Book Description

One of the top hairstylists working in fashion today, Serge Normant performs his magic on the most beautiful actresses and models of our time. A tour de force of feminine fantasy, Serge Normant Metamorphosis is a dazzling summation of contemporary style, fashion, and glamour-as envisioned by this gifted artist and captured in images by the world's leading fashion photographers.

In transforming the looks of such well-known women as Kate Moss, Beyoncé Knowles, Jennifer Aniston, Liv Tyler, and Susan Sarandon, Normant draws on each woman's individual essence and then uses hairstyling, makeup, and clothing to turn her everyday appearance into something extraordinary. Whether it is a retro look made into a contemporary statement or a vision taken from the art world rather than the fashion pages, Normant's creations are not makeovers but rather journeys into a realm of enchantment. With a foreword by Julia Roberts and an introduction by Isabella Rossellini, this book will serve as an inspiration for all women seeking to enhance their beauty through the embellishments of fashion. ... Read more

Book Description

Between July 1945 and November 1962 the United States is known to have conducted 216 atmospheric and underwater nuclear tests. After the Limited Test Ban Treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union in 1963, nuclear testing went underground. It became literally invisible—but more frequent: the United States conducted a further 723 underground tests, the last in 1992. 100 Suns documents the era of visible nuclear testing, the atmospheric era, with one hundred photographs drawn by Michael Light from the archives at Los Alamos National Laboratory and the U.S. National Archives in Maryland. It includes previously classified material from the clandestine Lookout Mountain Air Force Station based in Hollywood, whose film directors, cameramen and still photographers were sworn to secrecy.

The title, 100 Suns, refers to the response by J.Robert Oppenheimer to the world’s first nuclear explosion in New Mexico when he quoted a passage from the Bhagavad Gita, the classic Vedic text: “If the radiance of a thousand suns were to burst forth at once in the sky, that would be like the splendor of the Mighty One . . . I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” This was Oppenheimer’s attempt to describe the otherwise indescribable. 100 Suns likewise confronts the indescribable by presenting without embellishment the stark evidence of the tests at the moment of detonation. Since the tests were conducted either in Nevada or the Pacific the book is simply divided between the desert and the ocean. Each photograph is presented with the name of the test, its explosive yield in kilotons or megatons, the date and the location. The enormity of the events recorded is contrasted with the understated neutrality of bare data. Interspersed within the sequence of explosions are pictures of the awestruck witnesses.

The evidence of these photographs is terrifying in its implication while at same time profoundly disconcerting as a spectacle. The visual grandeur of such imagery is balanced by the chilling facts provided at the end of the book in the detailed captions, a chronology of the development of nuclear weaponry and an extensive bibliography. A dramatic sequel to Michael Light’s Full Moon, 100 Suns forms an unprecedented historical document.

... Read more

Reviews (10)

Beautiful, amazing, must see
A very beautiful book presented as large prints, stunning photographs detail the very primal and mythological nature of the nuclear explosion. There is nothing to compare these photographs to in their grandness they make brilliant destructive weapons seem almost beautiful in their conception. An amazing work, the photos are large the way they should be and you will not find a similarly themed coffee table book anywhere. A true gem.

Seth J. Frantzman

To change the nature of what it is to be human
Andrei Sakharov once wrote that a very large nuclear war would be a calamity of indescribable proportions and absolutely unpredictable consequences, with the uncertainties tending toward the worse. As a university student I have collected over the years many dozens of nuclear test photographs and with each viewing, it is possible for a person to change. This collection of photographs is nothing short of beautiful, but at the same time horrifying in its capabilities. If you read through this book, you will not come out the same person.

How We Won The War
These images of American above-ground nuclear tests are indeed terrifyingly beautiful, and beatifully terrifying. Seeing the massive energy of the atom unleashed, in the archetypical mushroom cloud, is an arresting experience no matter how long ago these photos were taken. The images are rather samey, save for some that show oddly botanical detail of some clouds, probably due to water vapor. The test blasts have retro-sounding Army code names like FIZEAU, YANKEE, BAKER, MAGNOLIA, and etc.

There is no visual perspective-big and small blasts seem the same size due to different camera distances. Some images taken from high-speed time lapse films seem like giant bacilli. Some, irrespective of kilo- or megatonnage, seem like they are splitting the heavens.

Hats off to all the servicemen who were subjected to these tests. It probably wasn't nice for the Pentagon to subject these men to these hazards, and I echo the wish that it never has to happen again. But I do appreciate their sacrifice, because I think it was well worth it.

The author tosses in a sneer at the Strategic Defense Initiative in his end of book timeline. But Reagan understood that nuclear weapons could not be un-invented, only rendered obsolete. Like it or not, nukes are a fact of international life, and a wise leader will not try to wish them away.

The author wants to evoke a Strangelovian mood, but it's too late for that. It makes a difference, whether nuclear superiority resides with free countries or tyrants, now as well as in the Fifties and Sixties. America's nuclear arsenal kept the Soviets and their proxies from gobbling up even more nations than they actually did. The fact that America won the Cold War is, once and for all, A Good Thing, and it was these weapons, along with the MAD doctrine, that helped win it. Better MET than red.

Excellent!
I couldn't put it down. The photos are excellent, the info in the back is captivating, and I hope there is never another nuclear explosion to photograph!

Eerie, haunting, horrible and beautiful
I appreciate the nature of these images more having read Richard Rhodes' "Making of the Atomic Bomb" many years ago. Without a doubt, what is documented here is the overt potential for total global annihilation by nuclear hellfire, but what is also documented are the direct descendants of one of the most impressive scientific and engineering achievments of all time.

