Book picks similar to
Flowers by Robert Mapplethorpe


photography
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Plastic Cameras: Toying with Creativity


Michelle Bates - 2006
    Whether you're an experienced enthusiast or toy camera neophyte, you'll find Plastic Cameras: Toying with Creativity chock full of tantalizing tips, fun facts and, of course, absolutely striking photographs taken with the lowest tech and simplest tools around. I got me a Holga. Now What? Holgas need a little TLC before they're ready to go out in the world and start snapping. Plastic Cameras: Toying with Creativity digs through all the different Holga models available, lays out thier advantages and quirks and helps you get up to speed on all the prep you'll need to do to jump in on the toy-camera revolution. What should I Feed my Holga? Holgas, Dianas, other toy cameras can use many types of film. Plastic Cameras: Toying with Creativity, lays all their pros and cons on the line letting you get some images you want, and some you could just never imagine. Can Holga come out to play?Plastic Cameras: Toying with Creativity will help you steer your way through all the details and quirks of taking wonderful and weird pictures with your toy camera. We'll explore possible subjects and the best way to shoot them and play with all sorts of techniques from vignetting, to multiple exposures, to panoramas, close-ups, movement, night photography, flare, flash, color and more. For the Intrepid Holga-ographerFor the Holga master, we've diagramed and described advanced toy camera modifications and introduce you to a variety of problems, solutions and inventions born from toy cameras' "limitations." What Next?From negatives to prints or pixels, we help you navigate your post-shooting choices.Don't ForgetThe Diana, Banner, Action Sampler, Photo Blaster, and Lensbaby are all toy cameras with their own loveable qualities. We'll look beyond the Holga to show a whole wide world of toys. Artists Artists in this book include: Michael AckermanJonathan BaileyEric Havelock-BaillieJames BalogBetsy BellSusan BowenLaura BurltonDavid BurnettNancy BursonPerry DilbeckJill EnfieldAnnette FournetMegan GreenWesley KennedyTeru KuwayamaMary Ann LynchAnne Arden McDonaldDaniel MillerTed OrlandRobert OwenBecky RamotowskiNancy RexrothFrancisco Mata RosasRichard RossFranco SalmoiraghiMichael SherwinHarvey SteinGordon StettiniusMark SinkKurt SmithSandy SorlienPauline St. Denis;-p r a b u!

Understanding a Photograph


John Berger - 2013
    This selection contains many groundbreaking essays and previously uncollected pieces written for exhibitions and catalogues in which Berger probes the work of photographers such as Henri Cartier-Bresson and W. Eugene Smith - and the lives of those photographed - with fierce engagement, intensity and tenderness.The selection is made and introduced by Geoff Dyer, author of the award-winning The Ongoing Moment.How do we see the world around us? This is one of a number of pivotal works by creative thinkers whose writings on art, design and the media have changed our vision for ever.

Weegee's World


Miles Barth - 2000
    It captures bygone New York at its most raucous, dangerous, and outrageous. Grisly murders, tragic accidents, gawking crowds, along with intimate human-interest and high-society images, are all captured by Weegee's flash. Interpretive essays, an annotated chronology, bibliography, filmography, and a list of exhibitions complete this comprehensive volume.

The End of the Game: The Last Word from Paradise - A Pictoral Documentation of the origins, History and Prospects of the Big Game Africa


Peter H. Beard - 1963
    Beautifully illustrated with over 300 contemporary and historical photographs as well as dozens of paintings, The End of the Game is a legendary workvividly telling the story of explorers, missionaries, and big-game hunters whose quests have changed the face of Africa forever.

The Americans


Robert Frank - 1958
    There is no question that Robert Frank's The Americans is the most famous and influential photography book ever published. It was 1959 when the book first came out: a series of deceptively simple photographs that Frank took on a trip through America in '55 and '56, pictures of normal people, everyday scenes: lunch counters, bus depots, cars, and the stangely familiar faces of people we don't quite know but have seen somewhere. They are pictures that saw the "American way of life" as we hadn't yet quite been able to see it ourselves, photographs that condensed the entire life of a nation in classic images that still speak to us today, forty years and several generations later.

The Photo Book


Phaidon Press - 1997
    The Photography Book brings together 500 inspiring, moving and beautiful images of famous events and people, sensational landscapes, historic moments, ground-breaking photojournalism, insightful portraits, sport, wildlife, fashion and the everyday.Following the winning formula of The Art Book and The 20th Century Art Book, The Photography Book is arranged in alphabetical order by photographer offering us a window on the last 150 years as it takes us on a journey through familiar and strange images by great, unknown and innovative photographers from around the world. Each image is discussed in detail, bringing it to life and offering us an understanding of this art form which plays such a large role in our everyday lives.An accessible, informative and easy-to-use guide, The Photography Book brings together an overview of this incredibly rich and diverse medium. A simple system of cross-referencing offers easy access to photographers working with a similar approach or using different means to capture the same subject. Glossaries of technical terms and movements and a directory of museums and galleries where photography is permanently exhibited are also included to provide a fully comprehensive volume.

