Documentary-collections Books

Mr. Richards is America's greatest living photojournalist. The depth of his social commitment to his subjects is equaled only by his amazing ability to compose the picture perfectly.

Cocaine true, Cocaine Blue represents the best of Eugene Richards. If Robert Capa's maxim about your pictures being close to be good is true, then Richards work is hands down about as close as anyone is getting.

This book focuses on the impact of crack cocaine in three eastern cities -- North Philadelphia, Harlem, and Red Hook, New Jersey.

Richards seems to have none of the fear that would stop most people, because his pictures bring a viewer over the comfort line to become shocking. The scenes exceed imagination. In fact, one of his pictures in this book was challenged for its authenticity because it seemed almost too perfect... In it, a women pauses to look at her John, her hands on his zipper, with her young child watching her. On a wall behind her, a picture of Martin Luther King, Jr. is displayed. Some black political leaders saw this picture and insisted that Richards must have set it up. He could only assert that he was truthful in his portrayal.

Truth is always stranger than fiction. This might be photojournalism's answer to magical realism: there is a wickedness and abandon to this world. The cover picture is another example -- the photograph shows an addict holding a syringe in his mouth. His eyes gleam in a way that suggests the insanity in the spirit of this individual.

Richards is for the most part a photographer who works inside America. Some domestic photographers lament that all of the best photographs are made in wars, and that the situations in our home communities preclude us from being able to make great pictures. Eugene Richards shows how this is false. He takes horrifying pictures in Long Island, in Philadelphia, in West Virginia, in Kansas City.

Eugene Richards, one of the worlds best photojournalist, has a gift to not only photograph well but also write about his subjects equally as well! He shows the world a part of this world many do not see nor wish to see. This is one of those photo books that a good photographer must have to essentially help to chisel a path in the photography world for themselves! Taking this style to learn and grow from! One can learn much by the raw and realness of Richard's Cocaine life pictorial!

It's a wonderful book. Really takes you through all of Colombia.

Magnificent! A side of colombia not seen by most. A must have for any travel or photography enthusiast.

This book is great. If you have ever been to Colombia or if you are from Colombia it is a must have. The photographs are beautiful.

Thoroughly enjoyed the gorgeous photography of my childhood haunts- I went to grammar school in the Cook Forest area and not long ago when a friend was planning to visit for the first time I handed her this book (I work in a library) as a preview-she was hooked. Mr. Cook has captured all the untouched magic of Pennsylvania forests and packaged it up so we can all carry about a bit of solitude in our busy lives.

You'd never guess from reading this bookthat Anthony Cook was not a professional author or photographer. As a long time visitor to the cook forest, I can testify that the author has beautifully captured the spirit and history of these magnificent woods.

This beautiful book of photographs is begun with a fascinating description of the forest's history. I didn't realize that Pennsylvania had such a dramatic history involving the early timber industry and later with conservationists. This book quickly makes you realize how lucky we are to have old-growth forests in America.

Cowpuncher by Kurt Markus has won the Western Heritage Award presented once a year by the Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City for the most "Outstanding Art Book of the Year". Award ceremony will be held in Oklahoma City on the 21st April.

When I first started the book, I could not set it down. I could feel myself melt into time as I read on. I felt like I was a cowboy working the range. The smell of fresh coffee,and a cool brisk morning awaited me with every turn of the page. The pictures were beautiful. But even more, they were real.

Kurt Markus' COWPUNCHER is a stunner! In conception and execution it is simply the finest cowboy photography book ever produced and sets a lofty new standard for the genre.

This is a book loaded with photos There was a time in a not too distant past that all this was secret and prohibited. There are many images here that are not meant to be seen by the non initiated I am a member of this spititual lineage for Santiago de Cuba,where I was initated in Santeria in 200 in Palma Soriano. When I found this book at Modern Times in San Francisco it was by accident. I saw my godfater's godfather and the singer Saraba'that sang at my initiation The fotos are so extensive so nuanced and textural and precise that I could recall the smells or rum tacacco and blood, the sounds of the Afro cubans and the drums and feel of the muggy heat of the little room crowded with persons and spirits. The book transports me back to there.

