Documentary-collections Books

This book surpassed my expectations! It could be seen as a documentary but transcends being pigeonholed in that way. It is, among other things, a breathtaking work of Art. The images have a crisp presence; at the same time there is a dreamlike undercurrent. The reproduction quality of the images is superb; they can hardly be distinguished from original silver prints! I also like the humble attitude of the Artist towards the people he portrays. Indeed, a masterpiece!

This book brought back vivid and fond memories of the time I lived in Papua New Guinea in 1960 -1962. The use of black and white photography was especially effective in capturing the essense of simplicity that represents the people. If you truly wish to see human spirit at it's best, visit New Guinea. If you can't - buy this book!

This remarkable book first caught my attention at the Australian Museum in Sydney one hot summer day. I was preparing my own expedition to Papua New Guinea in order to write a book on the rarely visited island provinces. I would be doing my own photography. As I leafed through these breathtaking portraits I experienced that shiver at the base of the neck that invariably indicates one is in the presence of great art. Only later came the gut-wrenching realisation that I would never be able to achieve such consummate skill myself (even with my old Nikon F2 and all the best old lenses).
Rainier has a passionate eye for composition, atmosphere and the eloquent possibilities of black and white texture. As you read the detailed and often poetic text accompanying the photographs, you will also find that Chris overcame incredible disasters in conquering this inhospitable environment to bring us these images. In the massive heat and humidity of Papua New Guinea, photographic equipment performs all sorts of horrible tricks at vital moments. Everything seems wet and clammy all the time. His canoe overturned and he lost all his valuable equipment and somehow replaced it to continue his expedition. To even get yourself into the remote areas where some were taken is an achievement in itself and then to emerge from the jungle with high art.......what can one say?
These photographs cross that difficult invisible line that separates art and photography.....very few have the genuis.....Brassai, Cartier Bresson, Eugene Atget and Salgado.....yes, these are Chris Rainier's peers. The images have the immortal immobility of an ancient and inaccessible past recaptured. The quality and sheer size of the prints is superb. All this lead me to convince my publishers to put one of his pictures on the jacket of my own Papua New Guinea book and one of my own more decorative photographs on the back.......a suitable place for this photographic Salieri. Sales are better than expected.
Buy his book as a tribute to a great photographic artist and in the process truly enrich your own cultural horizons.

A stunning exhibiton of humankind. A masterpiece that's worth, without any doubt, spending $40.

Carlos Costa

I was first exposed to Rainer's work in Smithsonian Magazine (Oct. 97). I strongly urge anyone who has a desire to evolve toward embracing and celebrating the essential oneness of all humanity--from urban jungles to remote small-scale societies--to buy this book. As a documentary filmmaker researching shamanic rituals around the planet, I would hire him in a heartbeat to capture the beauty of the world's cultures with his otherworldly gifts of lighting, detail and penetrating the souls of the subject and the viewer. Mr. Rainer, do you shoot 16mm film? If you (or any of your representitives) read this, please contact me at pjoshua@makani.k12.hi.us. Many thanks.

I just really love these books; the photographs in them are great. I will keep ordering them.

Kim's second book is just as good as the first. I got my money's worth just from the picture on the front cover. That Westy makes me smile everytime I see it.

Once again, a wonderful collection of canine pictures and witty captions. Even better than the original. Arlene Millman, author of BOOMERANG - A MIRACLE TRILOGY (The tale of a remarkable Boston Terrier).

The title, "Why We Really Love Dogs," says it all. Photographer Levin's portraits of dogs capture their spirit, intelligence, and loving nature. The book showcases a wide range of dogs and successfully reflects the many moods of these loving creatures.

"Why We Really Love Dogs: is a book you can turn to again and again for a smile and a sigh. Each time I look through at the portraits I notice something I hadn't seen before. It's a great book to give to a friend or fellow dog-lover.

As a "mommy" of 2 of the dogs in the book, I planned on going straight to the picture of our dogs...but as soon as I opened to the first page, that thought totally left my mind. I eventually got there, but not before enjoying all of the many other dogs whose pictures made me laugh and say "AAAWWW"! Since I received the book, I have looked at it at least 20 times and chuckled at every picture! Kim does an AMAZING job of capturing the personality of each and every dog.