Knowing that these images represent the ability to destroy on a massive scale, one might find it hard to divest themselves of their instinct to be horrified and shun these pictures, but if you can do so, I think you'll find a great collection of some of the most stark, eerie, organic and beautiful images of our recent secret history. The fact that these pictures were taken for documentation purposes, rather than those of art, makes the dichotomy between the beauty and the horror of this book even more apparent.

Well worth the simoleons. ... Read more

Book Description

Richard Misrach has spent much of his career photographing the intersection of man and nature. He has redefined contemporary landscape photography with images of the splendor and destruction of the American West. Each of his "cantos" considers another chapter in the epic story of humankind and the land. Golden Gate offers yet another dimension to Misrach's artistic output. Three years ago, he and his family moved into a house in the Berkeley Hills of Northern California. Since then, Misrach has been obsessively photographing the magisterial view of the Golden Gate Bridge from his front porch, each photograph taken from the exact same viewpoint at different times of day. The sixty photographs reproduced here, from a series of over seven hundred, capture the opening between bay and ocean, and the famous bridge, in every light and weather condition. But Misrach's Golden Gate photographs also offer a commentary on the politics of the view -- the relationship of wealth, power, and privilege at the beginning of the twenty-first century. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Amazing photos of an amazing bridge.
I've lived in Marin County for about two years and still get excited going over the Golden Gate Bridge. I was thrilled to receive this book for Christmas and am in awe over the pictures. It's incredible to see photos of the varying weather patterns we get in the bay area and Misrach's time-lapse photos are incredible. What's even more amazing is that Misrach is lucky enough to have this phenominal view from his front porch!

Porch Photography
What a disappointment, and what amateur uninteresting photos from the author's porch in the Oakland Hills (I presume). All you need is a wide angle lens, a tripod and some 35mm film. Take a picture every week or so, vary the time of day and then publish a book. Ca ching! He must be a layed-off dot.commer.

Being born, raised and schooled in San Francisco, I feel cheated. Hopefully no tourists will see it. They may stay home.

Beautiful, but not for everyone
I live on the ocean south of San Francisco(and I'm into photography), so I appreciate the ever-changing weather
and light in this wild region. I was fascinated by this book of
photos the author took from his front porch, especially
since I have taken photos of the sunset and weather formations
from my porch during the same time frame ('97-'00). Having
said that, I wouldn't recommend this for everyone. It's the
exact same view over and over, so if you live outside the Bay Area you'd be better off with a book showcasing a larger portion of the region. This tome is for fanatics of the Golden Gate,
and Bay Area photography.

Did very little for me
This book did very little for me. More than being a study of the Golden Gate, it's a study of weather formations. If you enjoy looking at clouds, the sun and sky you may enjoy this book. I on the other hand found it sterile, repetive and somewhat pointless. Further, it's all too easy to simply set up a camera, never move it and just press the shutter release periodically. Where's the artistry in that? There's no question that Misrach had a nice view from his front porch, but does it really merit a book?

The jacket text is corny and pretentious.

Magnificent!! Can I give it 10 stars??
This is one of the most magnificent photography books I have ever seen (and I have quite a collection of them). Misrach took photos of the Golden Gate Bridge from his front porch for more than a year, and here are the best of those photos--though I would have liked to have seen all 3 thousand or so! Each one is more spectacular than the last! Here is the Golden Gate in fog, at sunrise, at sunset, at high noon, and every time of day and night (some are time-exposures) and in every weather condition possible. I grew up in the SF area and have always loved the bridge, etc, but here it is shown in ways you would NEVER see (unless you sat on Mr. Misrach's front porch for maybe 3 years....) I whole-heartedly disagree with the reviewer who said these are not bold photos. I have never seen photos more bold! And each one is so different from the next! Truly an amazing collection. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Simply a stunning book!!
I found Tom Mangelsen's gallery in Jackson a few months ago, and while I was there, I had a chance to see many of his just downright stunning images.

As an aspiring wildlife photographer, I truly appreciate the superb work of Tom Mangelsen. Also, while in his gallery, I had the chance to talk to as well as meet Mr. Mangelsen himself.

This book is just simply stunning. I cannot think of any other description. The many different images of the polar bear in its natural environment has to be seen to be appreciated.

What I like the most about this book over so many other "nature" books is that we get to see the many facets of the polar bears life, from the tender side with a mother and her babies, to the savage nature of these beautiful animals...not just some glossy expose that says nothing.

I would encourage anyone who loves nature photography, whether you are a "couch" photographer/explorer or are planning on a career in wildlife photography.

Heartily recommended!!!!

The best book of the best nature photographer
I discovered the work of Thomas Mangelson about ten years ago in Jackson, Wyoming, when I stumbled across a gallery devoted to his work. The most famous image there, the one of two grown polar bears "dancing," is on the cover of this book.

The book encapsulates all the artistry of this outstanding photographer. As difficult as it is to capture wildlife images, it's doubly so when you are photographing white animals against snow! Mangelson spends some four months a year in the Arctic, enlarging his huge repertoire of images. I can't begin to imagine the patience and meticulous attention to detail that is required to gather these pictures, but I'm glad Mangelson can!

I love the fact that this book shows the chronological sequence in the life of a bear family, and also that it doesn't have captions on each page. That allows you to follow the sequence of images undisturbed by human intrusion - you become a part of the life cycle, so to speak. Mangelson's work enables the viewer to see the bears as a complex family unit in addition to their usual portrayal as hardy predators. It cannot fail to move the viewer; this is a book to savor again and again.

I'm a huge fan of just about every image this photographer has ever published, and this book is, to me, the culmination of his work. I recommend it to everyone, bear fan or not!