Cindy Sherman: Retrospective


Cindy Sherman - 1997
    Her art embodies two developments in the art world: the impact of postmodern theory on art practice; and the rise of photography and mass-media techniques as modes of artistic expression.

Self Portrait


Lee Friedlander - 1992
    Here Friedlander focuses on the role of his own physical presence in his images. He writes: "At first, my presence in my photos was fascinating and disturbing. But as time passed and I was more a part of other ideas in my photos, I was able to add a giggle to those feelings." Here readers can witness this progression as Friedlander appears in the form of his shadow, or reflected in windows and mirrors, and only occasionally fully visible through his own camera. In some photos he visibly struggles with the notion of self-portraiture, desultorily shooting himself in household mirrors and other reflective surfaces. Soon, though, he begins to toy with the pictures, almost teasingly inserting his shadow into them to amusing and provocative effect--elongated and trailing a group of women seen only from the knees down; cast and bent over a chair as if seated in it; mirroring the silhouette of someone walking down the street ahead of him; or falling on the desert ground, a large bush standing in for hair. These uncanny self-portraits evoke a surprisingly full landscape of the artist's life and mind. This reprint edition of Lee Friedlander: Self Portrait contains nearly 50 duotone images and an afterword by John Szarkowski, former Director of the Department of Photography at The Museum of Modern Art.

Terryworld


Terry Richardson - 2004
    Porn stars, supermodels, transsexuals, hillbillies, friends, pets, and celebrities do for photographer Terry Richardson what they do for no other because in his world, taboos are null and void, and fashion finds sex a perfect fit.

Photographing Shadow and Light: Inside the Dramatic Lighting Techniques and Creative Vision of Portrait Photographer Joey L.


Joey L. - 2012
    Photographer Joey L. found his vision early, drawing critical acclaim as a brilliant commercial photographer with a distinctive technical expertise for lighting.             In Photographing Shadow and Light, Joey lifts the curtain on his dramatic, creatively fearless approach to portraiture, sharing his personal philosophy and a behind-the-scenes look at 15 striking photo sessions—from personal projects shot in Africa, India, and Brooklyn to commercial shoots for 50 Cent, the Jonas Brothers, and Project Runway All Stars. Joey provides readers with a step-by-step description of how he visualized each shoot, formed meaningful connections with his subjects, and “built” his signature dramatic lighting effects—one light at a time.            Featuring more than 85 stunning portraits, detailed lighting diagrams, and a foreword from industry icon David Hobby (aka Strobist), Photographing Shadow and Light shares the creative process behind one of today’s most exciting photography talents, providing serious amateurs and professionals a fresh perspective on creating compelling, professional quality portraits. “Joey Lawrence is . . . the future of photography. Get used to it.” —David Hobby (Strobist) Get inside the images of commercial and fine art portrait photographer Joey L. with this behind-the-lens guide to his fearless approach, creative vision, and signature lighting techniques.Also available as an ebook

Portraits


Steve McCurry - 1999
    In 1985, he photographed an Afghan girl for the National Geographic. The intensity of the subject's eyes and her compelling gaze made this one of the most widely and consistently celebrated portraits in the history of contemporary photography.This accompanies the other remarkable faces he has encountered whilst travelling throughout the world, collected together in an engaging and strangely moving series of unique street portraits: unposed, unstylized images of people that reveal the true universality of the depths of human emotion.Critically acclaimed and recognized internationally for his classic reportage, over the last twenty years he has worked on numerous assignments, travelling extensively throughout the Middle and Far East.McCurry has won first prize in the World Press Awards, and was named Magazine Photographer of the Year in 1984. He is most famous for his evocative color photography, which has captured stories of human experience that, in the finest documentary tradition, transcend boundaries of language and culture.

Abandoned: Hauntingly Beautiful Deserted Theme Parks


Seph Lawless - 2017
    Take a strange and wonderful photographic journey into a world time has forgotten—amusement parks that have been shut down and overgrown.The “artivist” known only as Seph Lawless has spent the last ten years photo-documenting the America that was left behind in the throes of economic instability and overall decline—decrepit shopping malls, houses, factories, even amusement parks.Through nearly two hundred gorgeous and elegiac photographs, Abandoned details Lawless’s journey into what was once the very heart of American entertainment: the amusement park. Here is includes:Disney World’s Discovery Island and River CountryJoyland Amusement ParkDogpatch USAFun Spot Amusement Park and ZooBushkill Amusement ParkLand of OzLake Shawnee Amusement ParkGeauga Lake Amusement ParkSpreeparkChippewa Lake Amusement ParkEnchanted Forest PlaylandAnd more!Lawless visits deserted parks across the country, capturing in stark detail their dilapidated state, natural overgrowth, and obvious duality of sad and playful symbolism. Previously self-published as Bizarro, this updated edition of Lawless’s photographic tribute to decaying American amusement parks contains new content and a new foreword.

