Book Review – American Cinematographer Manual

Review by Ron Cotton – October 27, 2006

Edited By Dr. Rod Ryan
Published by The ASC Press (http://www.theasc.com/)
Approx. 620 pages, Copyright 1993.
ISBN 0-935578-13-7 (US Softcover - Unknown Retail)
Seventh Edition – OOP

This thick green book with the small footprint is built around the oldest society of film making, the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) Founded in 1919, there motto is “to advance the art of cinematography through artistry and technological progress, to exchange ideas and to cement a closer relationship among cinematographers.” The ASC have been a very active voice into the current advancements in television, and is currently continuing this heritage into the realm of Video.

Unfortunately, Video isn't discussed in the Seventh Edition. In defense to the ASC, the updated 9th Edition is edited by Stephen Burum and has a more modern slant to cinema which includes the many advancements brought to light thanks to the digital age.

For those who work with film, the seventh edition of this book is a very complete resource. It describes cinematographic systems (65mm, 35mm, 16mm) lenses that create different, the pros and cons of different common aspect ratios, greatly outlines the vital statistics of film cameras and the internals of each, compares film stock from various companies, has detailed formulas and charts for lenses, filters, lighting, lab work, and special techniques that arise. This books slant wholly towards the technical and analytical study of cinematography, and doesn't pretend to be anything different.

The amount of calculations and the tables for lenses, the detailed information on the film cameras, and the information of different film stock makes American Cinematographer Manual a must have to filmmakers who will work with film. I am unfortunately unable to confirm this data, however because the ASC is as reputable as they come, it would be impossible for me to discount it.

Ultimately, this book is a must have for all crew members on the set that must have intimate knowledge of the film camera on set. Unable to read current Ninth Edition, I'm unsure of it's quality in comparison to this edition. While the hardback retail of $99.99 isn't something to blink at, cinematography has never been an inexpensive field.