I learned a new word yesterday:  Discursive.  A great one, it kindalike suggests the act of moving from one subject to other subjects in what seems like a random pattern.   Sound like anyone  you know?  Anyway, anyone who has followed modern photography has heard of Joe McNally.  A proven and inspired shooter, McNally has recently become one of our most knowledgeable and entertaining teachers. His new book, The Hot Shoe Diaries, confirms the importance of his role as sensei of portable lighting. McNally’s lighting kit; containing about a dozen Speedlights, is laid out on pages 6 and 7 of the book – right up front – confirming that this is a technically oriented piece on practical lighting using small hand held flashes. In his signature self-deprecating way, McNally points out that his book is not a manual, and instead *discursive* is the word he uses to define his approach. High energy, boundless enthusiasm, indulging instanteous inspiration: check, check, and check – it’s all in there – but a textbook? – not so much. Rather, McNally shares a series of vignettes; which are here brief, technical accounts of a particular lighting challenge, each one adding either a unique new perspective or reinforcing an earlier lesson. Although the book is structured around the use of the Nikon Creative Lighting System, the vast majority of the lessons are completely general, and will be of central interest to anyone interested in learning how to use artificial light in the real world. Highly recommended.