Essential, wonderful personal story, captivating photos
This is an essential book for polar bear and nature photography lovers alike. There are over 250 photos of polar bears, and arctic wildlife captured in the beautiful frozen world they live in.

I found the photography truly captivating. The adorable bears are shown splashing in the water, dancing, taking afternoon naps & wandering through the snow. There is even one of the mother making friends with a sled dog.

I was deeply touched by the many images of the cubs snuggling close to their mother. I found the other wildlife photos featuring many foxes and birds equally impressive. The captions for all the images are in the back of the book.

Along with the pictures, there is a wonderful story of a year in the life of a mother polar bear & her 2 cubs. The author switches pleasingly between factual accounts of the arctic world, folklore, & the personal story of the bear family.

breathtaking, impressive photography of the arctic
Mangelsen has created an outstanding work of art that can be appreciated by polar bear lovers and nature lovers alike. The intentional ommission of captions until the end of the book allows the reader to view each photo as a work of art, absorbing the beauty and magic of each piece. It is an essential coffee table book for those intrigued and mystified by the polar bear, and strongly recommended for anyone who enjoys nature photography. A definite bargin in the world of nature photography books.

An absolutely stunning wildlife book
Polar Dance is in my opinion the most mind-blowing book on bears I have ever seen. I am an artist who works with faux fur, specializing in the creation of all species of bears. Polar Dance is the most treasured of all my wildlife books. The photographs of the ice bear taken so sensitively evokes my deepest emotions each time I turn the pages. I can almost feel the cold and snow out there on the Arctic. I reach for this book often for inspiration and even comfort. I never cease to be amazed at how beautifully Thomas Mangelsen has portrayed the "Tiger of the North". Certainly he has done justice to perhaps the most magnificent of God's creatures. Polar Dance is more than a book. It is a work of art. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (9)

The epitomy of photojournalism
If you don't feel something while looking at the photos in this book you are dead inside.

A piece of art
I dont think Sebastiao Salgado needs any praise but this is the most beautiful book i have ever seen. The photographs are not only absolutely perfect but, most important, they tell us a story. the story of the movement of humanity. and make us think that we are only one, that borders should not matter.

The right combination
Ex-economist Salgado keeps a rational mind while making exquisite emotional photographs, reproduced to the highest standard. As much as anyone could want to know about the world's unsettled peoples.

An Intense, Emotionally Gripping Look At Poverty
Sebastiao Salgado has earned numerous accolades for his dignified photographs of impoverished humanity. This, his latest book, covers work he has done over the last few years, documenting forced migrations and economic squalor throughout the world. He is certainly a keen observer of the human condition. However, I felt completely overwhelmed looking at his work from this book when it was exhibited a few months ago at New York City's International Center of Photography. Looking at this book allowed me to step back, and catch my breath, studying each image at my leisure. Those interested in looking at some of the finest current work in black and white documentary photography will not be disappointed with this excellent collection.

A Most Touching Document
Without doubt Sebastiao Salgado is one of the greatest living photographers of our time. "Migrations" is the first book I bought after having seen his most interesting video tape "Looking Back at You".

In fact a most touching document on the migrations of people from all over the world-- having to escape from their native land to avoid being tortured or killed.

Apart from the technical excellence and quality Salgado's black and white photography has a certain magic about it that strongly reminds me of the work of photography greats like W. Eugene Smith or Henri Cartier-Bresson. However I have to admit that Salgado clearly has become my personal favorite. Being a photographer myself I highly admire Salgado's talent to produce such phantastic images of people in deep distress--showing things as they are, without having his subjects losing their dignity.

Some time ago a world famous photographer said that "...you can't photograph soul...". After looking at Salgado's work I think that's definitely not true.

This book clearly is a must have for every photography lover with special interest in black and white journalistic work. Can it get any better? This was my first Salgado book and it won't be my last... ... Read more

Book Description

Garry Winogrand (1928–1984) was a native New Yorker whose photography epitomizes the indigenous pulse and social complexity of the urban scene after World War II. This collection of 175 photographs shot by Winogrand in a single year records an America in transition. Each picture is a strange, unforgettable surprise, documenting the artist’s comedic, almost palpable empathy for his subjects, and crystallizing his influence as a photographic interpreter of the 1960s. Most of the images in this collection are previously unpublished. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Stirring Images of the Seemingly Mundane
It is likely that some of the moments captured here were experienced by many of of us in our normal lives through the sixties. The haunting pictures of roadside motels, through-car window shots to the visually stunning cover make this book a must buy for anyone who appreciates photographs which turn the seemingly mundane into moments of laughter and beauty. Off beat shots combined with striking imagery make this a beautiful collection of photos to own. ... Read more

Reviews (35)

Stunning photography, a real bargain
This is a collection of some of the most beautiful and masterfully composed portraits I've seen. McCurry is a National Geographic photographer and almost every page in the book could be a cover photo. Many photos of interesting faces from India, Chad, Nepal, Afghanistan, Philippines, China, Mali, Tibet, and (a few of the most interesting) Los Angeles. Small format photos (about 5x7). Photos are printed full page (to each edge of the page) on the right-hand side, and opposite each photo is printed the city, country and year the photo was taken. Photos lack commentary or descriptions and are not categorized, but I found this rather nice. Page turns are often new locations, and the lack of commentary leaves interpretation to the imagination. Just look into the eyes of the subjects and you'll start to feel their story. Great book -- too bad it's so small. It's got a spot on the coffee table nonetheless.

