conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Do you know a description for a book titled Hollywood Portraits about Perfect, Exposure, Learning with the genre: Arts & Photography, Photography & Video?
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: the author, the author of Perfect Exposure, Learning to Light, Quality in Photography, and more than thirty other books on photography, lives in England. Christopher Nisperos, a professional photographer living in Paris who has studied movie-lighting techniques extensively, specializes in Hollywood-style portraits.
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Do you know the first five paragraphs for this book? Start with the sentence 'Hollywood Portraits
  Lou Szoke started his photography business in 1980'.
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: Hollywood Portraits
  Lou Szoke started his photography business in 1980. He earned the Master Photographer designation in 1995 and Craftsman of Photography in 1996. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including Illinois Top 10 Photographer of the Year, which he won six years in a row, from 2001 to 2006; several Fuji Masterpiece awards; and Illinois' Best Black & White Print award, which he received for five consecutive years. Lou was named Illinois Photographer of the Year in 2002. He has many National Loan prints and also has a photograph on rotational display at the Photography Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
  Lou has also been a featured speaker at numerous conventions and workshops throughout the United States and Canada.
  He continues to this day to teach his advanced lighting techniques, and his love of photography continues to grow.
  Many people have touched my life throughout the course of my photography career. Little did I know that some of my best and most beloved friends would come from those I met in photography groups. My comrades with cameras share an overwhelming desire for knowledge; any information they can use to create their next great portrait or art piece is always welcomed.
  To my mom and dad, I miss you both terribly. I wish you were still with us today. Nothing made me prouder than to show off my prints to the two of you.
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Do you know four more paragraphs?
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: He has obviously has taken very good care of his body. He has a physique most of us guys would love to have. To keep the muscle detail in his body, I used strong side lighting for each image.
  In photo 1, the side lights served as the main lights, as they were the brightest lights in the setup. Note the natural pose the model is in. This was accomplished by just watching him as I changed lighting setups.
  Photo 2 was also made with strong side light. This time, though, I used negative space in a way that breaks the rules of traditional photography. Normally, you want to leave room on the side the model is looking toward. The theory is, you should give the subject room to look through the photo. By having strong light coming from camera left and having the subject looking into the short side of the print, I was able to create a static feeling that really engages the viewer. Note that the shadow on the right side of the image was introduced to create compositional balance.
  In my photographs, I welcome shadows and use them to my advantage. Most portrait photographers today use softboxes and umbrellas to create a flatter light and lower image contrast. This is simply their personal preference. The way I see it is, shadows are a part of life. Rarely can you walk outside and not see some sort of shadow. On a gloomy day, there are usually shadows present. At night, you see shadows from street lights, the lights on houses, and so on. I think they have a place in portraiture. They add depth to images, create roundness, and are a natural part of life. Perhaps the best reason to use them, though, is that most photographers don't!
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Do you know the last five paragraphs?
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: For this image, I placed the main light on a boom above the model. A hair light was used to create depth and separation in the hair. A background light added some needed punch and created some separation. Finally, a touch of fill was added.
  Remember, there is no right way or a wrong way to create an image—there is only the artist's way. Create with passion!
  I feel honored and blessed to have been in this wonderful business for over thirty years. I can't say I put a plan into action to make it all happen. It just happened. The intrigue of taking pictures as a young boy turned into a bona fide passion, which soon turned into a career. When I look back on my journey and the way that it played out, I know that, had it been scripted, it could not have worked out any better. Certain things in life happen for a reason. When I look back at my life, many things that seemed hard to understand are now clear. I have realized how many things came together in my life to move me toward my passion for photography.
  A true passion or "calling" may temporarily be put aside for the busy and hectic thing we call life. For example, I began many jobs and started down many career paths but quickly left them behind when they interfered with my passion for photography. However, if it is meant to be, if it is your calling, it will surface again and again. Don't fight it; just go with it.
  I hope my words and photographs have inspired you, but most of all, I urge you to do what you love in life. Grab your camera, look closely at everything around you, and consider how to photograph it to create your next masterpiece. Remember, the light is your oils, and you are the artist—now go create!