A student asked me a few months ago to give a reference on a good, all-inclusive book about being a stage electrician. I thought about it for a while, trying to rack my brain about which text would give a wide variety of thorough information regarding distribution, practices, etc – but still giving a good breadth of knowledge about the craft and art of what lighting technicians do. Nothing beats hands-on education in our industry, especially with a field as highly specialized as ours.
After several texts’ worth of information, I finally decided on the Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook. This is a text geared towards film and television lighting production, but the information on electrical distribution and practices in this book are second to none. From phasing to fixtures, source types, histories, uses, practices – this is a great book if you’re looking to get into the lighting industry.
Check it out. It’s a great book for reference or just plain education.