Enjoyable but abit oversaturated
I have met Steve McCurry and viewed his slide presentation and am enchanted by his work. He captures his subject's mood and environment with a beautiful quality of light and color. Although I found it hard to maintain my enthusiam as there are so many images and no accompanying story with any of the images. I also wish that the book had been printed in a larger size. All the images are roughly 5x7 and larger images would have really made me feel as if the subjects were looking back at me. But please do not misinterpret this review, the book is a bargain. It is filled with pages and pages of wonderful images of people from areas many of us will never have the opportunity to visit, much less photograph with such intimacy. A great gift and a nice addition to anyone's table. I just wished it was bigger and had some text.

Overrated!
This book has been a bit of a dissapointment. I'm very interested in travelling and all the photography related to travel and people. Therefore, I buy anything related to it and I owned a good collection of this kind of books.

My impression is that Steve McCurry's work is a bit overrated. Some of the photographs contained in this book are excellent but many others are just plain and nothing special. There are some other photographers who are much better and not so well known as Mr. McCurry.

After a while, it becomes quite boring to peruse through this particular book. Asia has plenty of great moments and people to photograph. I've seen amateur pictures much better than the ones showed here. So it has not impressed me at all.

He is always going to be remembered by his pic of the Afghanistan girl. I have to thank him for that brilliant and unforgettable one!!!

A great photographer
I gave this book a 4 star review because the book would have been better if it were a coffee table size book, and that I wish there would have been stories next to the images just like most phaidon books do. Steve McCurry is a excellent photographer, he carries the emotions of the people in the potraits...too bad it's all in 5x7" format.

Stunning!
Portraits is an amazing glimpse into the souls of people all around the world. The photos - some of them humorous - most of them simply haunting are ones you will want to look at time and again. ... Read more

Book Description

A provocative look at today's leading porn stars combined with insightful, offbeat, and amusing texts by an all-star literary lineup.

In todays image-saturated, Internet-savvy world, the subject of pornography is out of the closet and all over the maintream media. XXX: 30 PORN STAR PORTRAITS, by renowned portrait photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders, features paired portraits (one clothed and one nude) of the top stars in pornographic film. A cross-section of straight and gay men and women is represented, from porn legends to rising stars. Performers in the book include celebrities such as Jenna Jameson (the leading porn star of our time), Ron Jeremy, and Nina Hartley, as well as fast-rising names like Sunrise Adams, Belladonna, and Chad Hunt.

The book includes short essays on the intersection of pornography and culture by a wide range of distinguished writers, from Salman Rushdie to John Malkovich, Nancy Friday to John Waters. XXX is a landmark artistic work that will contribute to the ongoing debate about the pornification of the culture at large. ... Read more

Book Description

Los Angeles in the decades after the Depression was a smoldering powder keg of vice, corruption, violence, and some of the most sensational crimes in American history. The Black Dahlia slaying, the Onion Field murder, film star Thelma Todd's mysterious death, the killing of Kansas City gangsters "The Two Tonys" by Jimmy "The Weasel" Fratiano: these are but a few of the cases that once riveted the nation's attention and were captured in striking crime-scene and forensic photographs for the Los Angeles Police Department.

Long forgotten in a warehouse, these recently discovered photographs from the LAPD archive form a powerful visual history of the underbelly of Los Angeles from the 1930s to the 1960s. Although disquieting and often brutal, the images have an atmospheric, eerie beauty that belies their documentary purpose. They are accompanied here by captions from police logs and original newspaper accounts, along with an introduction by James Ellroy, the leading practitioner of the Los Angeles noir genre, and an essay by curator Tim B. Wride discussing the archive's importance to social history and the history of photography. AUTHOR BIO: William J. Bratton is the 55th chief of the Los Angeles Police Department and has also served as police commissioner for both the Boston and the New York City police departments. James Ellroy's books include the international best-sellers The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, L.A. Confidential, White Jazz, and American Tabloid. Tim B. Wride is associate curator of photography at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. ... Read more

Book Description

A fashion and commercial photographer since 1968, and also a filmmaker, Sarah Moon is known for her dreamlike images and her representation of femininity as free from time and context, as living in a fairy world. Although Moon has been a major participant in the world of fashion for more than three decades, she has carefully carved out her own niche -- a signature style that dispenses with the erotically suggestive poses favored by many of her male counterparts in favor of the emblems of luxury and nostalgia. Mystery and sensuality are at the core of Moon's work, whether she's photographing haute couture, still life, or portraiture. In this book, Moon's first major retrospective, viewers will be treated to a visual tour-de-force, showing all the genres she has explored in her rich and diverse career. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Comments...
Hmmm... "too much technique"... very interesting, this reminds me of the reaction of the art world to the inclusion of photography as an art form back about 40 years ago.. "not enough technique"... But, now we have an artist, using photo graphic images she has taken, and manipulating them in the most incredible and extraordinary ways. These go way beyond photography, yet have the sense of caught moments in early photo history using silver plate technique.
Regrets? Yes, the cover, though handsome, seems cheap and too fragile to include with the excellent quality of the photo reproductions inside; and I would like to have more information on her "techniques." I feel that Sarah is probably afraid to discuss it since she will likely be snubbed by the photographic world, especially if she does anything outside of a dark room with conventional tools, very sad.

Too much technique
I wanted to like this book and I probably would have liked it more if it had been about 1/3 as long. The technique weighs down the images and I could only take small doses. Not that it's a bad technique, it's just too redundant for my taste when presented in this quantity.

Exquisite Narrative Photography
Sarah Moon creates enchanting visual poetry in an exquisitely produced book.

Excellent images, POOR QUALITY cover!
The previous reviews cover the quality of the images in this book. I cannot say it any better. So, I'll touch on one little pet peeve I have.

