Professional Portraiture

Rating:
Summary: Not Bad....butlacks details
Review: I agree with the other reviewers. There are good pictures in it, but the text is not very interesting. For example, some chapters describe an event with the time next to it. That is not important if all you are interested in is what to put in the picture. The pose, the light, the background, the look, the film, the camera are all important aspects in portraiture but it does not play a major role in the book.

Rating:
Summary: Dripping With Personality and Style
Review: I was truly surprised and impressed when I picked up this book, not expecting much initially with so many guides to portraiture available in book and magazine form, let alone all the free resources on the Internet. But the portraits here are very strong, though it should be noted that the focus is on Caucasian families, couples and small children. There is a sense of dynamism to all the images and the lighting is especially dramatic for some of the outdoor shots, yet the subjects and equipment used are not exotic at all...the author takes pains to make the reader believe they can take these shots effectively as well.

The style is conversational: Williams introduces a few basic concepts, but this is not structured as a how-to, but more in the style of "think about these things, and here are some ideas". There is structure to the discussion, as Williams talks about makeup, hairstyles, backgrounds, features, equipment, preparing the client etc. But it all feels like you can adapt any or all of her tips to produce similarly dynamic photographs...the author's tips and approaches do not feel constraining or rigid at all.

The book is light on detailed descriptions of technique and lighting, but like the best speakers and authors on the subject, Williams manages to make the reader understand and believe that technique and equipment are secondary to a creative approach and a strong rapport with the client. For each picture, there are details of the camera, lens, and film used, along with exposure information. There are also a few scattered lighting diagrams, but these are minimal.

Going from cover to cover, William's pet approaches become very clear: 35mm and Neopan 1600 for the B&W portraits, medium format (either a Mamiya or Hasselblad) and Provia 400 cross processed for the color. There is a pronounced tilt to the majority of the images, to provide a sense of motion and dynamism. Because of these choices, there are definite elements of style that may not suit everyone, notably high contrast and saturation, full body or three-quarters style portraits (rather than standard head and shoulders stuff), and a (slight) tendency toward high key images. As I favor this look personally, I have no issues, and in fact am delighted with most of what she's done in this book.

Others have commented on the lack of detail around her techniques (particularly the cross-processing, though there's a brief description of why she does it in small print on page 21 that's easy to miss), but the sense she provides is that the technical issues can be effectively managed by a good lab; however, those who want more detail will be disappointed.

Unlike many other portraiture books, there is little formal studio photography here...the emphasis is on outdoor and environmental portraiture. Even the studio settings feature mildly tricked up backgrounds for greater interest, though little in the way of foreground objects (as these would probably mess up the perspective created by her tilted compositions). The result, to my eye, is images that pop out of the book as fresh and contemporary. But the flip side is that those looking to learn more about how to do more traditionally-styled portraits with a low-key, serious approach won't be well served by this book.

I gave this book the maximum rating, because it's rare that a book inspires with a fresh approach and compels the reader to go out and try to do things the author's way, or even pay the author for their services. But this book works that way...perhaps not for everyone, but I'm highly impressed.

Rating:
Summary: Upset I had to pay return shipping
Review: It is upsetting that amazon even offers this book. There is no substance here. The book lacks details, and that is what is required when needing to know how to do professional portraiture. I returned it immediately.

Rating:
Summary: Great book... Just bought her new book too
Review: It's the best book I have found on portraits yet... I have learnt a lot just by looking at the poses. She makes regular people looks like models. But most important, all the photos have a feel of personality... unlike many photographs I have seen before that basically put people into poses. She also make use of cross-processing extensively, even in family portraits, which is very special and the effect is so good that I started experimenting myself. It brings my photography to a new level.

On the down side.. it's a bit thin on techniques, esp on the cross-processing techniques, which is hard to find even on the web. The cross-processing film she uses (Provia 400) is not in production anymore (Provia 400F is totally different)... So it would be nice to know what film she is current using, etc. (Her new book (Weddings), which I just got today, does have 1 page on cross-processing techniques but is still very little information)

Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: Of course, like so many other books on photography, I bought this one because I liked the photographs in it. I was pleased with the way Williams explained the way she approaches her business. While she didn't go into great detail, you get the idea behind what she does and can use the information to make it fit into your own needs. The emphasis isn't on equipment or photographic techniques, like so many of the other books and magazine articles out there. Instead, she focuses on the style and approach behind being a successful portrait photographer. Truely a unique book, full of beautiful images and wonderful ideas!! Definately a must for those tired of the standard photography books!!

Rating:
Summary: There is good info here, but buy her other book.
Review: This book is the exact same as the first half of Annabel's other book Portrait and Wedding photography. That book is hardcover, (this one is not), it's much cheaper here on amazon and it also covers wedding photography as well. It is like two books in one. I think it's fair to argue that Annabel gives many tips in the wedding section that would be helpful to a portrait photographer who has no intention of covering weddings.

Otherwise this is a good book. Lots of helpful tips, but not overly technical. For those who like the technicalities, each image presented in the book is captioned with the technical details of the image (Camera, film type, lens, shutter speed & aperature).

Even so, it is a better deal to buy the hardcover combo portrait & weddings book by Annabel.

Rating:
Summary: Upset I had to pay return shipping
Review: This book was a disappointment. I feel as though I could have written this book myself. Trust me - that's not saying much. There were a few good pictures in the book, but for the most part I found the remainder to be noncaptivating. I disagree with the individual who stated that this book is, "dripping with style." If you consider "style" to be a family portrait posed in front of a rusted out building with pieces of scrap metal and pipe laying around, this book is for you!!! I'm all for "rustic," but this just looked like trash!

Rating:
Summary: Don't waste your time
Review: This book was a disappointment. I feel as though I could have written this book myself. Trust me - that's not saying much. There were a few good pictures in the book, but for the most part I found the remainder to be noncaptivating. I disagree with the individual who stated that this book is, "dripping with style." If you consider "style" to be a family portrait posed in front of a rusted out building with pieces of scrap metal and pipe laying around, this book is for you!!! I'm all for "rustic," but this just looked like trash!