FACES: Photography and the Art of Portraiture |  | Authors: Steven Biver, Paul Fuqua
Publisher: Focal Press
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
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Rating:  22 reviews
Sales Rank: 163601
Media: Paperback
Pages: 195
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 10.8 x 8.3 x 0.5
ISBN: 0240811682
Dewey Decimal Number: 779.2092
EAN: 9780240811680
ASIN: 0240811682
Publication Date: February 10, 2010
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Amazon.com Review
Product Description
There is so much detail to be captured in a face. Cicero (106-43 BC) said: "The face is a picture of the mind as the eyes are its interpreter." To capture a person's personality, there are many things to keep in mind, and the authors of FACES show us how to match up a personality with lighting, posing, and composition. Portraiture is truly an art, and this book dives deep into the details so that you end up with a gorgeous portrait that both you and your subject love. Not only is this book the most comprehensive title available on portraiture, but it contains stunning images. Each image is paired with a lighting diagram, a description of why the type of image was chosen, and then takes you through postproduction to put the finishing touches on. The authors also showcase a gallery of portraits by renowned photographers. *Written by Paul Fuqua and Steven Biver, two of the authors of Light-Science and Magic
* Gallery of celebrity photographs by Nadav Kander, Joyce Tenneson, Sandro Miller, George Holz, Brent Stirton, and Dan Winters showcases both the studio and photojounalistic styles of portraiture
* Wide breadth of portraits--from street shots to studio shots, with a lighting diagram to accompany most of these
* The most gorgeous book for one of the most sought after photographic genres--people and portraits
Amazon Exclusive: An Essay and Tips to Taking Great Pictures by Pual Fuqua and Steven Biver, Authors of FACES: Photography and the Art of Portraiture
  My Main Camera
Several years ago I came to the alarming realization that I was on the verge of becoming a certified, card-carrying member of the "Techno-Wonk photographers of America Society, Inc." Its members, God bless them, are easily recognized by the fact that they live and breathe numbers, specifications and the latest technical reports and equipment reviews. Well, that was me alright. My ability to ingest--and then happily regurgitate--camera, lens and flash tech sheets grew more noteworthy as each and every day went by. Trouble was, my pictures were growing progressively worse. Trouble was, my head was fully into photographic technology, not photography.
Obviously, radical action was called for, and fast. And that's why I became a minimalist shooter. Out from my kit went the big, heavy, fancy professional cameras and in came the "simple" ones--the "point and shoots" that I now use for most of my portrait making. Today I shoot the bulk of my pictures using two small pocket-fitting point-and-shoot cameras. One is from Canon, the other Nikon. The Cannon model that shoots RAW files is my main camera. The Nikon, because it does not shoot RAW, is my backup. Both of these amazing little jewels are miles removed from the sophisticated photographic "heavy artillery" to which I had become all too accustomed. But, be that as it may, both--now I am used to working with them--give me great images. But more importantly, largely because of their many limitations (such as super wide angle lenses, small zoom ranges, tiny flashes and the inability to open up really wide) these point-and-shoots have made me slow down and think out my picture making far more carefully than I did before. They've, to put it another way, pulled me back from being centered on picture-making technology, and pushed me forward to concentrate on the very basics of the act of picture making. And isn't that what photography is supposed to be about? Tips to Getting Great Pictures:
Tip #1--Lurking as a Life Style
You can spend lots of time mastering the many skills involved in street shooting. Figuring out your flash, learning what lens' do what and practicing proper camera handling will, for example, all can help you to bag better street shots. To me, however, mastering the fine art of lurking is more important. Dictionaries list plenty of definitions for the verb "to lurk." That's fine, but they don't connect well with making street portraits. So let me explain what "lurking" means to me. It's simple. Lurking means finding some place that's interesting to you and then doing as close to nothing as you can while quietly soaking up the scene up and making it a part of you. I, for example, enjoy working around such "people magnets" as markets, bus and train stations and cafes and carnivals. These locations draw people, and that's just what I want. When I find such a location, I look for someplace where I can sit down (hopefully in the shade, with a convenient coffee source and men's room nearby) and study what's going on around me and plan what I'm going to do with it. What's special about what I'm seeing? How can I best capture it? Where's the light coming from? What color is it? How about the shadows? Are the locals skittish, or does it look like they won't get too upset when I start asking to take their pictures? Are there places close by from where I can shoot from interesting angles? (Not long ago, for example, I climbed onto the roof of hay shed to get shots of camel herders in Egypt.) Are there nearby eating-places? They often yield great pictures. Sometimes it takes me hours to soak up a scene. On other occasions, a few minutes of lurking tells me what I need to know. It's then, and only then, that I start shooting. Tip #2--Move In Close
