Much of the learning to practice as well as to appreciate art is concerned with understanding the basic principles. One of these principles is what Harold Speed calls "dither;" the freedom that allows realism and the artistic vision to play against each other. Very important to any artist or work of art; this quality separates the scientifically accurate from the artistically accurate. Speeds approach to this problem is now considered a classic; one of the few books from the early years of this century that has continued to be read and recommended by those in the graphic arts.In this work; Harold Speed approaches this dynamic aspect of drawing and painting from many different points of view. He plays the historical against the scientific; theory against precise artistic definition. He begins with a study of line drawing and mass drawing; the two basic approaches the artist needs to learn. Further sections carry the artistic vision through unity and variety of line and mass; balance; proportion; portrait drawing; the visual memory; materials; and procedures. Throughout; Speed combines historical backgrounds; dynamic aspects which each technique brings to a work of art; and specific exercises through which the young draughtsman may begin his training. Although not a technique book in the strict sense of the terms; The Practice and Science of Drawing brings to the beginner a clear statement of the principles that he will have to develop and their importance in creating a work of art. Ninety-three plates and diagrams; masterfully selected; reinforce Speeds always clear presentation.Harold Speed; master of the art of drawing and brilliant teacher; has long been cited for this important work. For the beginner; Speed will develop a sense for the many different aspects which go into an artistic education. For the person who enjoys looking at drawings and paintings; Speed will aid developing the ability to see a work of art as the artist meant it to be seen.
#1274244 in eBooks 2011-10-01 2011-10-01File Name: B008SKNXTO
Review
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful. Great read for someone creating images instead of taking imagesBy Jan KlierDisclaimer: I know Don (author) personally and he has taught me many of the things Ive learned about lighting and studio photography over the years.What sets this book apart in my mind is that it doesnt start with an image and deconstructs how it was taken. but it starts with what you wanted to accomplish when you decided to create that image. and then proceeds to give you the tools to do just that. Now. reading this book will not automatically make you great at lighting everything. But it will give you the mental tools to go out and do it. and in the process get increasingly better at it. Not by trial and error. but by understanding the components of intentional and effective lighting. Don refers to it as subject centric lighting - nice catch phrase. but what it comes down is to light with intent. not just because. or luck. or with whatever your favorite gizmo of the day is.Don does illustrate most of the techniques with example images and a little bit of gear details and discussion. Most of the gear described and used is readily available to todays amateur or pro-am. But then. if you take the book to heart. put the gear details aside. and learn the core points of the book. it doesnt matter what gear you use.Most of the examples center around casual model photography. It would have been nice if the book used a broader range of subjects to illustrate the points. because the core principles apply to all subjects whether its people or objects. and whether its casual photography. editorial. or commercial work.Who should read this book? This book is not a 101 on lighting. Readers should have at a minimum a basic working knowledge of shooting artificially light photographs. and should have access to both equipment and subjects to put the discussion into practice. This book is for people who are serious about mastering photography by acquiring solid technique and artistry. People who have done a fair amount of work with lighting might find some good reminders of why theyre doing what theyre doing. but the ground covered is just the fundamentals. so it may not be all news anymore.9 of 9 people found the following review helpful. Finally a common sense book on using strobes. and lighting.By But Im feeling much better now...This book is entirely different from the 8 or so other books on using strobes that I have. instead of showing equipment and showing what it does the author shows an image then shows what equipment to use to achieve the shot. Better than that. he shows the subject. discusses many possible images that might be made depending on what he feels he wants to project to the world. and then discusses the way to set up lights to achieve that goal. Also. not everything is about lighting just with strobes. but matching lights with ambient. or even just the ambient light.This is the best photography book. not just on flash or lighting. that Ive seen in a while. Im a big fan of books that teach you how to fish instead of giving you a fish. Too many books are now hitting the shelves promising to teach you all about flash. jumping on the strobist bandwagon. In most cases. they illustrate and detail a 24" softbox to camera right at 1/2 power with another beauty dish above the subject at 1/4 power gelled 1/4 CTO. and on and on. and you havent really