I'm puzzled that Arena Editions would release this book with such an inferior cover. The compressed, uncoated cardboard cover just invites disaster! Not only is it prone to staining, it is also VERY susceptible to moisture and denting... much more than the average hardcover

I know, I know... "you should be careful when handling books... blah blah blah" That doesn't do away with the fact that this book demands to be handled! The images are too good to let this simply be a "coffee table" book. This is a sure fire page turner that must be protected in some way.

Before purchasing this book, I STRONGLY suggest you also purchase some soft cotton gloves and a book cover of some sort; and most of all, don't out it on the coffee table!!!

With unusual and absorbing drawings
This weighty and uncluttered coverage of artist Sara Moon's unusual and absorbing drawings are each centered on a white page providing excellent contrast and a uniform approach to both her black and white and color works. These take the form of juxtaposed sections of color and old-fashioned daguerreotype-type images, all the more striking for their organization and presentation. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

photojournalism master
mr. parks' book is autobiographical in photo and text. the book reveals his journey to becoming a documentor of turbulent times during his career. this is a must purchase.

A Great Book by a Great Photographer
Buy this book and see the wonderful and varied career of Gordon Parks. See the world through this stunning photographer's eyes, and you will never see the world the same again. Then buy *A Choice of Weapons* and find out how this man came to create these masterworks. Everyone knows his genius as a photographer, filmmaker, and composer, but people may not know that he is a master memoirist as well. Put this book and *A Choice of Weapons* on your Christmas list!

learned so much in one day
Seeing the exhibit was the most wonderful day of my life. Getting the book was the next best day. I am not sure if another photographer so talented in all fields will ever appear again. Raad A Choice of Weapons also by Gordon Parks, it will help reinforce the Retrospective.

Note to Amazon.com from Gordon Park's assistant:
Please note that the cover that you show on the internet is incorrect. I am the photgrapher and what you show is the photograph that was used for the dummy book shown at the book fair. The photograph shown is an unpublished photgraph. Please look at the book for the actual cover.

Superb account of the world he's experienced!
Through his poetry and photographs, Parks does an excellent job of allowing the reader to some into the world he has experienced over the years. You feel like you've gone off on assignment with him and like you've have expericned the bigotry first hand. The messages he conveys through his work were way ahead of his time, but right on time in today's world. His intelligence brightly shines through both his photographs and poetry. The narratives, photographs and poetry all make for an outstanding compilation of his feelings and views on the world. Marvelous! ... Read more

Book Description

Steve McQueen is a handsome photographic art book featuring William Claxton's unique photographs-images that captured the young, controversial American actor in the beginning of his movie career during the 1960s. Claxton's photographs confirm that McQueen's all-American, off-beat good looks were every bit as stunning as his acting and his often-stormy off-screen personality. McQueen continues to be an icon for the youth of yesterday and today. Often labeled as a maverick, a rebel, a tough guy, a loner, and a daredevil, McQueen was, above all else, an American original. Claxton, a sometime buddy of McQueen's, has captured on film not only McQueen's talent and perfectionism, but also his less well-known sensitivity and sense of humor. Along with these photographs, most of which have never been published before, are Claxton's memories and recollections, including anecdotes creating a very personal vision of McQueen. Steve McQueen features action shots of McQueen with his motorcycle buddies, in his fast cars, with his leading ladies and fellow actors, including scenes from several of his early and best films. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

A Fitting Photo Tribute
According to his foreward to this book, the photographer William Claxton met Steve McQueen in 1962 when McQueen was starring with Natalie Woods in LOVE WITH THE PROPER STRANGER. The two men formed a friendship and apparently Mr. Claxton became Mr. McQueen's favorite and most requested photographer. This book of wonderful photographs, covering a couple of years in Mr. McQueen's life from 1962 to 1964, is a result of that brief friendship. Most of the pictures appear to be shot in available light and have a wonderful, informal spontaneity about them impossible to capture in formal portraiture. Both the photographer and subject are comnpletely without pretention.

Mr. Claxton caught Mr. McQueen smiling, clowning and pensive. There are photographs of McQueen in fast cars as well as on motorcycles. Many of the shots were done while Mr. McQueen was working on movies. There are also many pictures of him with family and friends. Most of the shots are in black and white with a few in color. Every time I look at them I find yet another photograph that I think is the best in the book. There is a haunting shot of McQueen with his young daughter where the child, sitting on the floor and resting on her arms, looks into Claxton's camera. We only see her father's legs and feet. (p. 79) Another great shot appears on page 73. McQueen is embracing the family cat. Finally, there's a shot of McQueen lying on a blanket in a large field. His profile is beautifully backlit. Both photographs selected for the front and back covers are fine, informal portraits as well.

This book made me remember how much I enjoyed Steve McQueen's movies and made me sad that he is no longer among us.

Leaves you begging for more
A wonderful work of art that captures what made Steve so charismatic and appealing. It leaves you wishing you could see more from other periods in his life. This is a book I will treasure all my life. Thank you Amazon, I would have paid ten times as much for this book. God Rest His Soul.

Leaves you begging for more
What an incredible set of images from a short time span in Steve's career. The only thing is, you really want more, from other parts of his life. Everything that Steve McQueen meant to his fans and his genre of movies in the 20th century is captured here, and then some. Do not miss this book. Amazon, I would have paid ten times as much for it. I will treasure it the rest of my life. God Rest His Soul.

Not the posed movie star photos we're used to seeing.
This book is jammed with high quality pictures of McQueen before he hit it big. He is a popular actor at this time in his life, not yet the full blown international star, and this book provides a window into his life. The best part of this book is that there's very little stereotypical posing (the cover is one of the posed shots) and it seems more of an old collection of pics that a friend pulled out a ratty shoebox--very intimate and loose. And it helps that the friend is talented. The weaker part of the book is the personal anecdotes--they're fine and insightful but brief. But you can buy a biography to fill in the blanks.

