're interested in speedlite photography, I suggest David Hobby's ([$]) 'lighting in layers' - which shows and teaches how to get studio results with basic speedlites - pretty remarkable what David is able to accomplish with just speedlites.
DARREN M.
2011-06-02T21:00:00
Rated 5 out of 5
Essentially Essentials
"Studio Lighting Essentials for Portrait Photography" by Mark Wallace is a collection of understandable and simple tutorials on studio lighting, starting with what is available and what is needed. This presentation only covers studio lighting equipment, not speed-lights (get the Nikon DVD for speed-lights). Mark Wallace presents material clearly and simply, explaining the why and how of each action, and generally alludes to the fact that there are many combinations of equipment setup and that creativity is up to you, i.e. Mark is not holding your hand for every lighting setup, he is merely pointing you in the right direction. Of course it's impossible to cover everything, but this is a start. One if the things not covered, and rightly so, is matching the quality of lighting and lighting setup to the personality of your subject. That's a topic on its own. How good is this DVD? Well, that depends on your expertise and understanding of why different people do things maybe differently you. I think it's a little overpriced, but it's good material certainly for the beginner and a good refresher for the experienced. While Mark only seems to use one brand (Profoto) the same principles apply to other brands. Actually, the other brands of lighting do need to include the main features of Profoto otherwise if its a pain to use then the desired effect will be more difficult to achieve.
Fine P.
