Fantastic book. Many times photographic technique books are written by second rate photographers who write books because they can't cut it as professional photographers and the examples they give are amateurish at best. But Michael is a first rate photographer, and he gives practical ideas for lighting set ups which I've managed to adapt to my own work. The only negative is, I would like a bit more detail, like exposure and aperture settings used in the shots would be great. Also, towards the end of the book in the case studies he hasn't continued giving the lighting diagrams that were so useful in the beginning of the book. But it's a minor point, I would recommend this book to anyone who is serious about photography.

General overview book. Not a great tutorial.

With great anticipation to embark the world of studio and lighting photography Grecco does underline the basics of studio photgraphy lighting ; however, that book is more geared towards beginners rather than intermediate.Largest part of this book is describing experience with "celebrities" wich left a slight pretentious aftertaste. If you are looking for a book about the limited basics of studio lighting than this for you, otherwise I highly recommand to take workshops or experiment in your studio.

The author provides some incredible pictures, offers less than you need to understand how they were taken, and ends up making you think, hard, about the creative process. This book will be most appreciated by more advanced photographers who are willing to take a do-it-yourself approach to learning how to light and take dramatic portraits. Everything you really need to know is in there, but you have to work to extract it. I think the process will make you a more thoughtful photographer and a better one. If you're the type who likes mindless step-by-step instructions, and discovers that such rote approaches can't really be applied creatively, you will be disappointed in this book. All others are invited to read, study, and learn.

Obviously, Michael Grecco is an accomplished photographer, his body of work speaks for itself. On the dust jacket and in the introduction, Grecco says, "...Assistants and other photographers have asked why I would want to give away my secrets in a book..." After reading this book, I would like to assure Mr. Grecco's contemporaries that his secrets still lie safe with him.

Lots of allusions to celebrity and lots of high end equipment name dropping occur. There is very little discussion about development of the theme of an image. This is definitely a book for Grecco fans not for experienced photographers seeking additional insight. The title is deceptive, the chapter on Illumination is 44 pages, that's right, 44 pages.

Don't bother.

Obviously, Michael Grecco is an accomplished photographer, his body of work speaks for itself. On the dust jacket and in the introduction, Grecco says, "...Assistants and other photographers have asked why I would want to give away my secrets in a book..." After reading this book, I would like to assure Mr. Grecco's contemporaries that his secrets still lie safe with him.

Lots of allusions to celebrity and lots of high end equipment name dropping occur. There is very little discussion about development of the theme of an image. This is definitely a book for Grecco fans not for experienced photographers seeking additional insight. The title is deceptive, the chapter on Illumination is 44 pages, that's right, 44 pages.

Don't bother.

There are a lot of pretty pictures, and a few lighting diagrams, but most of this book is Mr. Grecco recounting his favorite photo shoots with stories that don't lend much to teaching new photographers. It may be packed full of inspiration, but it's lacking on inspiration. Also, you will be hard pressed to recreate any of the images you see here, unless you have the kind of budget that would suggest you not be concerned about spending the $30 for this book anyway.

I'm totally not impress with that book. Their is almost no contain in. A couple nice lightning idea, but nothing to really improve your skill if you are an advanced photographer.

It's a book for beginners.

This book is everything I had hoped. I wanted to see how the "big guys" get such gorgeous shots. It's true that just owning an expensive dSLR does not make you a professional, it takes practice, lots of photo shoots, and, most importantly, an eye for creativity. Grecco is an extraordinary photographer. I know I'll probably never be photographing celebrities or have the budget for a clan of assistants and high price lighting equipment, but some of his techniques I can certainly adapt. This is a wonderful book with enough tips and beautiful images to inspire any photographer.

This is a good beginning lighting book, and it includes a helpful introduction to lighting terminology, techniques, and tools. Unlike many portraiture books, this one focuses more on editorial rather than consumer portraiture. As such, the illustrations are edgier and more conceptual. The book is pretty thin on substance, however, and rather high on ego. A good introduction, but nothing more. Hicks and Schultz's book Photographing People; Portraits, fashion, glamour has much better lighting diagrams and a lot more technical variety and instruction.

In this book, Grecco show us pictures and the creation ideas about them.
The lighting set-ups is only top view, but in his text, Grecco explain how create each image, the concept and techniques.

A good book for photographers that love portrait and want learn more about this photography segment.

The pictures, techniques and equipments used are topnotch. The pictures are topnotch as well but this is really not a book for the run of the photographer. This is hollywood style photography. Impressive techiques and styles but with not much of a practical value for amateurs and hobbyists I would say. I don't think this is something suitable for all so you need to be careful about this book. There are better portrait photography books out there that are more suitable for the majority.

