Lighting for Cinematography ― A Practical Guide to the Art and Craft of Lighting for the Moving Image

We can't shoot good pictures without good lighting, no matter how good the newest cameras are. Shooting under available light gives exposure, but lacks depth, contrast, contour, atmosphere and often separation. The story could be the greatest in the world, but if the lighting is poor viewers will assume it's amateurish and not take it seriously. Feature films and TV shows, commercials and industrial videos, reality TV and documentaries, even event and wedding videos tell stories. Good lighting can make them look real, while real lighting often makes them look fake.

Lighting for Cinematography, the first volume in the new CineTech Guides to the Film Crafts, is the indispensable guide for film and video lighting. Written by veteran gaffer and cinematographer David Landau, the book helps the reader create lighting that supports the emotional moment of the scene, contributes to the atmosphere of the story and can augment an artistic style. Structured to mimic a 14 week semester, the chapters cover specific genres and lighting conditions and include key advice from the field. The glossary and companion website add much-needed tools for students to practice both in class and on their own.

David Landau, a member of IATSE Local 52 as a gaffer as well as a theatrical lighting designer, teaches lighting and cinematography at Fairleigh Dickinson University, US, where he also created the Cinematography track of study. Landau continues to work in the lighting industry, designing lights for theater, shooting corporate videos and low budget features, and working as one of the gaffers on the Project Runway TV series. A five time Tell Award winner for lighting and cinematography, Landau has worked professionally in lighting since 1978, having worked as a master electrician, camera assistant, camera operator, electric, best boy, gaffer, lighting director and Director of Photography. He has worked on feature films, TV shows, sit-coms, game shows, commercials, documentaries, industrial films, corporate videos, music videos and direct-to-consumer DVDs.David Landau is also a published author, with two articles on lighting published in Lighting Dimensions Magazine, eleven articles on screenwriting published in Script magazine and Screenwriter's Monthly, seven plays published by Samuel French and one mystery short story published in Leisure Magazine.