Documentary-Collection

If, like me, you enjoy photography books more for the photos than for the accompanying text then you will find American Photographs 1900-2000 a joy. Of the 400 pages that make up this volume, only 6 pages have text. The rest are devoted to a wide and wonderful range of photographs. It is simply and stylishly laid out. Each left had page lists the photographer, the title, the date, size and type of the photograph. On the opposing right-hand page the accompanying photograph is beautifully reproduced. The plates are not 'cramped', as they can be in other books commemorating a century's worth of photography. Photojournalism, fashion photography, scientific photography, 'art' photography and Hollywood glamour photography are all covered. It is a pleasure to own.

The photography contained in this book is masterful! The black and white and color photos capture the essence of a country on the move. The captions help the reader to connect events and people to American history.

Anchorage: Early Photographs Of The Great Land is a splendidly produced compendium of historic black and white photography showcasing the Native Americas, landscape, settlement, construction emergences of the largest city in Alaska and the Cook Inlet. From its beginnings as a little railroad town to a thoroughly metropolitan community, Ann Chandonnet has gathered striking and memorable photos enhanced with her informative and engaging text telling the stories of the people who made the city what it is today. Anchorage is a superb photo history.

These early photos of Anchorage, Alaska provide a fine capsule history of the town's beginnings and evolution, creating a paperback packed with image sure to appeal to any who live in the region or to those with a special affection for early Alaskan history. A fine collection of involving images.

Andreas Gursky: Photographs From 1984 To The Present offers a grand, hugely diverse collection of larger than life images which taken as a whole conveys a gently ironic commentary of modernity in all its disparate manifestations. Although profoundly concerned with the role (and fate!) of man in the dis-articulated social tableau created by late-stage hyper-capitalism, Gursky is not making judgments about what he observes. To Quote from one of three introductory essays, this one written by Marie Luise Syring, "Gursky's work...reflects both the art forms and the everyday aesthetics of 20th-century society without resorting to open polemics-his images display too much indifference and beauty."

I was initially drawn to this series of photographs by the dust jacket illustration which is a somewhat unusual composition for Gursky, it turns out. I was touched immediately by the sparse, geometrically pleasing landscape running on endlessly in a striated banner of perfectly matched colour. There are several other 'naturalistic' studies included in this portfolio of 76 plates but most of the work examines the controlled chaos of urban settings, often featuring countless humans perambulating pointlessly in endless motion. "Being modern can also involve the danger of losing one's individuality and right to self-determination," Marie Luise Syring reminds us.

Gursky works on the boundary between painting and art photography. He tests and retests the critical distinctions seemingly inherent to these two representational domains. Thus many, but not all, of Gursky's photographs seem to have an explicitly clinical orientation. He is probing a fragile boundary and we know it. The cold truth which emanates from a stark objectification of the subject matter which compels Gursky is however always balanced by the way in which he floods his overrun visual fields with light and riotous colour. That I might personally prefer the warmer emotional tones of his naturalistic work to the harsher elements of the cityscapes is of course hardly the point. All of his work makes you think! And sometimes gasp at the sheer excess of talent and technique which propels the creation of such intensely intelligent, beautiful art.

I saw this exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts in NY recently and it was incredible. I'm usually not a fan of giant color photo exhibits, but this one really struck me. The complexity and beauty in his photographs will hit on something that you have most likely never seen. He has a gift of bringing common scenes like the supermarket into view in a way that makes you doubt you have ever shopped at one. If so, you would say, how did I miss that which is shown in this photograph? Looking at his photographs will bring on that same sense of smallness as pondering your little place on this little, common blue/green planet, around this one star that is the norm among billions upon billions.

This book is incredibly detailed and is a must for any Warhol fan. It was worth the money,

Very comprehensive retrospective of Andy Warhol's photography. I especially liked the fact that the book presents the orginal photographs used as the source material for so many of his silkscreens. Wonderful section on photos of Andy Warhol taken by others. A must for any Warhol fan. I have many books about Warhol. There is material in this book that I've never seen anywhere else. You'll love it!

An amazing and thought-provoking book! The simple title belies the depth of meaning of these photographs and the way they are arranged. When all is said and done, Art Shay will likely go down as an American icon, and works such as this will be the reason. You will surely find yourself wondering time and again, "How did he get that shot?!" Shay is not only a master of his equipment, but seems to have also mastered the art of being the fly on the wall that we all wish we could be at times.

You owe it to yourself to go through this book at least three times. I suggest that you initially not read any of the notes, but dive right into the viewing. During your first perusal, it's probably best to look at each picture singly, absorbing the essence of each according to what it has to offer to you. As you turn the pages during your second viewing, notice how the two photographs facing you each time you turn a page relate to each other in some way - be it theme, animal type, photo structure...it's up to you to see it. (I apologize for giving this aspect away to those who would have noticed it on their own, but I saw no mention of it anywhere in the notes, and felt it too important a feature to allow to go unmentioned.)

Now, before and during your third trip through the book, turn to Art Shay's notes at the front of the book, which tell the stories behind the photos. See if you aren't moved even further as you turn each page. Personally, after reading Shay's description of the animal control officer removing a cancer-ridden lady's only pet, I get teary-eyed every time I view that picture. Other pages now cause me to smile or laugh every time I turn to them.

Animals indeed! Yes, this book has lots of pictures of animals, but once you jump on board you'll find yourself on the roller coaster ride of emotions that comes with being fully alive.
Tickets, please!