The introduction to this book by John Szarkowski is the best essay that I've ever read about photography period. It perfectly matches the photos themselves which I also believe to be perfect. They may not mean much to you at first but keep on looking. They are mysterious and baffling. The book to me is perfect and a true ICON of american art. Everything else pales in comparison, even other Eggleston books.

you have no choice but to buy this book if you think you're interested in photography.

William Eggleston's photos grow on you. Look through this book for the first time and the contents seem a bit like ordinary snapshots but look again and then again and with each viewing the images become more familiar (still with something fresh to discover each time) but now they start to blend together seamlessly. One reason for this, I think, is that the photos capture the everyday and the ordinary. Taken around Eggleston's hometown of Memphis and in the Deep South, they show some of his relations, street scenes, interiors, buildings and more, though the captions only state the locations. John Szarkowski says in the books introduction "..today's most radical and suggestive color photography derives much of its vigor from commonplace models" This capturing of the everyday and in color divided the critics in 1976 when the Museum of Modern Art used seventy-five of Egglestons's images for their first exhibition of color photography. The 'Guide' unfortunately only shows forty-eight from the show.

Art photography until this exhibition was in black and white and had been for years, color photos were mostly for ads, commercial print and snapshots. Thankfully the Museum's curator of photography, Szarkowski, had the good sense to allow the public to see something new and fresh. I think the 'Guide' is a good introduction to Eggleston and if you like his creative vision, as I do, have a look at these two books of his work:The Democratic Forest and Ancient & Modern. Both are full of wonderful color photos of the American everyday.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

For those of you who already know Eggleston, there is something in particular to note about this book. I also purchased Eggleston's "The Hasselblad Award 1998," which features a handful of the same shots in Guide. This provided me an opportunity to compare the same shots in two different publications. There is absolutely no comparison to the superior quality of the prints in William Eggleston's Guide. In fact, shots that I loved in Guide I would not have even really noticed in Hasselblad (very poor color separation, blue tints, etc.). This is the book to get.

this is where color photography became art, and it is the MOST influential color work done to date. what can you say about this work except that if you are a photography student, lover, practitioner, or simple fan, you must own this book. this is the one folks, where it all began. giving it stars seems silly, but if ever there was a 5 star book, this is it.

Pure poetry! Wim Wenders is so creative it's shocking! The pictures are incredible and the text manages to be even better, sometimes! The best purchase in a long time!

I purchased this book recently, and it made me smile reading through it. The snippets of prose coupled with Wim's photos are a great combination. Genius.

i enjoyed this book a lot. the texts (more like poems)gracefully compliment the images. wim wenders is not only a master in telling stories but also a great photographer . the prelude about the act of taking pictures is very insightful too.

this is a wonderful and profoundly moving little book which will get you interested in starting your own road trip and photo journal!

This volume will be a delight to cineastes as it features run-ins with mythmakers like Kurosawa, Scorsese, and Coppola. The pictures inside capture scenes of casual beauty. It seems Wenders has been all over the world and never forgets his camera. Wenders' spare prose requires no concentration and is as easy to read as his photos are easy to look at. Fans of Cartier-Bresson and other photophiles who savor "the moment" a photograph is taken will find many examples of just that: an unusual or special moment embalmed by Wenders' lens and preserved forever in this book. Charming.

this book is great. Wim Wender's opening prose about the art of photography is worth the price alone. delve into the book further, and you are gifted with some really great travel documentary photographs with short prose describing the images. i like this, as a photographer, i am often very interested to hear the story behind the photographs. the art of the slide show presentation is a lost art in america yet this book somehow evokes that type of discovery and storytelling.

featuring both color and black and white photographs, and many of them done as a series, the book's paper texture and image reproduction is top notch.

the physical size of the book is perfect-it's easy to pick up and read or carry with you, and the images are easy to view.

in many ways, this book seems very cinematic. being a film director, Wender's sees each still image as the first frame of a movie and it shows.

As a former resident of the Bay Area, this book defently takes me back there. The pictures are just wonderful. Bob Cameron included almost every city in the Bay Area. I highly reccomend Above San Francisco to anyone who love great cities and great photography.