Love the book. It is very helpful to read the authors ideas behind the actual photo. The book is not a recipe for shooting styles, but is is helpful knowing the mindset behind the photos that we see.

This book is another artsy treatment of lighting that talks more about the art of lighting. He assumes you know how to do most of the technical lighting stuff.
While he does show a 'wire drawing' of some setups it does not go very deep into the technical at all. I was hoping for a bit more 'hands on' or 'how to set up' information. If you want to be inspired, maybe this is your book. If you are looking for instruction, look elsewhere. My copy will be up in the used book section.

Wonderfull book with great pictures and first quality prints. In terms of didactic value it has easy to read diagrams for a portion of the photos and a writing more focused on what was important in the making of the picture rather than only technical jargon.

This is truly a good book. Michael Grecco shares secrects and know how that others try to keep to them selves. Weather you like the photographic style of Michael I belive that other photographers from almost all skill levels will gain from reading this book. A superb inspiration for all...

This book is great for learning conventional and unconventional lighting methods. Most setups is explained-not only how the lights were positioned, but why, and the circumstances surrounding the choices. I would recommend it to anyone.

This book is great for learning conventional and unconventional lighting methods. Most setups is explained-not only how the lights were positioned, but why, and the circumstances surrounding the choices. I would recommend it to anyone.

This item was a gift so I don't have any specific information abot the book. However, my grandson was happy to receive it. Also, the book was received in a timely manner.

After first browsing through the book, I find the examples and illustrations are very simple to understand. If by just following whats are in the book, surely my photos will improve. However, with Mr. Grecco explanations why he was doing those lighting arrangement, it provokes my creative cells venturing into styles that are not typical in portrait lighting.
He really challenges me into doing something different from the norm, without foregoing the skills of basic lighting.
A very good technical book and also challenging to our creativity. If want want to shoot something out of the norm, this is a good book to begin. Enjoy...

After reading about this book on the Strobist blog, I decided to order it and see for myself. I was not disappointed! It is full of tips and examples and how-to's, some using very elaborate equipment, some very simple one-light setups. He also shares some very clever ideas and tricks which can be adapted to many situations. Grecco is, moreover, a very pleasant teacher and the book is a very good read that gives the reader some views behind the scenes of Grecco Inc., or any major studio for that matter.
My only slight problem with this book is the introduction, which is not extensive enough for beginners and irrelevant to advanced and pro shooters. Probably not Grecco's choice, either.

You'll still have to come up with your own ideas and interpretations of the sitters and the images you want to bring home. But to get you technically up to speed, give you a number of widely usable ideas and give you a very stimulating read into the bargain, this is the book to look at.

The book is more like a portfolio of Michaels work with a running monolouge from the photographer about each image. It is almost like you are sitting with him reviewing his portfolio as he tells you the background behind each image.

The book was oddly arranged and you had to flip back and forth between text & images, but it was well written and the images were awesome

Upfront, I'll admit I don't like his "over the top" concepts, and "over the top" lighting. It's sort of Annie Liebowitz on speed, only Grecco is infinitely more skillful with lighting, sets, and styling. Most of the shots were far more about Grecco's skill and eye, than about the subjects.

The book is mainly useful for experts, rather than beginners, because of the extreme sophistication and sometimes extreme complexity of Grecco's lighting, and to some degree, set-design/construction. My colleagues consider me skilled at lighting, but I wouldn't even attempt some of the set-ups Grecco uses, and succeeds with, without faltering.

BTW, by far the nicest shot in the book is the nude shot in - I kid you not - the New Mexico gas chamber.

The book is also marred by bad book design. Some moron decided to set the whole book in eyeball-busting sans serif type. It's been documented for centuries that serifed "text" faces are far more readable; why on earth does a publisher allow something so stupid, and why does someone as sharp as Grecco tolerate such stupidity harming 'his' book?

I'm sorry to give such a mixed review, because I like Grecco. I'm impressed by him in person, and really impressed by his ability to work with guttermouthed primadonnas like Will Smith and still get striking photos.

Michael is one of the best celebrity photographers in the business. His background in photojournalism combined with the lighting he perfected during his years in advertising provide him with a unique perspective. He is able to capture candid and real moments with beautiful created light. The book is a combination of a history of fabulous images and technical descriptions on how and why it was done. This book won't necessarily turn you into a fantastic celebrity photographer, but it will provide you with lighting schemes and solutions that anyone can use to help perfect their own skills. The images are spectacular but there is much more in this book including valuable information on lighting, producing and the business side, all of which are necessary in a very completive marketplace. Anyone can take pictures but few possess the skills needed to be truly successful. Michael helps to reveal all of those talents.

