– Customer review on 29/01/2010

Hands down this is by far the best photography book I have read. Alongside Fil Hunter's Light: Science and Magic, this is a must have for anyone who is interested in learning more about lighting, specifically with flash. After reading McNally's 'Hot Shoe Diaries', I was left severely disapointed, as I have noted down in my review of the book. Not long after, my copy of Van Niekerk's book came in the mail, and I read it from cover to cover in one day - it's that good! Van Niekerk writes in a way that does not involve blatent product placement (like McNally), or with colloquial childlike phrases such as 'da grip' and 'a bid of dis and bid of dat' (like McNally), or recommend that you buy 50,000 speedlights/flashguns (oh surprise, surprise, like McNally).

Van Niekerk simply takes his wealth of experience and tries his best to explain the technical aspects of how he achieves his shots with on-camera lighting. The title, On-Camera Flash Techniques', as it suggests is simply that, a book describing easy to follow on-camera flash techniques. I couldn't fault Van Niekerk on any aspect of his book. It's in colour, it's huge, and it has both before and after shots of the effect he is applying and trying to teach.

If you have a speedlight or flashgun and want to go beyond putting the dome diffuser on and bounce off the ceiling at 45 degrees, then this book is simply a must have. It will open another world in terms of your flash creativity. I guarantee you will learn something worth wild by the end of the book, as I certainly have, and eagerly await putting them into practice in the real world of photography.

If you're still a bit hesitant to purchase the book, check out Neil's blog on www.planetneil.com where he shares (FREELY) hints and tips with on-camera lighting. If you like what you read there, then you must buy the book.

5/5 for me, read it from cover to cover in less than a day, and will no doubt refer back to it time, and time again.

– Customer review on 06/03/2011

I'm only half way through and have already learned so much. I would not suggest this for the complete novice but for anyone with a resonable camera knowledge this book is really helpful.

– Customer review on 18/04/2010

Definitely worthwhile, yes lots of text but also plenty you can get from skim reading. One of the few books I have recently bought that have really taught me something I can use day to day. It has helped my studio set ups and on the go location images. I now understand better how to balance ambient light with artificial flash light adding without overposwering. This isn't light weight and if you are looking to not read don't buy it but if you really want to learn and take your images to a professional level fast it is the book for you. If you have only sometimes put your camera on manual you might not be quite ready to get the most out of a book of this depth. Keep it and refer back to it until you are.

– Customer review on 15/01/2010

The good thing about this book is that is has "before" and "after" photos that show the difference is results if you apply the techniques talked about in the book. There are some stunning photographs and great tips and tricks...but there's lots and lots of text to read through before you can really grasp the subject matter. All up though, a good buy and a valuable addition to your photography education.