The aerial photography is beautiful, as is the Golden Gate Bridge. Cameron presents his book very beautifully. I enjoyed this book very much. I enjoyed beautiful sunset photographs, The Bay Area, the bridges, I enjoyed every beautiful photograph in this book. The First thing I liked was the Gate Bridge (Golden Gate Bridge) And the sunsets second, then the Bay Area and of course the Way Robert Cameron did his photography.

A new look at San Francisco. Mr Cameron always manages to find new ways of looking at familiar objects. With Herb Caen's writing, this is one of his best books.

This the first of at least 12 of Cameron's "Above" books.He has set the standard for any aerial photography/coffee table books. With each new edition he finds interesting, stunningly beautiful shots-each one worthy of the "Above San Francisco" calendars he also publishes. With so much beauty and so many tourist sights in everyones favorite city, "Above San Francisco" is the way to see this unique city and the entire Bay Area.

Pete Turner has often been called a photographer's photographer--but that doesn't mean his work lacks wide appeal. His latest book, Pete Turner African Journey, a 206-page collection of images from seven trips he made to Africa, amply demonstrates his ability to please everyone's eye. Here, with his friendly introduction serving as a guide, he takes you on a tour of his pictures and tells you some of the many stories behind them.

Few photographers have displayed as graphic an approach to the art as Turner or such a strong color sense. His shots of the people, the land and the animals glow with the intensity of stained glass. Graphis, the publisher, is to be congratulated for bringing Turner's brilliance to us--and Turner for giving us this chance to bask with him the warmth of the African sun.

Anyone familiar with Pete Turner's work over the past years, knows that he is a master magician of color. His new book, Pete Turner African Journey, a collection of color photographs taken over his many years of return travel throughout Africa is magnificent to behold for both its color and content. Pete has a creative passion for color. His connection to color reminds me of a statement by the artist Paul Klee, "Colour possesses me...color and I are one." So it is with Pete who creates his colorful art using a camera and a searching eye. The way he photographs the people, places and culture of Africa is best said in one of the quotes I have by Gordon Parks. " Recording images of serenity and beauty was a matter of devout observance." I can think of no better way to describe the beauty, sensitivity and reverence of Pete Turner's photographs. His photographs are artfully displayed in a beautifully designed book by the prominent designer and friend, Massimo Vignelli. An introduction by another prominent friend, Gordon Parks, pays tribute to Turner for "...an unforgettable gift that urges me to breathe my own roots." African Journey, is a hero's journey, and an invitation to witness the rich and radiant colors and culture of Africa, the second largest continent on our mother earth.

Showcasing 148 full-color photographs, and with an informative introduction by photography, fillmmaker, composer and author Gordon Parks, Pete Turner African Journey captures the exotic glamor of a seven-month journey from Capetown, South Africa to Cairo, Egypt while Pete Turner was on assignment for National Geographic. This is a stunningly visual journal of people, landscapes, wildlife, and visual beauty where the images captured by Turner's camera could easily stand as individual works of high art and hang on any gallery wall. Pete Turner African Journey is a superbly produced and highly recommended addition to any personal, academic, professional, or community library photography collection.

This book is a wonderful trip that takes us though the landscapes of Africa, visiting the people and the incredible wildlife, seen through the lens of one of the world's greatest photographers. Turner is a master of color and light, and he fell in love early in his career with the richness of the African continent. To spend time with this book is to be his travelling-companion, visiting ancient temples, witnessing animals in their world, crossing the Sahara and spending time in villages, getting to know the proud people who live there. One beautiful image is of a dog sleeping in an Ndebele village, its white paw matching the painted architecture. In images like this, Turner shows us again and again scenes that only his eye and lens could capture.

Let me just say one thing: I'm completely in love with this book. It's amazing and full of breathtaking pictures that will take you right away to the very heart of Africa.

The funny thing is that I got it for a very good price as well. The best purchase of my life!

Don't miss it if you're interested in Kenya and its surroundings.