'Contact'! is the title of the last photo in Art Shay's new book of photographs, 'Animals.' It shows a human hand and a hairy simian hand with a peanut between them; it isn't clear who is the giver and who is the receiver. The theme of this book is the ways in which we share the planet with other animal species and the things we have in common with each other. The cover photo shows a woman wearing a leopard coat, walking past a leopard in its cage. Photos of horses and dogs at work, a hog drinking beer, a squirrel eating matzoh and other animals going about their ordinary daily lives remind us of the ways in which we identify with and influence each other. What is particularly appealing about this book is the spontaneity and unpretentiousness of these photos which take us all over the world, from various locations in the United States to Europe and Africa. This book will delight anyone who has had a warm or interesting or unusual contact with an animal, and who hasn't?

I am lucky to have Professor Morrissey for my Photography class in Rhode Island and his book has really touched me and made me look at my photos in a different way. He truly is one of the most sincere people I have met with amazing talent behind the lens.

There are several books with moving and important photographs of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. This one is a welcome addition as it focuses on the veterans and visitors to the Wall. Mr. Morrissey has obviously spent much time at the Wall and captures the feelings well.

This is THE coffee table book for blues lovers. The quality of the photographs is unsurpassed. Norberg sure caught some wonderful moments.

For 12 years, Marc poured his soul into this effort -- creating B&W portraits of the just-surviving and just-arriving blues greats. His objective was to support Willie Dixon's Blues Heaven Foundation, which, at the time, had the objective of supporting blues musicians who had not received their due, even though they had paid their dues. Yes, I'm biased toward my bro', but who can blame me? These photographs are stunning.

This is the finest collection of Jazz Photography ever assembled! If you're a fan of jazz, or Blue Note Records, you must own this book. As a co-owner of Blue Note, Francis Wolff had the opportunity to arrest time with his lens while the titans of jazz created quintessential music. All the faces you would expect are here, Thelonious Monk, Miles, Coltrane, etc. Yet so are others whose names have been unfairly excluded from the roster of jazz immortals, men like Hank Mobley, Sonny Clark, Lee Morgan and many more. This collection is tastefully assembled, carefully balancing a trove of color and black & white prints with aesthetic perfection. Its 176 pages are bursting with images that inebriate the eyes; many are published here for the first time. Along the way, written snapshots built on the visual perspective. You can hear the music pouring from these images. You can feel the excitement of it's genesis. The musicians were comfortable with Wolff and his lens. He captured their essence in a way that no other could. Pick this up before it goes out of print.

Even if you haven't heard the name Francis Wolff before you have probably seen many of his photos already. They can be found on many Blue Note albums. Some of them also became classics on their own. Francis Wolff is the co-founder of the Blue Note record label. Before becoming a full-time producer by the end of the Sixties, he spent a lot of his time taking photos of the artists while they were recording. All these photos are taken with a sort of simple equipment (just a camera and one flash) without posing. The photos were taken while the musicians were playing or composing of resting. There is an enormous depth and clarity in the pictures and you can nearly sense the personalities of the musicians. This collection of Wolff's photography is a must for every fan of classical photography and, of course, it's a must for die-hard Blue Note fans.

I was delighted by 'Britain Then & Now,' Philip Ziegler's book on the amazing Francis Frith landscape photos of Victorian Britain, most of which have been updated by superb contemporary color landscape photos by John Cleare, or by landscape views taken in the same position several decades apart, say in 1900, 1920 & 1950. I have almost never seen this 'then & now' format used for sites in Britain, though it has been very frequently used for sites here in the United States. The changes to the landscape over so many decades are stunning, often shocking. Discover, for example, what is hidden behind the garish neon signage of Piccadilly Circus !! Not a book which is likely to please defenders of advertising, modernism, or "the ubiquitous motor vehicle," but which will not only please, but delight the rest of us. Architecture is supposed to be "the most public of the Fine Arts," yet one has to wonder how respectfully Britain's marvelous legacy of this artwork has been treated, after reading this volume.

After reading many books from Osbert Sitwell and buying first editions where I found them only now I have a perfect idea about who and what the man was. A splendid book which it was oimpossible to close after beginning. Everybody interested in this family and man should begin with this work. It is well written, humorous in a convincing way and perfectly thrustworthy and gives you by the way for the most important books "the critical heritage".I am sure every reader will after finishing this books start buying those which he has not been reading. Splendid.

Really enjoyed this book. It was easy read and not weighted down with a lot of stradegy. I thought it captured the meaning of brotherly love, when at the end of the war, the Union troops even shared their food with the enemy.The fact that the Confederates were allowed to keep their horses was very moving to me, as these animals is some cases were all they owned. And in the end,it makes no difference which side they fought on, they were finally all together on a common ground, even if it is in eternal rest.

Ray Carson's the Civil War Soldier: A Photographic Journey brings a fresh perspective and new treatment to a photographic subject that was defined 135 years ago by renown Civil War photographer, Matthew Brady, whose battlefield photos brought the grisly horrors of the war home to the American public. Ray Carson's photos, although more than a century removed from the subject, have a dynamic, impromptu quality and spontaneous intimacy that Brady, with his long exposure times that required subjects to be perfectly still (or dead), was never able to capture. Carson's photos capture the action and vitality of scenes that Brady couldn't, with a technique that is brilliant in the way it preserves the old daguerreotype quality of the photography of Brady's times with the movement and close-up action of modern photography. Carson's photos put the viewer right into the middle of the action. He did this by photographing re-enactors at the sites of the Civil War's great battles who annually recreate, with painstaking attention to detail and authenticity, those great conflicts which tested the mettle and honored the valor of both sides, North and South alike, and, in the process, forged a stronger, undivided nation. Civil War Soldier is absorbing reading, too, with many first-hand accounts, and the foreword by James Robertson, Jr. of Virginia Tech is a compelling introduction to one of the most dramatic and moving periods in the nation's history. Once I picked up Ray Carson's book, I couldn't put it down. Civil War Soldier belongs on the bookshelf of every Civil War buff, along with Matthew Brady.