No single thing guarantees a good portrait. There are, however, some things you can do that up the odds significantly. One of the simplest is to move in close to your subject. That does an obvious and very important thing for your photograph. It makes your subject's head relatively large in relation to the rest of the image. And that, in turn, makes it easy for your viewers to see, and study, your subject's face--in which they are usually most interested. I spend most of my time shooting street portraits of people I have never met before and probably will never meet again. To get close enough to get the look I want I have to intrude into their "personal" space. At times this can be a bit tricky to pull off successfully. However, over the years I've worked the streets I've found that a smile on my part along with a straight forward request for permission to take their portrait (and I always use that word rather than "picture") gets the cooperation I need to get the up close and intimate mood I'm after. One other tip--once you've obtained somebody's permission to make their portrait, don't be shy about "directing" them. I frequently ask my subjects to move, turn their heads, take off their hats and glasses and do all the other little things that help produce the portrait I'm after. Finally, I always show my subject's their picture when I'm through and tell them how good they look in it. This is a courtesy that takes but seconds, but leaves everybody smiling.
(Photo © Steven Biver)
Amazon Exclusive: Portraits from Steve Biver and Paul Fuqua
(Click to enlarge)
 |  |  | | Charles-–An ambient light point-and-shoot street portrait taken in New Orleans | David Gregory-– A celebrity, "one light on white" portrait | Miss Prissy Pistol--A three lamp plus ambient light environmental portrait |
Product Description
There is so much detail to be captured in a face. Cicero (106-43 BC) said: "The face is a picture of the mind as the eyes are its interpreter." To capture a person's personality, there are many things to keep in mind, and the authors of FACES show us how to match up a personality with lighting, posing, and composition. Portraiture is truly an art, and this book dives deep into the details so that you end up with a gorgeous portrait that both you and your subject love.Not only is this book the most comprehensive title available on portraiture, but it contains stunning images. Each image is paired with a lighting diagram, a description of why the type of image was chosen, and then takes you through postproduction to put the finishing touches on. The authors also showcase a gallery of portraits by renowned photographers. *Written by Paul Fuqua and Steven Biver, two of the authors of Light-Science and Magic* gallery of celebrity photographs by Nadav Kander, Joyce Tenneson, Sandro Miller, George Holz, Brent Stirton, and Dan Winters showcases both the studio and photojounalistic styles of portraiture * wide breadth of portraits -- from street shots to studio shots, with a lighting diagram to accompany most of these * the most gorgeous book for one of the most sought after photographic genres - people and portraits
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 22
 Combination coffee table and how-to book June 5, 2010
Personne (Rocky Mountain West)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I live in a place with beautiful and iconic scenery. So it's not surprising that I've honed my photography skills on mountains and canyons, with the occasional moose or quail wandering through the scene. But a good portrait makes my eyes pop out. It says something about the subject and his or her place in the world. The photographer must have both technical and interpersonal skills. I'd like to be able to do that sort of photography myself.
'Faces' opens with a gallery of portraits of both the famous and the unknown. The generous size of the book makes the details clear and the photographers' various approaches evident. After that comes the main content, a series of case-studies. A portrait is shown on the left page, with a description on the facing page. A lighting diagram is shown for each portrait, along with an explanation of the lighting choices. The authors, Paul Fuqua and Steven Biver, have different approaches. One works primarily in a controlled studio and the other works in natural light situations. Their styles are quite different, but both result in revealing character studies. The final section of the book concerns lighting. There is a description of various types of diffusers, reflectors and spots. It's possible to spend a lot of money on gear like this, but the authors make it clear that you can go a long way with basic materials and a little assembly skill.