This was bought as a gift, my dear friend who is also my mom had this on her wish list and I bought it for her birthday.
I didn't really know what to expect of the book, since it was not I who wished for it.
When it came, I was completely delighted with it. Not only is it a beautiful, big, coffee-table size volume, but the photographs inside are wonderful! Something else--the text of the book is written in a font that appears to have been written by hand, straight out of the explorers journal. A nice touch when accompanied by these wonderful photos.
A beautiful book, indeed and the price is very fair, in my opinion.

It makes a great gift, too! :-)

This is something of a `summing it all up' book for this photographer of Africa. With four books and an entire lifetime behind her, she is looking back over the path of her days and trying to clarify for herself what her relationship with the land of her birth has become. "I am a child of Africa," she begins by saying, and yet as we wander through the pages of her life it is clear that it is never so simple as that.

The journey that Ricciardi takes us on is made up of long passages of text and an equal abundance of beautiful photographs. This was my first introduction to this talented photographer, and some of her work took my breath away. The photographs each have descriptions and comments written along side them, and I ended up reading these before working through the sections of text.

Ricciardi's life has been vibrant and is fascinating to read about, though her tone is somewhat melancholy. She is looking back on the Africa that was, the Africa of her youth that has disappeared. She is also looking at it through her `white man's eyes', and realizing that although she may be rooted in the land she has always been a foreigner.

The photographs moved me and Ricciardi's words challenged me. As a white woman who loved Africa she has in interesting view point, caught between what her people have done to Africa and what Africa has done for her. Sorrow and pain and regret are unavoidable when it comes to the Africa of today, but they are bound up with incredible beauty. This book doesn't so much show us the heart of Africa, but the heart of a woman who has been effected forever by the two faces of this land.

Although Ricciardi writes eloquently about Africa and shares herself and her deepest thoughts with the reader in a personal, searching way, it is her photographs that tell her story best. She has captured both the last days of the Africa she knew and the beginning of its new life, in this collection of some of her best and favorite work. A beautiful book.

This book contains images of modest nudity, including nursing mothers and children, that would probably earn this book an "R" rating if it were a motion picture.

Having known of Ms. Mirella Ricciardi's work as a photographer in Africa, I expected this book to be the typical photography book. What I found instead was far more interesting and rewarding. The book combines brief essays about her life in Africa with captioned photographs of her family and friends, and of the scenes she visited, studied, and photographed. Extending from a privileged childhood in what was then colonial British East Africa to recently in Kenya and neighboring nations, you see the collapse of a fantasy-like way of life, the rise of a troubled new one, vanishing wilderness, and the reflections of an intensely self-critical woman. If you are like me, you will be moved by what you see and read.

First, you will be impressed by Ms. Ricciardi's frankness. "I was a bad mother, a discontented wife and a frustrated photographer." She blames herself for the death of her older daughter, Marina, at thirty-six. "To this day, I am convinced this tragic event was my punishment." Personally, I think she is too hard on herself. Her story shows a warm heart and an eye for beauty that have enriched all those who have seen her work. I hope she finds self-forgiveness in the future.

Her mother was quite remarkable, as well. Coming from an influential and wealthy French family, she studied sculpture with Auguste Rodin and lived life as an artist in Paris before meeting the author's father, who was an exile from Italy. Relying on her mother's wealth, the couple soon set up a dream-like existence on a vast estate in Africa based in a "vast pink Italian villa" they built there near Lake Naivasha.

Ms. Ricciardi grew up with great wealth, hunting and enjoying the wilderness, and appreciating the native Africans. Later, she learned how to be a photographer while working with her future husband, and produced her well-known photographic work, Vanishing Africa. You will find many examples of that book as well as the details of how it was shot. Married to this adventuresome man, you get a sense of their time together as well as their discontent. As part of this, Ms. Ricciardi recounts her years with a young black lover, and how they handled the social challenges this presented in the class conscious society. Her two daughters were raised in an unself-conscious way with African children, often cavorting together nude as many young children do. You will enjoy seeing these scenes of carefree youth. Ms. Ricciardi's love of nature is matched by her love of the African people, and you will especially enjoy her images of the Maasai.