Make no mistake about it. Michael Grecco is a brilliant portrait photographer and the pictures presented in this book are top-notch and edgy. Yet, as I read this book, I at first felt that this was another example of how-to-itis. That's the case where a publisher feels that a book will sell better if it's an instructional manual than if it's a portfolio.

I felt this even more strongly as I read the first few pages, where I encountered pictures that documented the use of equipment and techniques that I knew nothing about. Then as I read further, I found that the discussions of general principles followed the pictures rather than preceding them. I found this a strange editorial technique that left me mystified as I looked at pictures and then had me flipping back to them after the discussion. I was also glad I knew a little bit about portrait photography so that I could understand the skeletal descriptions of the technical aspects of what Grecco was doing

Grecco has sections on cameras, illumination, the medium, creativity and conceptualization, the subject/ photographer connection and case studies. In this last section he presents pictures grouped by subject matter and then explains how he came to pose the pictures and light them. Throughout, he used this show and then tell approach. Once I got used to it, I didn't find it so off-putting.

You may wonder who the audience for this book is. For example, when he describes the army of assistants involved in a shoot, including make-up artists, prop builders, location scouts and so forth, the average photographer will feel out of his league. One of the lights that Grecco uses may cost more than all of the equipment some serious photographers may own. The author does not teach fundamental lighting techniques, and in fact says that one of his guiding principles is to always break the rules of lighting. At first it might appear that Grecco is speaking just to the other members of the clique of celebrity photographers.

Most of us will never be able to get actor Jet Li to leap four or five feet into the air in an alley filled with smoke from a fog machine in front of a setup of five strong strobe lights. On the other hand, I thought that rather then photographing that young ballerina in a graceful plie, I could have gotten a more exciting picture if I had asked her to do jetes. And I was inspired to research the rental of a fog machine which turned out to be quite inexpensive. And even though I might never be able to get Martin Landau to pose in back of an iron weave railing in Café La Boheme, I could pose Uncle George behind the wrought-iron railing in Aunt Jane's place.

So, for the portrait photographer who feels that he or she has to push out of the box of conventional lighting and posing techniques, this book may be a source of ideas. For other photographers, it may be fascinating to find out how one big-time portrait photographer does it, and admire his work, even if we never apply any of his techniques.

Michael is a great photographer, but this is defiantly not a how to book. I'm not sure why he spends so much time talking about file and Polaroid's?

I don't follow celebrity photography closely, and I didn't know Michael Grecco's name before I purchased the book. But I was amazed to see how many photos I already recognized while flipping through its pages--"wow, that guy took all these shots!?!" Even though I specialize in photojournalism and natural light shooting it's a real pleasure to read how such carefully planned and staged shots can be made to appear so spontaneous.

This book is a real find. Almost any photographer should enjoy it. It has certainly encouraged me to think about new ways to shoot.

Spectacular. Pure genius. As exciting a photography book as I have ever seen. If any of my art-sy friends are reading this-you've just spoiled your Christmas surprise!

Michael Grecco proves that celebrity portraiture can be more than skin deep. Grecco has a knack for stripping away the surface layer and getting to the soul of the celebrities he photographs. In "Lighting And the Dramatic Portrait: The Art of Celebrity And Editorial Photography" he does the same to his photographs. Rather than merely presenting a monograph of his favorite images, he cuts not only to the "how" but more importantly the "why" of his thought process. Highly recommended for anyone who loves good photography, good storytelling or an insider's look at celebrity!

This book is great. Grecco didnt not just give diagrams so you can duplicate the image, but he gives you details and information on how to make it happen with your own sense of style

Don't read it cover-to-cover. Just flip though this book and stop at the first picture that grabs you. Grecco is that rare photographer who can actually put into words the creative process behind his images. He is smart, honest, funny, and frank about what it takes to make the beautiful, unique, and skillfully executed portraits that lavishly illustrate this book. There is a wealth of detailed, specific information about how the photographs were created (lighting diagrams, actual cameras, lenses, and lights used, etc.), however, most valuable is his emphasis on WHY he made his various creative and technical decisions. This volume would be worthwhile for the pictures alone, or for the diagrams, the behind-the-scenes anecdotes, or just for the insights into the technical, practical, strategic, interpersonal, and financial components that contribute to the successful outcome of what is typically thought of as a simply artistic endeavor. Rather than regarding it as a book of recipes to be rigorously replicated, he suggests using it as a jumping-off point; as an opportunity to facilitate and fine-tune your own creative process.