Another amazing William Claxton book!
This book chronicles the life of Steve McQueen as seen with the vision of one of America's greatest photographers. Profiled recently in Vanity Fair magazine, this book will become an instant classic. These very personal pictures show a private side of McQueen that most people never knew - graciously shared from the archive of a photographer that has lived (and photographed) incredible moments of American culture. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (22)

Tartuffe-what a spoof!
Fast-paced and oft hilarious; Moliere's "Tartuffe" was one of the most controversial plays of its day. However, I myself do not believe it to be so much a satire on religion (contrary to what was believed at the time) as a satire on religious hypocrisy. Not once in the play is a specific religion or religious belief eluded to, and Cleante (who serves as the play's voice of reason) praises piety (so long as it is honest) in the beginning of the fifth act. What the play is satirizing is how easily people follow and accept what they are told by their leaders, whether religious, political, or otherwise.

In the play Orgon places so much faith in the mischevious Tartuffe that he nearly gives away everything (including his own daughter) to him. Both the strong-willed, weak-minded Orgon and the devious Tartuffe (of whom one could say "thinks with the wrong head") as well as the quick-tempered Damis, the clear-minded Cleante, and the wise-cracking maid Dorine are memorable characters all of whom are wonderfully developed despite the brevity of the play. The rhyme scheme makes for a quick and enjoyable read as well. A classic!

A peerless translation
Pulizter-winning poet Richard Wilbur has chosen to dedicate years of his life to making worthy English translations of the plays of Moliere with the idea no one will have to again for a hundred years. His confidence in his own translations is enormous, and correct. This is Moliere in the language of today -- direct, witty, insightful, hilarious. Tartuffe sends up hypocrisy, religious and otherwise, in a bourgeois farce of escalating absurdity.

This particular translation won the prestigious Bollingen Prize. The only thing going against it is that you can essentially get two-for-the-price-of-one by getting Wilbur's Tartuffe and The Misanthrope together in another book. That book even contains the same introduction. But why stop there? I can't praise Wilbur's Molieres highly enough. If you like The Misanthrope and Tartuffe, check out the other ones, like The School for Wives and Amphitryon, two personal favorites.

Moliere's paradigmatic neoclassical comedy, "Tartuffe"
I often taught Moliere's "Tartuffe" as an example of the neoclassical form of comedy in contrast to the romantic comedy represented by Shakespeare. We would read "Twelfth Night," a play set in a faraway exotic land where the point was simply romance, and then turn to "Tartuffe," where the contemporary society becomes one of the primary concerns of the comic dramatist. During the neoclassical period society was concerned with norms of behavior, and in a Moliere play you usually find a eccentric individual, out of step with the rest of society, who is laughed back to the right position. Moliere was concerned with social problems, which was while this particular play, dealing with the issue of hypocrisy, was banned for years. Keep in mind that originally hypocrisy was specific to religion, although today it can be used with regards to politics, sex, or even uncontroversial subjects.

The central character in "Tartuffe" is not the title character, but Orgon, a reasonably well to do man of Paris who is married to his second wife, Elmire, and has a song, Damis, and a daughter, Mariane, from his first marriage. He also has the misfortune of living with his mother, Madame Pernelle. Tartuffe is a religious hypocrite who worms his way into Orgon's confidence in order to take him for everything he is worth. Orgon is completely duped, and disinherits his son when Damis tries to prove Tartuffe is fraud. The other key character in the play is Dorine, who is Mariane's maid and the smartest person in the house, which allows her to both manipulate the action and comment on the play.

There are three crucial scenes in the play that readers should appreciate, even if it will not be covered on a future exam. The first is the opening scene (in Moliere's comedies the scene changes every time a character enters or exits) where we are introduced to Madame Pernelle, who promptly proceeds to criticize everybody in Orgon's household while praising Tartuffe. The result is that because she is so obnoxious, we have a low opinion of Tartuffe before he ever appears on stage. So, in addition to being a funny scene, it serves an important function in terms of the play. The second key scene comes when Orgon realizes he has been duped, and instead of continuing to ridicule his central character, Moliere turns him into a sympathetic figure. We laugh at Orgon while he does not have a clue as to his culpability in his coming demise, but once he starts to lose everything we stop laughing.

The final scene of interest, for mostly reasons external to the story, is the conclusion, where Moliere pulls what could only be called a "roi ex machina." This is because instead of dropping a god out of the sky in the manner of Euripides, Moliere has a representatative of the King arrive to set everything to rights. Tartuffe might pull the wool over the eyes of ordinary folk, but the King--in this case, King Louis XIV--is not fooled. The play "Tartuffe" was banned by the clergy after its first performance because it was seen as a thinly veiled attack against the Jansenists (a rather puritanical Catholic sect), and Moliere literally spent years rewriting it before the King gave his approval. It is not surprising that the playwright makes his patron the hero at the end of the play.

If you are only going to read (or teach) one Moliere play, then my choice would be "Tartuffe," even over "The Misanthrope," "The Imaginary Invalid," or "The Bourgeois Gentleman." I would argue that "Tartuffe" is the paradigmatic Moliere play, which best represents his comic techniques while also having a historical context that speaks to the tenor of the times in which he wrote. I also think it is the funniest of his plays.