This book assumes that you know how to use your camera and that you know how to operate your chosen photo-editing software. There's very little technical discussion other that depth of field considerations. If you're a beginning photographer, you should wait a while before opening this book. My only complaint is that there's no discussion concerning model releases. While the authors strongly recommend that you ask permission and establish a courteous relationship with a subject, more may be required. Stock photo services require model releases, and there may be other similar situations. A word or two on that topic would have been appreciated.
All in all, it's a very good book. The portraits--of all sorts of people--are intriguing all on their own. The information on lighting is very valuable. It's the sort of how-to book that you wouldn't mind leaving around for visitors to see.
A book you can judge by its cover June 6, 2010
A. B. King
The beginning of the book has an array of modern portrait photographs, the introduction and then a section of portraits from the past. The meat of the book is the section of 48 portraits. Each portrait is shown page size on the left and a sketch of the studio light setup on the right along with comments about taking the picture. This is an extremely informative approach. The authors recommend not reading from front to back, but using it for reference as needed. Then the end of the book has instructions for pre-production and post-production. This includes digital manipulation. They include film camerawork and digital camerawork. They also give sage advice for street shooting, such as being very discrete about carrying expensive equipment.
The philosophy of the authors is that you define what a portrait is and you decide how you want to take the pictures. They want you to be familiar with the "rules" so that you can decide for yourself whether you want to follow them or not.
They not only recommend professional equipment; they also suggest how to set up a studio on a limited budget. And their suggestions for street shooting is terrific.
I found their instructions on settings for the digital camera very practical. As they recommend, I will refer back to this book for lighting subjects.
Entertaining and Informative Book on Portraits June 6, 2010
David Bennett (Ohio, United States)
I wasn't sure what to expect when I ordered this book. I am an amateur photographer with a Nikon D5000 DSLR, and generally my photos end up on my own business web pages and on Facebook. Many of my images are portraits of friends and relatives, so I thought it would be interesting to learn ways to improve these shots.
The book starts off with famous portraits of the past, with the authors' comments. These are very interesting and illuminating. The section "Making Portraits" follows. In this section, the authors provide examples of 48 different portraits. Each is unique, interesting, and appropriate to the personality of the person being photographed. The authors provide details about how each portrait was made, including relevant information about lighting, location, time-of-day, shutter speed, aperture, etc. Post-processing information is also listed. The next section contains information about "street shooting," i.e. taking your camera out and finding subjects anywhere and everywhere. This is followed by a section entitled "Getting Ready: A Guide to Preproduction," which explains how to get your subjects ready. After this is a fairly lengthy discussion about "Modifying Light," since light plays an important role in taking the right photo. There is also an appendix containing information about some useful tools and techniques (such as histograms, choosing color vs. black and white, etc).
I liked the format of the book. As opposed to providing an academic outline of how to create good portraits, this book just dives in, shows 48 great examples, and explains what makes them great. The book is very colorful, and (obviously) filled with many great photographs. The only thing I didn't like was that sometimes the detail on each portrait is lacking, especially regarding post-production. For example, on photo #15, the description of the post-production is simply "I adjusted the image's contrast and color." There are many ways an image's contrast and color can be adjusted, and I would have preferred a little more information. Also, another possible drawback for non-professionals is that some of the portraits require lighting devices (special lights, diffusion screens, external flashes, etc), which are pricey and not usually readily available to amateurs. Re-creating some of the portraits without these devices would be rather difficult. Of course, with creativity, anything is possible!
Overall, I recommend this book as a good way for amateurs and aspiring professionals to learn how to take excellent portraits. It is entertaining and informative.
For ANYONE Interested in Photography ... June 9, 2010
Erica J. Dymond (Bethlehem, PA USA)
When I ordered this text, I was prepared for a "serious lecture" followed by me spending a ton of dough. (And that was fine ... whatever I needed to improve my photos was okay by me). What I soon discovered was that more "gadgets" are just what I DIDN'T need. What a revelation! (Really!!)
