Can I get some thought on Good Books on Lighting.  I see at Amazon there is a WHOLE industry about Lighting, I was wondering if there are any favorites or MUST have books some of you may be able to suggest.

Or any other thoughts about lighting.  All would be Most welcome.

Thanks,

Rick

Oh, I thought you were asking for hints on how to light a book in a Poser scene.  :)

It's actually quite hard to make the print show clearly, without glaring everything else into oblivion.

I had the same question a few months ago and spent a good bit of time at the local bookstores looking through their Lighting books, generally all in the Photography or Art sections.  I ended up buying "Light - Science & Magic, An Introduction to Photographic Lighting" (ref http://www.borders.com/online/store/TitleDetail?sku=0240808193 ) and have been very pleased with it.

It includes very practical explanations of various lighting situations, along with setup diagrams (positions of camera, lights, subjects) and excellent color photos showing the results.  The authors include advice both on techniques that work and what to avoid, clearly explaining the rationale for a lighting situation.

Best of all, I found that their presentation of the "science and magic" of real-world photographic lighting is directly applicable to lighting in 3D computer art.  Unlike many other books in this category, this one did not "waste" much time on photographic equipment usage and specifications (e.g. exposure meters, strobe lights), but concentrated on the placement of the lights themselves and the resulting artistic effects. 

Arnoldo Gallardo, 3D Lightting,historic,concepts  techniques,Graphics series Charles River Media,2001,492 pages

Old one but very good one You can adapt to Poser or other 3d softs

Quote - Oh, I thought you were asking for hints on how to light a book in a Poser scene.  :)

It's actually quite hard to make the print show clearly, without glaring everything else into oblivion.

Well, I would think one way would be to give the pages a slight ambience and plug the diffues into the ambient channel. It'll light the page without having an actual light source casting a glare on the pages. Just my take on the idea.

Digital Lighting & Rendering by Jeremy Birn is a pretty good resource.

Yes; definitely get the Birn book. It is fairly app neutral, and deals more with concepts and attitudes. And being a technical lighting director at Pixar is plenty good mojo.....

Yes, if you want to know what is meant by lighting in CG "Digital Lighting & Rendering" by Jeremy Birn is a good book.

Wow, thank you all for your insights, thoughts and suggestions,  and taking the time to share!

 I very much appreciate all the replys.

Can wait till Amazon delivers!

Thanks again,

Rick