In defense of Richard Wilbur
I'm writing because the negative reviews unduly attack, and positive reviews fail to credit, the strongest selling point of this particular edition--Richard Wilbur's skillful and supple translation. A U.S. Poet Laureate and great literary intellect in his own right, Wilbur's clear language and, for the most part, effortlessly natural couplets make Moliere immediately accessible to the modern reader. His language does make the link between Moliere and Restoration comedy quite explicit, as one critic of the edition has noted here. But since Restoration was in fact inspired by the spirit of French farce, all this proves is that Wilbur's translation is not only readable, but historically adept (the whole idea of the Restoration was that Charles II brought French culture back to England with him on returning from France--the link isn't imaginary). Of course read the French if you can--but read Wilbur's translation as well, because it's also a valuable literary work in its own right.

Excellent translation
Translators have the power to make or break our opinions of the original author. It really is an art to not only translate the original meaning of a piece, but also to convey the original literary merit and integrity. Richard Wilbur has done an extraordinary job of translating Tartuffe.

The plot itself is not as impassioning as I thought it would be. It is, however, very entertaining, very funny, and a breeze to read through. It felt much lighter in spirit than The Misanthrope, and is probably a little more accessible to one who generally avoids classics of that era.

I highly recommend it. It's the best book I've ever been able to read in less than 2 hours. ... Read more

Book Description

The natives call it simply "the City."This is the story of the changing face of San Francisco, and how it has become one of the most picturesque cities in the world.Seventy modern color photographs are compared side-by-side with seventy archival photographs from the 1850s to the 1950s.While focusing on famous vistas and familiar landmarks, it also explores well-known neighborhoods.The Then and Now series includes: New York, Washington, Boston, and San Francisco. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

A Yenne for the past
Bill Yenne's photographic essay about the similarities and differences between San Francisco's past and present is one of several "past and present" photographic themes published by Thunder Bay Press involving a number of prominent American cities.

But a pictorial retrospective and current-day snapshot (this book was actually published in 1998) of The City is particularly interesting, not only in light of San Francisco's unique history in the annals of this country, but also in light of how San Franciscans today see themselves in relation to the rest of the country.

I would have liked to have seen included a picture of old Seals Stadium, which adorned the corners of 16th and Bryant Streets in Portrero Hill for so many years as home to the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League (and as home to the Giants in 1958 and 1959). But a "now" picture of the Safeway Shopping Center and Old Navy outlet that are on that corner now might have appeared too drab or too forlorn by comparison.

Otherwise, Yenne's color photographs of the present are quite beautiful, but equally impressive are the black-and-white photographs of the past taken by largely unknown photographers. A remarkable amount of detail is preserved in those old grainy-black-and-whites.

Yenne gives us a few briefly-worded captions for the purpose of pointing out some specific similarity or difference between two or more photos in a given set, but as a good human camera should, he wisely refrains from any further comment.

Included in this essay is an "old" view (circa 1935) looking east from the top of Nob Hill between Sacramento and California Streets. The Russ Building, San Francisco's tallest skyscraper (31 stories or about 400 feet high) is visible in this shot, but also clearly visible is the San Francisco Bay, including the suspension cables on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, now in the middle of construction.

When Yenne shoots his contemporary photo from the same angle, the Russ Building is now dwarfed by a number of newer structures, including the 853-foot Transamerica Pyramid and the 779-foot black granite Bank of America headquarters, and the bay is hardly visible at all. Other skyscrapers have joined the collage, and now, incredibly enough, no portion of the Bay Bridge can be seen.

Moreover, in other old pictures facing the same direction, the waterfront is, as Yenne says, "alive with tugs, ferries, and other vessels". But in contemporary photos, "the waterfront (is) now much quieter".

There are still, thank heavens, some fishing boats in Fisherman's Wharf in which commercial fisherman seek their catch with the same dogged patience that the DiMaggio family did almost 100 years ago. Moreover, Alioto's, Fisherman's Grotto, and Tarantino's restaurants adjoin the wharf in both the black-and-white "then" and the color "now" photos. But otherwise, the tugs, ferries and other vessels, sailing toward or away from the various piers have been largely replaced by pleasure craft. Gentrification anyone?

The photos also tell a story of the disappearance of most of the cable car traffic that once traversed the City, and of course, everyone knows that the remaining cable car lines are kept only for the benefit of the tourists. The City's haughtiness towards outsiders doesn't entail an aversion toward tourist dollars, after all.

But no self-respecting chablis-drinking San Franciscan would be caught dead in one of those contraptions today. The late Herb Caen or whoever has since replaced Caen as the dean of Bay Area boorishness would laugh out of town any San Francisco native uncool enough to ride one of those things.

It's hard to imagine San Francisco's "in" crowd today enjoying anything as bourgeois and middle-American as an amusement park either, but Yenne is able to locate some old photos of a Coney Island-like amusement park called Playland-At-The-Beach that once adorned Fulton and Balboa Streets during a less pretentious San Francisco era.

Maybe time, population growth, economic growth, and recovery from two major earthquakes made some change inevitable. But the old and new photographs largely tell a story of a city striving maniacally to grow faster than anyone else, often at the expense of much of the beauty and charm that it once possessed. A city whose denizens claim to be unlike anywhere else ultimately aped New York City and other metropolitan areas in the frenzy of its development and in much of its resulting physical appearance. Does San Francisco's arrogant provincialism mask a latent inferiority complex?

Maybe the most illustrative set of "then and now" photos are the two views looking west from California and Kearney Streets. In 1880, next to Old St. Mary's Cathedral on the north side of the street is a combination apartment complex/restaurant called the California House, and Yenne explains that it was one of the City's favorite eateries, noted for "fresh oysters in every style".

Old St. Mary's still rests on the north side of California Street in Yenne's contemporary color photograph, but upon the site of the California House now rests the 33-story Hartford Insurance Building.