The cameras/equipment used are fairly stripped-down (and isn't that always the hallmark of a real artist?). And the results? Simply beautiful. These two artists have assembled a lush collection of portraits which range from "sweet" to compelling. All are technically gorgeous ... and all "tell a story." They are pretty much what every young (and even more experienced) photographers aspire to.
The lay-out of the text is ideal. The left-hand page features a full-page (!!) portrait and the break-down of the shot resides on the right. I much prefer this approach than hundreds of thumbnail pictures with a glut of text. It is easy to appreciate and so accessible to everyone! Likewise, this text is all-inclusive. There is "street-photography" as well as an example of a "family-portrait" (which sounds cliche, but the artist brings warmth to this much-maligned art ... kudos to him).
In addition to presenting invaluable information in a (dare I say?) exciting manner, these artists provide much needed "tips." One idea I never thought of: "Wear light colors. Turn yourself into a reflector. Wear a light-colored jacket, shirt, or t-shirt when you're street shooting. That done, you can use your own body as a reflector whenever you need to bounce a light extra fill light" (118). So clever!
This text is ingenuously designed for both novice and advanced photographers. Novices, let these experts guide you toward a more organic approach to photography. Advanced folks, let the authors give you some brilliant advice on working with the public/your clients. Sage stuff!
Add this text to your cart ... begin improving your art today!
a book of technique and of inspiration June 15, 2010
William Sommerwerck (Renton, WA USA)
This is one of the best "how to" photographic books I've seen. Fuqua and Biver provide 48 portraits of all types (formal/informal, street/home, controlled-/ambient-lighting, etc), with brief descriptions of how they were made, focusing on the type of lighting used and how it was set up. You are not being encouraged to follow a formula, but to understand the relationship between a particular lighting technique and the kind of portrait you want to produce.
Of the sample photos, the only real dud (for me) is #45, a snapshot taken with a Fuji instant-picture camera. The image quality is poor, and the wide aspect ratio doesn't make for a good portrait of a single person. I love taking and giving away instant photos, especially portraits, but I use a glass-lensed, focusing camera (such as a Polaroid 195 or 360), with Fuji's peel-apart instant materials (now that Polaroid materials are no longer available). These produce a truly high-quality image, and I prefer peeling the positive from the negative, rather than watching it appear. These cameras also have optional portrait and close-up lenses, which let you get as close to the subject as you like.
Every photographer has their own approach to portraiture, so showcasing the work of only two would be highly limiting, if not parochial. The book therefore includes many other portraits, both contemporary and historic, that show the range of possibilities in approaching photographic portraiture. Some -- such as a picture of a dead baby in its casket -- are surprising. (Contrary to another reviewer, I happen to like the Sophia Loren portrait.)
There are three sections on "Street Shooting" (shooting informally at any time); "Preproduction" (what you need to do to be ready for portraiture, in or out of the studio); and "Modifying Light" (a detailed discussion of the lighting techniques shown in the 48 sample photos).
My only complaint is the perhaps-odd one that the sample portraits are on the /left/ (verso) page, rather than the right (recto). As most people are right-eyed, you'd think the portraits would be on that side as well, as that's where most readers would first look.
I'm so accustomed to photography books that are incomplete and/or inaccurate, badly written and/or edited -- the kind of garbage documentation that comes from big-name "experts" who often have no idea what they're talking about (and edited by people who know even less) -- that "Faces" one came as a pleasant surprise. Regardless of your photographic experience, you're likely to find something useful or inspirational in it.
PS: Several reviewers have complained that too many of the sample photos require equipment -- such as multiple studio lights and large reflectors -- the average photographer doesn't own, one saying that the book seems aimed more at people who want to spend money on fancy equipment, than it is at people who want to take better portraits. Unfortunately, photography is "about" controlling light (or controlling the viewer's perception of light), and it's sometimes necessary to use non-amateur equipment to get the kind of portrait you want. If someone is serious about portrait photography, it's not unreasonable for them to own a high-powered flash with a diffuser, or a pair of tungsten studio lamps, any more than it is to expect them to own a high-quality camera with a good lens.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 22
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