learned anything because you will never encounter the same scene with the same lighting and the same perspective unless you try to copy everything. and then all youve learned is how to copy.When going through this book. I was reminded a lot of the Ansel Adams books I studied in the early 80s. they were all about what you wanted the final print to look like. not the shot or the camera. or the lens. etc.I really recommend that you get this book. that is if youre the type of person that really wants to learn how to do things. and not just follow instructions.21 of 22 people found the following review helpful. Good info (within limits) but be prepared for a significant time investmentBy J. L. WilliamsThe subtitle -- "A Subject-Centric Approach" -- refers to author Giannattis philosophy of creating photographs: He believes you should start by visualizing how you want the subject to look. then choose the lighting techniques that will produce that look.That might not seem like something that needs explaining... unless youre familiar with the overdone "strobist" style of photography. in which it often seems that the photographer FIRST decides what lighting gimmick he wants to use. THEN looks around for a subject on which to inflict it!Giannattis subject-centric alternative results in pictures that are more realistic-looking. and is probably much more useful for people trying to learn to do mainstream commercial photography.Giannatti is a highly-rated workshop instructor (Ive taken two of his workshops. and theyre good) so he has lots of practical experience in teaching these techniques. His fundamental principle is simple: any light source has four basic properties (color. size. distance. and angle) and you select or modify these properties to get the look you want. The book explains this via lots of "sample shoots" and "practice assignments." each with a photo and a text explanation of how Giannattis decision-making process played out in it.This approach works well in a workshop setting. but theres one problem with translating it into book form: The way the book is structured. you pretty much have to budget enough time to read it from cover to cover in order to benefit from the information.In other words. it isnt the kind of book that lets you read a summary to grasp the basics. try some things on your own. then dive back into subsequent chapters for more detail. It also doesnt work as a reference you can pull off the shelf to brush up on a particular point. Giannatti wasnt trying to write that kind of book. so I wont criticize him for not writing one! But if what youre looking for is a learn-at-your-own pace guide. this isnt the book for you.There are a few more minor limitations/irritants as well:-- The author warns you right up front (the first sentence in the introduction. in fact) that "This is not a beginner book." and thats fine. He expects you already to know the basics of photography and the fundamentals of lighting equipment; fair enough. But he does tend to throw out terms that he doesnt explain until later. which can make things needlessly difficult. For example. even a fairly experienced natural-light photographer might not have heard of a "zebra umbrella" (what. its raining zebras?!?) but he mentions this particular accessory several times before explaining (in Chapter 4) what it is. A glossary would solve this problem instantly. but there isnt one; fortunately. the book is well-indexed. so if you run across an unfamiliar term. try checking the index for later references. He also uses some technical terms in non-standard ways ("ambient-light meter" for "incident-light meter." for example) but this isnt a deal-killer as you generally can pick up his meaning from context.-- The photo reproductions fall well short of "high-end catalog quality." with many of the photos looking rather dark and flat. Thats not Giannattis fault. its the publishers (Amherst Media) but it sometimes makes it hard to see the subtleties hes talking about. Often Id read his text about why he chose a particular lighting effect and how its different from doing things another way -- but when Id look at the pictures. theyd look pretty much the same. Admittedly. I might have gotten a sub-optimal copy. but its best not to expect the same printing quality youd expect in a fine-art book.-- The example photos lean fairly heavily toward the nubile-young-women category. I like looking at pictures of pretty girls as much as the next guy. and theres nothing risqueacute; or not-safe-for-work about them (unless you work for the Taliban) -- but it does seem a lopsided selection. I think Giannattis fundamental theories would work for photographing any kind of subject -- but if youre primarily interested in shooting. say. food or architectural interiors or flowers or or whatever. you cant expect much help from the sample photos in learning to apply those theories.Who should buy it? If youve attended one of Giannattis workshops and want a supplement to your own notes -- or if youre planning to attend one and want to do some advance prep -- its a must-have. Otherwise. if you have a good grasp of photo basics and want to extend your lighting chops (especially in the pretty-girl genre) AND if you prefer the long-form narrative approach to learning. its a solid choice. On the other hand. if youre already working with lighting and just want to fill in gaps in your knowledge. there may be other books that would be more efficient choices.