Helmut Newton: Sumo


Helmut Newton - 1999
    Helmut Newton (1920–2004) always demonstrated a healthy disdain for easy or predictable solutions. SUMO—a bold and unprecedented publishing venture—was an irresistible project. The idea of a spectacular compendium of images, a book with the dimensions of a private exhibition, reproduced to exceptional page size and to state-of-the-art origination and printing standards, emerged from an open, exploratory dialogue between photographer and publisher.With the physically commanding SUMO weighing in—boxed and shrink-wrapped—at 35.4 kilos, Newton created a landmark book that stood head and shoulders above anything previously attempted, either in terms of conceptual extravagance or technical specifications. Published in an edition of 10,000 signed and numbered copies, SUMO sold out soon after publication and quickly multiplied its value. This worldwide publishing sensation now features in numerous important collections around the world, including New York's Museum of Modern Art. Legendary SUMO copy number one, autographed by over 100 of the book's featured celebrities, also broke the record for the most expensive book published in the 20th century, selling at auction in Berlin on April 6, 2000 for 620,000 German Marks – approximately $430,000.Now, 10 years after the original publication, SUMO is back in a more economical edition, but one with the same DNA as its unique progenitor.SUMO established new standards for the art monograph genre, and secured a prominent place in photo-book history. This new edition is the fulfillment of an ambition conceived some years ago by Helmut Newton. He would surely be pleased that, a decade on from its first publication, SUMO—now in a format that allows for a more democratic distribution—will reach the widest possible audience. However, proud owners of the new edition won't wrestle with their copy of SUMO. It comes with a unique stand for displaying the book at home:

The New Erotic Photography


Dian Hanson - 2007
    As you browse the photographs they discuss inspiration, censorship, how to find models, and how to make a living capturing beautiful women on film and in pixels. The New Erotic Photography is the room, and 82 photographers from 14 countries are the hosts of this intimate gathering. In this 608 page volume you will meet Ralph Gibson, Jan Saudek, Terry Richardson, Natacha Merritt, Petter Hegre, Richard Kern, Bob Carlos Clarke, Thomas Karsten and the many fresh new talents currently redefining eroticism. Playful, provocative and exuberantly sexy, these aren?t your granddad's art nudes; this is The New Erotic Photography. Photographers featured: Robert Adler, Markus Amon, Guido Argentini, Alethea Austin, Marc Baptiste, Daniel Bauer, Bruno Bisang, Lisa Boyle, Derek Caballero, Bob Carlos Clarke, Didier Carre, BT Charles, John Chilton, Robert Chouraqui, Jean Van Cleemput, Barney Cokeliss, Bob Coulter, Cristian Crisbasan, Yuri Dojc, Susan Egan, Andrew Einhorn, Alla Esipovich, Ivana Ford, Ed Fox, Peter Franck, Jody Frost, Perry Gallagher, Ralph Gibson, Steve Diet Goedde, Peter Gorman, Ludovic Goubet, James Graham, China Hamilton, Naomi Harris, Aaron Hawks, Petter Hegre, Mark Helfrich, Noritoshi Hirakawa, Mike James, Jive, Thomas Karsten, Richard Kern, Christine Kessler, Chas Ray Krider, Eric Kroll, Vlastimil Kula, Dennis Letbetter, Stefano Levi, Herv? Lewis, Kenn Lichtenwalter, Florian Lohmann, Ben Marcato, Olaf Martens, Natacha Merritt, Maki Miyashita, Craig Morey, Ken-ichi Murata, Dave Naz, Beatrice Neumann, SakikoNomura, David Perry, George Pitts, Collin Rae, Nicola Ranaldi, Terry Richardson, Markus Richter, Giovanni Sambuelli, Will Santillo, Jan Saudek, Joan Sinclair, Tony Stamolis, Julie Strain-Eastman, Missy Suicide, Brian Sullivan, Jeremy Thompson, Rebecca Tillett, Larry Utley, Mariano Vargas, Yasuji Watanabe, Ben Westwood, Michael White, Chip Willis

Immediate Family


Sally Mann - 1992
    The photographs show the ambiguities and dramas of family life and hauntingly evoke the mysteries of childhood. Sally Mann herself says in the introduction: 'These are photographs of my children ... many of these pictures are intimate, some are fictions and some are fantastic, but most are of ordinary things every mother has seen. I take pictures when they are bloodied or sick or naked or angry. They dress up, they pout and posture, they paint their bodies, they dive like otters in the dark river.' The result is a book that is ethereal, tender and sometimes disquieting.