St. Francis wept.

See for your self
When visiting S.F., one couldn't help wonder about the history of this "young city". When walking the Embarcadero, reading all the "history stands", you wish you could go back in time and see what it was really like. I did just that, when i bougth this book. It made it possible to visit some of the buildings that still exists and visit places that once was.
If you want to make your visit more interesting, you should buy this book prior to your actually visit.
The photographs is excellent and the accompanying notes helps you to imagine was it was like to live in S.F. then and to realize what it has become.

A must for the city traveller

nice book
What makes this book special for me is the "now" photographs. The book's editor/photographer has made a sincere attempt to reshoot the photos, physically, from as nearly as possible from the original, without changing the photographic perspective. This allows the books' reader to view and compare the photos and know that streets, buildings, and other landmarks give an accurate view of how the city looked at a certain time. Accurate directions and locations listed in both historical and contemporary photos greatly enchances the value and arm chair travelers' enjoyment of the book. Buy a map of the city if you're not familiar with it.

Wonderful look Back and Forward
This book offers an excellent photographic perspective of San Francisco's past and present. Photos from the 1850's even up to the early 1960s (in the case of Diamond Heights) are shown along with photos of what a particular area of SF looks like today. While this book is a testament to how much the city has grown and changed over the last 150 years, it also shows how resilient it was after the earthquake and fire in 1906 that virtually leveled it.

It also makes the reader ponder a little about what life must have been like in San Francisco around the turn of the 20th century. Among the areas shown? The Marina district, Pacific Heights, Market St and the ferry building, several panoramas of the city, the Golden Gate bridge (during contruction and how it appears today), and Nob Hill.

Not only are the photos spectacular, but it also offers some history about "the city by the bay" and how some parts of it have changed dramatically and others might still be recognizable to those who visited 50 years ago. An excellent pictorial coffee table book about the city I'm lucky enough to live near.

Great Gift For SF Lovers
Great History Picture Book for all Ages. Just enough reading to keep little ones interested. The pictures are bold and beautiful. I bought one for myself. Great gift for someone who loves San Francisco. ... Read more

Book Description

It is a truism of contemporary culture that you are what you wear. Or what you drive. Or where you live. Or how you decorate your body or style your hair. There are certain people, however, who know the importance of such a cultural condition, and who take it to a courageous and self-actualizing extreme. These individuals are shameless about self-expression; they are brave enough to paint on a canvas all their own, without precedent or proportion. They are style astronauts. They are the Kustomizers. Kustom is about people who live and breathe and maximize the concept of ownership. From customized hot rods to plastic surgery in extremis, stadium daredevils to fashion mavericks, photographer Dewey Nicks captures the art and poetry of obsession. The results are humorous, startling, grotesque, and glorious-sometimes all at once. Kustom provides a vivid insight into those who have the courage and abandon to go beyond the standards of mass production, beyond the inhibitions of tradition and conformity. Designed by lauded fashion imagemaker Douglas Lloyd, Kustom is a brilliant odyssey into the world of personal aesthetics. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Energy Leaping From the Pages
Stunningly beautiful, clean and crisply presented. One hundred years hence, this volume will stand as an exemplar of the contemporary aeesthetic. Accessible yet challenging. Unreservedly recommended. (A true bargain at this price, too.) ... Read more

Book Description

A look at the history of Philadelphia, with both modern and historic photography and captions describing the development of this famous city. Part of the highly successful "Then and Now" series, this book captures the changes in this historic city. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Philadelphia Then and Now
I sat down on a Sunday morning to casually glance through what I thought was just another coffee table photography book. Several hours later, thoroughly relaxed and enlightened, I closed Philadelphia Then and Now, having deliberately devoured every word, every image, every comparison-both visual and written, cover to cover. What fun it was to go back and forth. The effort taken to capture identical images was evident page after page. The attention to obscure and amusing snippets of historical detail tied the "then" black and white photos and the "now" colorful photos together perfectly.

Treat yourself to a Sunday morning journey to Philadelphia-Then and Now.

Great Memories and Fascinating Pictures
This is a really unique collection of photos from the last 150 years in Center City Philadelphia with recent photos taken at the same location. Would make a great gift for someone with Philadelphia ties.

It was interesting to see how things have changed - in many places for the better. Center City towards the Ben Franklin Parkway was a dirty grimy place at the turn of the century. The Parkway was a stroke of genius. The Art Museum used to be a water holding area. ... Read more

Book Description

Draw into the lives of wolves through the experience of Jim and Jamie Dutcher and the wolf pack they lived with for six years. ... Read more

Book Description

Dressed in nothing but Jimmy Choo spikes and a single piece of Cartier jewelry, a constellation of beautiful, successful and empowering women bare all in aid of the Elton John Aids Foundation. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (2)

the best pictorial guide to understand lighting
If you like "scientific" explanations, "Light: science & magic" by Fil Hunter and Paul Fuqua (ISBN 0-240-80275-6) will be a better choice.
If you're lazy and want a "cookbook", rather than understanding, search for this key word -- there are plenty of books showing a scene and how (authors thinks) lights were set for each particular picture they chosen (and, boy, how often they're wrong!).

If you're ready to take a little effort to understand how lighting works, and prefer pictures and charts with short comments over any other style of explanation, this book is the best I've ever seen (and I've looked through a lot of them).

Check this book out before you buy
This book is not for experts. It is a shallow overview of lighting for amateurs. Even for the newbie there is not enough info here to do anything. You get the same info from any intro photography book. You don't learn how to use any lighting equipment. This book is thin and a waste of money in my opinion. Please be sure to check it out at the bookstore before you buy. ... Read more