- Paperback: 96 pages
- Publisher: Lenswork Publishing; 3rd illustrated edition edition (1 Jan 1997)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1888803061
- ISBN-13: 978-1888803068
- Product Dimensions: 18.5 x 13.5 x 1.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 89,670 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
An apparently not much known and small book, actually encompasses a lifetime of wisdom and understanding on how to make worthwhile pictures; in fact two lifetimes, as it is a dialogue between two friends.
It does not deal with technicality that abounds in other publications, but with the actual taking of photographs, especially how to select a subject, how to shoot it, how to make and use your contacts (applicable also to digital), and how to create a picture essay. Then there is some more, but those four chapters lay a foundation for a way to do photography that is clever, practical, makes sense.
If you ever wonder how to do better than a postcard, or why you reached a plateau after grasping the technique and are not moving further, this book may well be for you.
It does not deal with technicality that abounds in other publications, but with the actual taking of photographs, especially how to select a subject, how to shoot it, how to make and use your contacts (applicable also to digital), and how to create a picture essay. Then there is some more, but those four chapters lay a foundation for a way to do photography that is clever, practical, makes sense.
If you ever wonder how to do better than a postcard, or why you reached a plateau after grasping the technique and are not moving further, this book may well be for you.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
One of those books that should be on the curriculum of any photography course. Hurn worked at Newport School of Art, setting up it's documentary photography course (now with such people as Martin Parr). Hurn is also a Magnum photographer, he's the real deal. So you should take what he says as gospel. This book is more important than any guide to using the clarify tool on your 8MP jpeg; it's about taking photography seriously. It reframes the way an amateur goes about snapping and asks you to examine your practice more closely. A beginner, as well as someone more experienced will find this book useful not only to examine their methods, but as a insight into a great Magnum photographer. If you have a relative or a kid thinking of doing a photography course, then you must buy them this book. It should be ubiquitous, like 'Ways of Seeing' was in 1970s-80s Art courses.
If you want to do more than snap sunsets, babies and cats, this is the next step up. It probably contains more useful information than the entirety of your photography A Level. It did for me, the book was better by far.
If you want to do more than snap sunsets, babies and cats, this is the next step up. It probably contains more useful information than the entirety of your photography A Level. It did for me, the book was better by far.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
While I'm not a professional photographer, this book rang true to me and inspired me to do more with my camera. I didn't want to put it down and read it in one evening. It is quite worldly and plain-speaking. The writers clearly love photography and have a lot of experience. While this book doesn't deal in any of the technicalities of photography, there is a lot of very plausible advice.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
David Hurn at his best
Not only is this book interesting to a photographer but to anyone who is interested in visual media. Read more
Published 21 days ago by Newton Burrows
great book
The book arrived from the states in good condition. Few underlined sentences but the overall condition was really good for a used book. Read more
Published 16 months ago by JackDeLuis
Thought provoking
This is a really excellent, thought provoking book free of arty psychobabble. Full of insights on how and why people take photographs. Great.
Published on 15 Nov 2008 by B. Hudson
A concise guide to the philosophy of photography
David Hurn and Bill Jay converse about the philosophy of photography. This, of course, says little about the book. Read more
Published on 11 Jan 1999
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