Moving forward in time, you see photographs of white Kenyans who fought the Mau-Mau, farmed and studied wildlife, the destruction that war brought to Africans, and the retreating wilderness. I especially enjoyed her profiles of people who have found a continued life in Africa whose family roots go back to colonial days. Ms. Caroline Roumegeure was especially interesting to me, with her background as the daughter of a Maasai warrior and a French woman in a family with 6 wives and 26 other children. She seemed to blend the best of both cultures together. Ms. Ricciardi eventually became estranged from Africa and has left it.

The photography captures breath-taking beauty that will stun you with its mystical appeal. You will feel like you are looking at something that is beyond your own understanding, but which will beckon you forward. Ms. Ricciardi's openness to the people, land, and animals will become your own, and you will be the better for it.

After you finish contemplating this deep and self-critical view of another way of life, I suggest that you think about where you are divided from other people and nature in your community. How can you reach out to bridge the gaps in a loving way?

Share your love with all around!

This book is good, but more on a "slow to grow on you" scale. I've been to SF., so a lot of the places in the up-date photographs I knew. In that sense, it creates a better impression of the scale of the damage, with the more panoramic studies being (visually) comparable to either Nagasaki or Hiroshima for their almost shock value.
Good Book: Glad I got it !

Anyone who loves San Francisco needs this book. Its obvious that a lot of work went into making this book. Its not a slap-dash book put together by some promo conmpany. It was lovingly created to allow us a before and now look at the City.

I received this book along with another one called: "Denial of Disaster: The Untold Story and Photographs of the San Francisco",by Gladys Hansen.

Both books are wonderful to read together because the book by Hansen describes what happened during and after the 1906 Fire (and/or 1906 Earthquake), and this book by Fradkin shows more photos from the tragic event. Thus, I recommend both books highly.

AFTER THE RUINS: 1906 AND 2006 - REPHOTOGRAPHING THE SAN FRANCISCO EARTHQUAKE AND FIRE has been a century in the making, and deserves a spot on any collection purported to be even halfway authoritative about San Francisco or California history. Its purpose seemed simple: to capture the meaning and impact of the 1906 quake through juxtaposing 'before' and 'after' photos, right down to the very angle of original landscapes. The idea was to also document how the city's landscape changed because of and since the quake: black and white and duotone photos by photographer Karin Breuer compliment essays by Philip L. Fradkin and Rebecca Solnit, longtime writers on California history, compliment an outstanding survey. College-level holdings on urban planning and design also should make this a special pick: it's an important documentation of how urban disasters change urban landscapes.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

You will think that this was photoshopped, airbrushed, other otherwise tricked up. It's not. These are simple, real photgraphs of dancers that are hard to believe as real.

Modern dance is something not everyone understands. This collection will make you wonder how it is that human beings can create such kinetic sculpture with their bodies and some pieces of cloth.

I think the line above says everything.. you will not regret buying this book.

Wonderful book. None of the photographs are tricked -- that is, all are usual perspectives, normal orientation (what looks like the floor at first glance really is), no strings, no unseen bars or plates, no studio retouching of former. (See LG's preface.) Truly amazing work.

This book is a sequel to the book BREAKING BOUNDS.The trick photography is incredible! Some of the photos are tasteful nudes that captivate you with their artistry. If a picture is worth a thousand words... this book is worth a couple million!

This book offers the serenity and solitude of the outdoors, seen by few and unexperienced by many. The inside passage is the untouched adventure that the photographer has magnificently demonstrated by the composition of the moment! Incredible, to the point of allowing the reader to share the feeling of the experience.

Beautiful photography along with very informative information. A book well worth looking over again and again.

My wife had seen this book at another person's house before we cruised the inside passage. Gave us a preview of what was to come. After our cruise it was fun going back over what we had seen. We ordered the book after our trip. We especially enjoyed the beautiful photographs. We both own digital cameras and especially enjoy good pictures. The book has a nice overall appeal and look to it. The text was excellent.

Having just returned from my first Alaskan cruise, I was looking for a book to capture the beauty and grace of this wild land. I was so impressed by the full page pictures that I bought copies for several family members who were also on the cruise with me. Just opening this book takes me back on the cruise. The text is descriptive and insightful, but it is the 9.5 by 13 inch pictures that fill my vision and bring back memories.