The text is a bit antropological and removed form the scene and alienating but at the same time may benefit by being written by "outsiders" (The authors are German and are able to travel to Cuba and engage in such extended research.) At the same time it reveals those writers dedicaiton to the subject and even their love and admiraiton. The Cubans work so hard to accomlplish anything and this includes a huge labor to carry out their devotion and their ritual activity. It is part of their do-or-die, revolucion o muerte relationship to attaining what they need. This is a sub theme of the book and is inspiring to me.

Someday we will american santeros and paleros will be able to visit our spitiual families and to recieve these talented and humble Cubans to our communities and homes here. Until then enjoy Crossing the Water

This study of the religious practices of a single Santeria priest in Cuba is a phenomenal immersion experience for the reader. The photographs by Anneke Wambaugh, an independent scholar and documentary photographer, and her collaborator, the photographer Claire Garoutte, are stunning. The narrative is immensely readable in spite of being highly informed by the scholarly literature on African and Afro-Cuban art and religion. Wambaugh and Garoutte treat a a culture that is alien to most, and will be disturbing to many, with the utmost respect. This book will appeal to readers who are interested in Cuba, religious rituals, African art, Afro-Cuban art, documentary photography, and participatory research of all kinds.

A VERY INTERESTING BOOK INTO THE WORLDS OF SANTERIA, PALE MONTE AND ESPIRITISMO AND THE AFRO-CUBAN RELIGIONS

Dance In Cuba by master photographer Gil Garetti is a vivid collection of black-and-white images which lucidly showcase the art of dance and in a series of intriguing visual pictures highlighting the styles, practitioners, moves, and insights of the dance. An impressive compendium of exquisite photographs, Dance In Cuba is enhanced with a selection of insightful quotes and words of wisdom on the Cuban art of the dance. An appropriate addition to any Photographic Studies reference collection, Dance In Cuba is very strongly recommended as a coffee table photography book for its generous pictorial display on the art of the dance.

Photographer Gil Garcetti first achieved fame with his work IRON: ERECTING THE WALT DISNEY HALL and FROZEN MUSIC: DANCE IN CUBA is quite another work all together - and equally impressive. Garcetti worked with Miguel Iglesias Ferrer, director of a Cuban dance company, and other dance company directors and dancers to produce DANCE IN CUBA: but it's more than a focus on the Cuban stage. Behind-the-scenes shots, images of street dance, and candid action shots make DANCE IN CUBA come alive.

Cuba has a long tradition of dance. And it's a special form of dance combining the cultures of Spain, Africa, the Caribbean and the rest of the Americas. Unfortunately the political realities of the world today prevent most United States citizens from experiencing the vibrant dance culture that still remains in Cuba behind the whatever-it-is curtain.

In this book, the author, according to American Photo magazine, one of the nation's four master photographers, shows the result of several trips to Cuba. Here is every kind of dance from classical ballet (complete with the bandaged feet of the toe dancer) to Gramps and Grandma out on the street. Here are dancers in parades on the street to dancers on stage; dancers practicing very hard and dancers just playing.

Above all else, this book shows that the people of Cuba have not changed with Fidel's government. It is still a culture of passion and joy. We are missing a lot.

This book draws on the same material and uses many of the images contained in the BBC documentary on Kahn. It is well laid out, contains useful - but not exhaustive - commentary on the images selected. It is very well produced in terms of quality of paper, reproduction and binding

I have some books illustrated by old Autochrome color photographs, but this book ist well printed (not too brillant in the colors) and contains a lot of rare pictures throughout the world including World War I.

I learned about Albert Kahn and his project only a year ago and I eagerly anticipated this volume. The pictures do not disappoint. They are the star of the show.

Unfortunately the curator's modern political views come in to play in the text and in the photo descriptions. Instead of reveling in the historic glory of these images we are instead given a banal political discourse which is an intrusion into the intent and product of this project. It is truly a shame. 5 stars as the historical significance of this collection cannot be denied. But a separate 1 star for the commentary which attempts to hijack a noble project for a particular political viewpoint nearly 100 years after the original project was completed. Despicable.

I am so happy I bought this book, it was worth the time and money. I have it now on my living room coffee table, everyone who looks through it is spellbound. Thanks!

