Photography: An Illustrated History (Oxford Illustrated Histories Y/A)
Grade 7 Up-Featuring at least one carefully selected image on every spread, this brief, authoritative history presents a largely chronological overview of photography's major figures and their technical and artistic innovations. From the daguerreotype and calotype through films and papers to a brief mention of digital photography, technological developments are clearly explained, often in the context of changing photographic styles. The invention of movies is noted, and chapters on color prints and films, war photography, and modern photography round out the text. One may argue that two images by Frances Benjamin Johnston, Heinrich K hn, and Toni Frissell are misrepresentative when only one is provided for Alfred Stieglitz, Edward Steichen, Mathew Brady, Margaret Bourke-White, Edward Weston, and Ansel Adams. However, one can hardly quibble with the quality of the images selected-they are outstanding. Minor errors include an image attributed in the text to Wayne Miller but in the caption and index to Barrett Gallagher. The index also indicates that there are two illustrations by Francis Frith, but there is only one. The writing style is formal and seems, at least in some instances, to be unnecessarily elliptical: "In recent decades the world of photography has benefited from the emergence of masterful photographers from countries not previously heralded for their contributions to the medium." Excellent end matter contains a chronology, mostly based on the text, from the mid-1700s camera obscuras to the introduction of Adobe Photoshop in 1990; and an international list of photography museums and Web sites. In all, a compact history, engaging and literate, about this melding of art and science, this painting with light.Joel Shoemaker, Southeast Junior High School, Iowa City,Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.