The Pro Lighting Series has to be one of the most useful publications about photography that has ever existed.
It’s still a bit of a mixed bag, however.
First the good news, if you’re the sort of photographer who looks at a photo taken by someone else and wonders how it was done, any of the books in this series is exactly what you’re looking for. For each photo, they show an overhead diagram which details the arrangement of the subject, the lights, any reflectors, and the camera. They ALSO show another view which is sort of over the shoulder of the photographer, except it shows the whole setup, not just what you get in the final photograph. You get to see the whole setup from two separate viewpoints. This is an incredibly useful thing, in my opinion, as it fills in the information that is usually missing from a single overhead diagram.
New Glamour
New Glamour
When I said earlier that this series was a a mixed bag, this book is a good example of what I mean. The photographs are all very well done and demonstrate a wide range of lighting techniques and situations. However, they aren’t what you’d expect to find after looking at other Glamour Photography books. You won’t find anything that is pin-up or centerfold style here.
I don’t think it’s a bad book, but I do think they’ve missed a segment of the market. I think that many photographers would like to see a Pro Lighting book featuring photos a bit more along the lines of what you’d see in Playboy or Penthouse, or the swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated, or perhaps something like the celebrity profiles you see in magazines like Details, For Him, or Maxim. Let’s hope they put out a Pro Lighting Series “Pin-Up & Centerfold” book some day.
Beauty Shots
Beauty Shots
Generally, the photographs lean towards an artistic fashion magazine aesthetic. In the magazines Vogue, Elle, and so forth, the photos would be more like something you’d see in an advertisement inside, rather than the head shot like you’d see on the front cover.
As with the other Pro Lighting Series books, there is a wide variety of photographs demonstrating many techniques and situations.
Glamour Shots
Glamour Shots
For those who are looking for something more in the style of a pin-up or centerfold, this book, along with Lingerie Shots, are the ones in the Pro Lighting Series you’d probably like best.
The photos still lean more towards a editorial layout or advertisement in a fashion magazine than a pin-up shot or men’s magazine centerfold, but there is a wider range than with other books in the series like New Glamour.
Lingerie Shots
Lingerie Shots
For those who are looking for something more in the style of a pin-up or centerfold, this book, along with Glamour Shots, are the ones in the Pro Lighting Series you’d probably like best.
I have to wonder if the authors, or perhaps the editors, are afraid they’ll look unprofessional if the photos have any significant erotic content. As with the other books listed here, the photos are still closer in style to something you’d see in an editorial layout or advertisement in a fashion magazine. Nevertheless, they should still demonstrate useful techniques and situations for those more interested in pin-up or centerfold style.
Nudes
Nudes
Think “Artistic” or “Classical”, instead of “pin-up” or “Centerfold”, and you’ve got the general idea. There are a few exceptions, but not too many.
As with the other Pro Lighting Series books, there is a wide variety of photographs demonstrating many techniques and situations.
Erotica
Erotica
Paradoxically, this book is both more interesting and less useful than the other volumes in this series. More interesting, in that many of the photographs exhibit a more accessible style. But less useful in that the lighting setups shown are generally less elaborate.
The book is divided into several chapters, each of which has a unique theme, such as “Erotic Fantasy”, “Fetish Appeal”, and “The Romantic Look”.