DEVIL'S PLAYGROUND is a lap-heavy, huge tome of the creative photographs of Nan Goldin, many of which have never before been published. Goldin is know throughout the museums of the world as a photographer who knows no barriers for her subject matter: AIDS victims, mental patients, transvestites, poor families, rural landscapes, constructed still lifes - these are but a few of the categories studied and captured by Goldin. For this full color volume Goldin selected the layout and the progression of sections, making the flow of the book even more fascinating; the book is one where she is both artist and curator and the result is a powerhouse of statement.

For devotees of Nan Goldin's work, this book is a must. And for viewers marginally approaching photography as an art form then look no further. A magnum opus of the work of one of America's more significant contemporary artists.

No other word for it except MAGNIFICENT!!!

I got this as a gift for a friend who loves dogs and they thought it was wonderful! It's got tons of gorgeous pictures - even if you are not necessarily a dog person you will enjoy the skill it took to create such beautiful images.

A great book. As a collector of dog images, this is a wonderful addition. I would highly recommend it to anyone.

This is a wonderful book for anyone who loves dogs or is interested in the history of photography-and if you happen to fall into both these categories at once, you'll certainly turn and turn the pages with enormous pleasure and enlightenment-not to mention the therapeutic effects gained from laughing out loud! Everyone I know who has a dog (or would want to have a dog if they could) is getting this book from me for Christmas.

Born and raised in Lubec Maine, I grew to love the coast as if it were my own personal playground. As a young lad I would spend my days swimming in the chilly waters off my families private beach, and my nights roasting marshmellows over and open fire. When I was in my teens I went to work in the local sardine factory and spent many days dragging for scallops in the bay.

I moved away from Downeast Maine twenty years ago and I have missed it ever since. I miss the smell of the salt air and the nice cool breeze that always seems to be there. I miss the endless hay fields and the way the trees produce unheard of colors every fall. Most of all I miss the people. They are kind, honest, and carry an accent that could make anyone feel at home.

I bought the book Downeast Maine: A World Apart a month ago and I read it every day. The stories and black and white photos give the reader a true feeling for what it is like living in Downeast Maine. Reading it, I can almost smell the salt air and feel that unforgettable summer breeze. The book really brings me home again. It's wonderfull book!

A summer resident of Maine's easternmost corner, Frank Van Riper goes beyond clam shacks, country clubs and outlet malls to portray how people 'Down East' eke out a living and build a life.

Van Riper, a former White House correspondent for the New York Daily News ably handles both camera and notepad to record vivid, full-frame images of his neighbors. This is fundamentally a book about people, and he has clearly managed to transcend that putoffishness that Maine residents are known for to get their stories alongside their pictures. The text doesn't merely accompany, nor do the photos merely illustrate; they are inseparable components.

There is a timeless quality to these images of people, most seen at work. Only at times does a modern watch or a radar dome on a boat remind you that clams are still dug through back-breaking labor and lobster hauled up one or two at a time. The book was collected over a number of years, and italics note where the subject portrayed died between the portrait and publication -- and you feel the loss.

This is serious documentary, with more than a hint of Walker Evans and Sebastián Salgado, but with light touches as well. Van Riper devotes a page to the peculiar delight of Maine's own Grape Nuts ice cream, a confection that predates -- and in his view, outrates -- Ben and Jerry's chunky conglomerates.

A visually stunning series of what happens when a dead whale washes ashore in his small town of Kennebec closes out the book. The sharply mottled skin of the whale amid the wash-fade of a foggy illustrate the beauty of his corner of Maine, as Van Riper also tells us of hard choices a financially strapped, self-reliant community must face as it struggles to get rid of what is, after all, tons and tons of rotting flesh.

This sensitive portrayal proves that what it means to be from Maine has nothing to do with what bottled water you drink.

Frank Van Riper captures, in his portraits of Maine, the people that he has come to know slowly (is there any other way in Maine?) through his photo excursions to the northeast.

His "moment" photographs are some of my favorites, including the photo of the boy at the pie-eating contest. It's an ageless photograph captured with precision timing and artful composition. These are traits of photographs throughout the book and share the essence of great documentary photojournalism--the ability to capture a simple (almost unseen) moment with artisitc and historic sensibilities. Van Riper captures this quiet beauty in medium format which lends itself to the superb reproductions.

Van Riper's fine images coupled with his words showcase his great ear for telling dialogue honed during his "other" career as a newspaper writer.