For one or two semester courses in the History of Photography.
A chronological history of photography ranging from the medium’s beginnings to the present, with emphasis on the major inventions and image makers and the social and cultural settings in which photography flourished.
The book was written to introduce students to photography. It does not require that students possess any technical know-how and can be taught without referring to techniques in photography. Incorporating the latest research and international uses of photography, the text surveys the history of photography in such a way that students can gauge the medium's long-term multifold developments and see the historical and intellectual contexts in which photographers lived and worked. It also provides a unique focus on contemporary photo-based work and electronic media.
Where was the copy editor? In general, this book reads like a research paper. I guess that's to be expected considering it's a textbook. That doesn't bother me too much. What does bother me, however, are the numerous sloppy little errors I've come across while reading it. It may seem nitpicky to list them, but I think that books in general (and most especially academic textbooks) should be held to a high standard of accuracy, right down to the basic editing of text.
A sampling of some errors I've come across in the second addition: Page 50: "None of Anthony's daguerreotypes survives, however." ("Survives" should be "survive"). Page 136, caption for figure 3.73: "Anascizi" should be "Anasazi". That one's particularly egregious. Page 206: "He often assuming a false identity, to photograph children at work in factories, mines, canneries, and mills." (Do I need to point out what's wrong with that sentence?)
textbook
great condition thanks
Photography: A Cultural History
Very hard to read I found photography a Cultural History a very hard to read book. The author seems to jump from subject to subject and from photographer to photographer without any cohesive meaning. The chapters get harder to read as you move towards the later chapters, unfortunately. I don't see what is the sense to mentioning what a photogrpher did or said in a 2 or 3 sentence paragraph, then jump to another photographer and do the same, then jump to another one and do the same and so on and so on. Also, why is the photographers years of existence printed next to each photographers name in parenthesis ? This only makes the book even harder to read. I bought the book because I'm a photography student and the book is mandatory for one of the required courses, but if it was up to me, I would rather use and purchase "The History of Photography" written By Beaumont Newhall even though it is out of date. This was the book originally used in the past, but a few years ago allot of schools decided to switch to the Warner Marien book which I think was a big mistake.
Photography: A cultural history (trade version) An exellent source. The price was unbeatable. At school a smaller version of this book was over $100 and I paid less than $50for a more complete book!
excellent resource! i had to buy this for class, and for once it isn't a "textbook" ! finally an art textbook that doubles as a coffee table book, and one you can read. very good text - easy, and not too "academic." highly recommend.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Trevor
