5 comments about Flower Portraits Birthday Book: Dates to Remember Year After Year (Birthday Books).

1. I love this little book and gave it as a gift to someone who could not find one like it.



2. I love my birthday book. Its small which makes it perfect for carrying around. Fast process and delivery.



3. I gave this to my mother as a stocking stuffer, after I had written in all the important birthdays and anniversaries. She loved it! It was exactly as I expected.



4. this little book is ok. I think it should be bigger. The space to write the names is too small. I will keep looking for a bigger book.



5. Handy size. Perfect for your desk space. Clever idea -- this will get you organized!

5 comments about Butt Book.

1. This book is a collection of frank interviews and pictoral articles that will keep you turning pages until you've finished each and every one of the too-few-at-550+ pages. The more you read, the more you want. Each story is a voyeuristic acid trip into some aspect of the gay world that you probably hadn't even imagined existed.
   Have you ever seen someone interesting walking down the street, and wondered what their story was? Well, what if someone went and asked them simple but insightful questions and then actually got answers? You would have this book. Some of the people being interviewed are somebodies...some are anybodies, and some are nobodies...but they are all equally interesting when asked the right questions.
   Trust me, if you have a curious mind, you will love this book. If you already have all the answers, you probably just want to keep right on walkin'.



2. I first ordered this book from amazon but they kept on delaying the shipment until I saw the book at a local Tower Records store so, I cancelled the order and bought it brand new. It cost a little more but sometimes you just have to have what you want asap.
   
   Now, about the book. Unlike some review I read here stating that this book portraits young, famous and rich men. Not at all, the interviews are great, intelligent and witty and the characters portrayed range from music stars to ordinary guys (not ordinary like in "common", but simply "not famous"). The format is pretty simple, a Q&A session but it's perfect for revealing every character's personality, interests and humor.
   
   Most of the pictures are cool, others are weird.
   
   I recommend this book if you want to have a broad picture of the gay subculture out there or if you want to get to know better what's going on in the gay cultural world.



3. I flipped through this trash at American Apparel. It's just a new, sort of elitist way of repackaging porn. It's just as destructive as regular porn. More execs trying to sell us on what is attractive and what is not; i.e., young, muscled, endowed, rich = attractive and worthy of the gay "community's" attention, anything else = not.
   
   You all can give this review "unhelpful" votes, all you want. Truth be told, gays wouldn't care about this magazine if it did not feature handsome, young white men. Look at all the attention given to CNN's Thomas Roberts.



4. This book is wonderful for entertainment while on the toilet! You can even use the pages if you run out of toilet paper! The pictures are quite lovely and the European aesthetic is so much better than anything manufactured in the US. I loved it.



5. I love the magazine and I'm absolutely in love with this book! I accidentally ran across Butt a couple of years ago while doing some research on one of my favorite creatures alive: Wolfgang Tillmans (who has quite a contribution to the magazine as well as this book, specifically). The magazine is funny, candid, refreshing, gorgeously-sleazy in a honest/tounge-(and whatever else)-in-cheek sort of way, and highly intelligent to boot. This book is all of that bounded into one Butt. It is one giant amazing Buttfest.

3 comments about Art and Photography (Themes & Movements S.).

1. Notwithstanding the promise of its title, "Art in Photography" is simply a survey of avant-garde photography of the last half of the twentieth century.
   
   The book is divided into three parts: an essay by Campany, photographs and other works, and documents consisting of excerpts of articles, interviews and statements. The essay is divided into sections with titles like "The Urban and the Everyday" with similar sections of the photographs and documents. Each essay section makes a few general comments about the new in photography and then discusses in a sentence or two the particular photographers whose works appear among the photographs.
   
   The essay's principal thesis is that while other plastic arts moved away from content toward form in modern times, photography has generally moved away from form to content. At the same time, the goal of either set of movements was always self-referential, although it seemed as if photographers were deliberately subverting the form to show its inadequacies. (The author ignores the main stream of photography during that same period, when there were many portrait, fashion and landscape photographers who clung splendidly to the combination of form and content, using form to explicate the content.)
   
   The essay is often supported by thumbnails an inch and three-quarters high, but it is difficult to see much at this small size, and the reader may be further confounded in the effort to relate the picture to the text by the fact that the captions for the thumbnails are printed vertically in small type, requiring one to rotate the book 90 degrees and then look closely to confirm the relationship of the picture to the text.
   
   The pictures themselves are difficult to understand out of the context of a particular photographer's work, although occasionally an image will arrest one's eye, like the photograph of a single woman's face turned toward the camera in a sea of black-cloaked praying Moslem women, or Chuck Close's painting of Philip Glass. For the most part the pictures, out of context, are enigmatic. Campany acknowledges that it is difficult to draw any consistent theory of photography from the pictures.
   
   The documents vary in interest from insightful articles to artistic double-speak. It pained me to see Walter Benjamin's seminal article "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" abridged to a short excerpt, but it does add the flavor of the work to some understanding of the pictures presented.
   
