The Magic of Holography by Philip Heckman (review)

THE COMPLETE BOOK OF HOLOGRAMS byJ. E. Kaspar and S. A. Feller. John Wiley & Sons, London, U.K., 1987. Reviewed by Bruce Goldberg, 32 Farragut Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94112, U.S.A. The Complete Book ofHolograms is subtitled 'How They Work and How to Make Them'. The book does indeed thoroughly explain how holograms work and how to make them, but it is written in such a dry style and communicates so little of the excitement of holography that it makes for very dull reading, even to one already fascinated by the medium. The Complete Book ofHolograms does contain some attractive graphics demonstrating the mechanical aspects of holography, but there is no treatment of holographic applications, such as interferometry or art. In addition , there are some distortions that should be corrected. In their explanation of the formation of the interference pattern, Kaspar and Feller repeatedly refer to the formation of a negative of the interference pattern as the actual hologram. While it is technically true that the dark fringes recorded in the emulsion correspond to areas of high energy (brightness) in the actual interference pattern, functionally, there is no 'negative' in holography as there is in photography, and thus the use of the word in this context is misleading . The point is that there is no need to make a positive to view the holographic image, so there is no need to introduce the photographic concept of the' negative'. Another technically correct but misleading point is in the practical discussion of the cost of establishing a holography lab. The authors contend that a basic holography lab can be built for approximately (U.S.) $700, laser included. While this may be technically true, no one will ever make satisfying images with such a system. To lead people to attempt to get involved at this level will only bring them frustration and alienate them from this medium. A more frank discussion of the cost of doing holography would be much more useful. This book seems intended, at least in part, for students. With so many exciting as well as accurate books on holographyavailable (such as Holograms by Graham Saxby, Lasers and Holog442 Current Literature mllhy by Winston Kock, and The Holography Handbook by Unterseher, Schlesinger and Hansen), I would hate to see students lose interest due to this dull, misleading presentation. In summary , this book cannot be recommended . THE MAGIC OF HOLOGRAPHY by Philip Heckman. Atheneum, New York, NY, U.SA, 1986. 287 pp., ilIus. Trade, $19.95. ISBN: 0-689-31168-0. Reviewed by Stephen Wilson, Art Department , San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA 94132, U.S.A. The Magic ofHolography offers a general introduction to the principles and practice of holography. The book, which is clearly written and wide ranging, will offer novice readers a solid introduction to holography . Unfortunately for art audiences it does not do much to introduce the magic. The initial chapters of the book cover the history of optics, the physics of light and color, the behavior of lenses and the development of laser technology. Often these discussions are punctuated with discussions of scientists and inventors who were important figures in this research. Readers will appreciate this background as context for understanding holography. Other chapters offer some details about the practice of holography: tools and set ups for creating holography , the development of holographic film, and situations necessary for viewing holography. While this material gives some feel for working with holography, someone wanting to work with the technology would need much more detail. The text does not convey the practical advice and awareness of difficulties that one would expect from a serious practitioner. The book suffers from the inevitable limitations of illustrating holography via traditional photographic reproduction . Many of the photographs are unclear or not successful in clarifying the author's points. Some, however , are quite effective-for example the use of a series of photographs to illustrate the range of different information available from one holographic image, depending on the audience 's point of view. The final chapters on the uses of holography begin to provide some of the excitement of the future possibilities . An appendix lists places that display holography and further reading...