Photography: The 50 Most Influential Photographers of All Time (Icons of Culture)

This was the book I grabbed all summer long for mealtimes, doctor visits and bathroom time. It was easy to take this book to these places because of its small size. This book is designed primarily to whet ones' appetite about the "life" and the "influence" of what this author calls "the 50 most influential photographers of all time", no more. It does not contain more than a photo or two of each photographer's work. In some cases it shows none at all, just a photo of the photographers themselves. After my interest was peaked about a photographer's life and their specific influence, I then googled or looked to other sources to see more of the actual work of the photographer. If the people purchasing this book can remember that the author is not presenting the "best" photographers who have ever lived, but presenting 50 photographers that have moved photography forward by breaking various barriers. This understanding will keep disappointment with the book to a minimum. I teach photography in a lower-income area of my city and I have given this book to a number of promising photography students. I always remind them that while this is a great read about influential photographers that came before them, photographers such as James Van Der Zee, Gordan Parks and other influential photographers of color and gender have been excluded from this book, so go farther than this book to find them.

Here are a few things I would have liked to know about this book before purchasing it. First, the list of "50 Most Influential" and the category they appear in, so you can see if the selection includes ones of interest to you, whether new or familiar favorites. (The categories are obviously kind of arbitrary in many cases, with much potential overlap, but I understand they wanted to organize it this way rather than alphabetically or strictly on a timeline):Note: The strength of this book is in its scope and the brief (about 2 page) biographies for each photographer. The pages are glossy, as you'd want from a photo book. However, the actual photos themselves are quite small, usually 1 on every other page (or so) but only filling about 1/4 to, occasionally, 1/2 of the small 5 1/2" x 7 1/2" pages. This is what is meant by "Illustrations in color and black and white on most two-page spreads." There were about 9 color photos and these were the sizes mentioned above, about 2" x 3" or so. The rest are black and white.Despite the blurb on Amazon product description that theses are "brief biographies with identifying photos", be aware that "identifying photos" can mean a photograph of the photographer, not his/her work. I have noted these below ("np"--"not photograph of work") beginning with Brady. In some cases (like Cartier-Bresson), this was very disappointing.However, two photos of the photographers I -did- like anyway--the ones of Salgado next to one of his photos and Kertesz at work on a balcony.Early Pioneers:DaguerreWm. Henry Fox TalbotMuybridgeThe Lumiere BrothersGeorge EastmanEdwin LandPhotojournalism:Matthew BradyWeegeeMargaret Bourke-WhiteRobert CapaW. Eugene SmithErnst HaasDocumentary:August SanderDorothea LangeHenri Cartier-Bresson - npLee FriedlanderWm. EgglestonMartin Parr - np (he is posing next to a photo)Sebastiao Salgado - np (he is posing next to a photo)PortraitsJulia Margaret CameronWalker EvansYousuf KarshDiane ArbusRobert MapplethorpeAnne LeibowitzFashionHorst P. HorstCeci BeatonIrving PennHelmut NewtonRichard AvedonDavid Bailey - npLand and TopographyFrancis FrithEdward Weston - npAnsel AdamsBern and Hilla BecherRobert AdamsStephen ShoreCitiesBrassai - npBill BrandtRobt Doisneau - npHelen LevittRobert FrankGarry WinograndArtist PhotographersAlfred StieglitzEdward SteichenMan RayLaszlo Moholy-NagyAlexander RodchenkoAndre Kertesz - npCindy ShermanOverall, this is a nice, small, tasteful overview of some of the history of photography, highlighting some of the important photographers and showing (for most of them) small images of one of their photos. (I didn't care for the cover photo choice--Dorothea Lange's "Damaged Child"--but I guess it attracts attention). It is a nice gift book, I think, for someone getting interested in photography, and the size and tasteful presentation makes it not overwhelming to read through. Nice to see 9 women included.This is good for what it is, as long as you know what to expect. If you want a more in depth look at the history and larger, glossier photos (also a much heavier and more expensive "coffee table book"), I'd recommend something like Tom Ang's "Photography: The Definitive Visual History"  Photography: The Definitive Visual History

This is a gorgeous book. Although small (about 5 x 7 inches) it's large enough to show off the photos well and is printed on high-quality paper that feels good between your fingers. While I might quibble with a few of the choices -- a couple of photos left out and a few that I would not have included, there's no doubt that every picture here has merit and is indeed influential.I purchased this book as a gift for a photographer friend who also gives it five stars. If you know a lot or a only a little (or even nothing) about photography you will enjoy this little book that packs a big punch.

I wanted to make sure I have a more broad knowledge of photographers who are really remembered and turned themselves into icons of good photography.I liked the fact that with every photographer's name there is a line, such as "Sebastiao Salgado", delivering a message' or "Lee Friedlander", photographing the everyday.With 2 pages per photographer, you can browse through the book fast and have a good brief history of who he/she was, and what they did, when they lived and why they are important. A great small book to educate us about those photographers and their work.

A nice little review of historically important photographers. The other reviewers gave it fair and accurate reviews. Worth reading.

Read the reviews. It's a small book and many of the photographers I expected are not in it.

ok

This was a gift for my grandson a Senior at NHIA. He loved it.

I ordered 2 copies of this book as presents. I chose the free delivery as it allowed plenty of time for them to come but the post office once again let us down. They arrived 5 days after the events meaning they took 12 days for delivery very disappointing. The book however is small but has interesting facts on many photographers . The books were well received by both amateur photographers.