Interior Lighting- Fourth Edition Description:

Interior Lighting, Fourth Edition review:
2 stars (Not Good Introductory Textbook Material ) - This is a required book for an introductory lighting class I'm taking. Since we are solely relying on this book and it isn't supplemented with lecture material, I find that, without familiarity with lighting terminology and concepts, it is very difficult to understand -- very cryptic with the seemingly overused language of the field. While the author may be very knowledgeable, I feel the book is not very well written and the target audience is, perhaps, not intended to be, essentially, the layman. I don't find the organization of ideas and concepts to be clearly laid out or communicated well and, as they unfold, and I come to understand what the author is trying to say, wonder why it was made so difficult -- is that all he means, geesh and why didn't he tell me that earlier. It would be easier to understand the general concept of things first, even in plain English perhaps, and then go on to a more technical description to learn the language of the field and get the details. Just seems to make simple things very complicated, especially with the language, flow of ideas, and phrasing.



I also find a lot of the graphic figures and photo examples need some clarification or more details. A picture's supposed to be worth a thousand words, not be cryptic and time-consuming to understand.



Sorry, I would not recommend this for students who are not primed first. Especially the younger ones.




5 stars (Great teacher) - While I was studying Interior Design at Parsons a number of years ago, I had Gary Gordon as a Lighting Design Instructor. He was by far one the best teachers that I had. He is very knowledgeable and has the unique ability to easily communicate the many aspects of both design and lighting. I highly recommend any publication he has authored.
4 stars (Very good book for novices.) - The book begins with an inspirational and somewhat simplistic insight into lighting design. Simply as a study of lighting contrasts. While this is a very important aspect of LD, it is by far one of many concepts a professional must use. The book refers to many technical aspects of lighting without giving any "meat" or more in depth information, which I would have enjoyed. If you are new to LD or are an architect or engineer who has little experience with lighting, it is a very good lauching point. If you are technically knowledgable about lighting and want some inspiration, read chapter 1 and the last chapter on Design for concepts