Title: Illuminations
Author: Raymond J. Klein
Publisher: PageTurner Press & Media
ISBN: 978-1-64908-244-2
Genre: Photography
Pages: 74
Reviewed by: Allison Walker

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Illuminations is a revelation to the real secret behind great photography: imagination and proper illumination. This autobiographical account is about how imagination and lighting can launch a photographer’s career. Professional photographer and author Raymond J. Klein attributes his success to these two factors, saying, “The two most important tools a photographer can possess are, imagination and an understanding of lighting.” His book is the story of how his father’s folding Kodak Camera launched his career as an innovative professional photographer.

In 1944, Klein finds his father’s folding Kodak Camera. Today this camera would be considered an antique. It had five speeds, Klein describes, and type 620 spool film. By the time he was in high school, and still using his father’s folding camera, Klein was developing his own film. Not long after that he would win his first photography contest prize. Klein’s humble beginnings prove what he sets out to impress upon his readers: that even amateur photographers can produce stunning photography.

Illuminations goes on to describe how this hobby transforms into a career when Klein is drafted into the military. A classmate in his photography class helps Klein enlist with the United States Air Force in their Photo Unit, which was just beginning at that time. Some years later, after being honorably discharged, Klein begins his specialty in advertising photography, where his innovative ideas and experiments with lighting earn him the respect and admiration of his employers. Readers come to realize that working with film at that time wasn’t just about being a clever photographer; Klein also designs and builds sets for his photo shoots. Effects which today would be quickly and easily produced with digital editing software were not available at that time. Some of Klein’s proudest photos took days, even more than a week, to build and capture. The amount of details which had to be accounted for in producing this type of film photography is shocking. When Klein says it takes imagination to be a good photographer, he isn’t kidding!

With a basic understanding of photography, aperture and shutter speed, and how film cameras worked, a reader can follow along with how Klein produced these dramatic, dynamic images. Without a basic understanding of these principles, it may be a little more difficult to follow along. Klein describes the build of each set in detail. Even compared to today’s technology, the quality and color of Klein’s photographs is remarkable. Each photo presented in Illuminations is a testament to how, just as Klein says, imagination and lighting creates the photographer, not the camera.

Illuminations accomplishes everything it promises. Klein’s book is as inspiring as his photography is magnificent. Illuminations will never become outdated because its core principles will always remain true.