   Survey books are always difficult for me because they can never go into enough detail to comprehend larger movements. Still, for the individual interested in a collection of representative works of avant-garde photography, this book may fill the bill,



2. The book starts with a 35-page survey written by the editor does a very good job of covering photography's use in the arts. This is then followed by some 150 pages of photographs. The next 80 pages cover the documents, writings on and by the artists using photography in their practice. The book concludes with artist and author biographies and a decent bibliography.
   
   Both the photography and the documents are organized into rough thematic groupings. These are:
   * Memories and Archives
   * Objective Objects
   * Traces of Traces
   * The Urban and the Everyday
   * The Studio Image
   * The Arts of Reproduction
   * `Just' Looking
   * The Cultures of Nature
   This organizational structure works quite well, in that rather than overwhelming you with a whole book worth of imagery and commentary, it is divided into more manageable chunks that still allow contemplation of the whole but also allow a tighter consideration, as needed. The work and documents cover the whole time range from the 60's to the early 21st Century (2003 to be specific, the year of publication). So the book is an excellent survey document.
   
   Anyone who is serious at coming to grips with the use of photography in contemporary art practice should have this book handy. It brings together in one great resource not only great examples of the work produced but also, through collating the writings that are included, bringing together the thoughts, criticisms and analysis of the major artists, critics, theorists and analysts of the time. Very highly recommended.



3. The front free endpaper of this book says "Art and Photography is the first book of its kind to survey the presence of photography in artistic practice from the 1960s onwards. The photographic image is central to contemporary art and the debates that surround it, yet it took most of the last century for it to acquire this status. Despite the extensive exploration of photography as an independent art in the Modernist era, it was not until the late twentieth century that artists, museums and galleries began to explore its social roles as a medium of representation. This volume provides a comprehensive survey of photography's place in recent art history, further contextualized in the Documents section by original artists' statements and interviews, together with critical and theoretical reflections on the photographic and the art of the photograph."
   
   Does the book live up to this hype? I think it does. It's a handsome 304-page tome, with the first two-thirds printed on white semiglossy paper (for the "Survey" and "Works") and the last third on cream-colored uncoated paper (for the "Documents," biographies, bibliography, and index).
   
   The "Survey," "Works," and "Documents" parts are arranged into the same eight sections: "Memories and Archives" on "public and private histories"; "Objective Objects" on photos' "apparently direct relation to the world"; "Traces of Traces" on "photography as a record of the real and its effects"; "The Urban and the Everyday" on "contemporary city life"; "The Studio Image" on "fine art's traditional space of making"; "The Arts of Reproduction" on "works that reflect upon the way mass culture is experienced as fragments"; " 'Just' Looking" on "the social structures of vision and the place of the gaze in the formation of our identity"; and "The Cultures of Nature" on "how the current understandings of the natural are formed and reflected through contemporary representation." This organization is unique to my knowledge; most books on art are arranged chronologically or by artist.
   
   The "Survey" essay by David Campany places the Works and Documents into historical context and explains in some detail the eight categories. It's illustrated with small reproductions of art and photos. I found it enlightening.
   
   Within each of the eight sections of "Works," from pages 46 to 205, the photos are presented in more or less chronological order, with the earliest works dating from the 1960s. Of the dozens of photographers, the ones who have more than one photo (from different series) reproduced in the book are John Baldessari, Victor Burgin, Gregory Crewdson, John Divola, John Hilliard, Joel Meyerowitz, Gabriel Orozco, Richard Prince, Gerhard Richter, Martha Rosler, Thomas Ruff, Allan Sekula, Cindy Sherman, Thomas Struth, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Larry Sultan, Jeff Wall, Andy Warhol, Gillian Wearing, and William Wegman. I detect no significant errors of omission or commission in the choice of artists. The specifications of media (e.g., "tinted black and white photographs") and dimensions, and the lengthy captions, are valuable.
   
   "Documents" contains excerpts of writings by photographers (including ones with only a single photograph in "Works," e.g., Yve Lomax and Robert Smithson) and non-photographers (e.g., Roland Barthes, Jacque Derrida, Craig Owens, Marcel Proust), as well as interviews with photographers. These "mostly left-brain" texts complement the "half-left-brain, half-right-brain" Works.
   
   If I had to improve anything, I would say to editor Campany and publisher Phaidon only "Lay off the fancy typography, like the 'decreasing font size' effect from page 14 to page 17, and the full-page treatment of brief quotations on pages 221, 226, 235, and 283! While it makes the book visually attractive, it distracts from the book's main messages and wastes space." Buy this excellent book from Amazon.com!

5 comments about Digital Boudoir Photography: A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating Fabulous Images of Any Woman.

1. I gave this book to my husband and he has used it many times with me.



2. I'm glad I found this book on a friend's bookshelf.
   Do not expect to learn much about photography through this, or much about "creating fabulous images of any woman", either. Someone already said it before: it's really more of an idea book... but for those with little creativity or ability to self-analyze. I'm not a professional or even much of an amateur photographer and I personally found the images and incisiveness in this book to be on a very, very low level. It's really more like a kid's book (and that's just all kinds of wrong). Imagine how a kid's book would read on building a house and you get the idea.
   
   Overall, the book reflects poorly on the publisher, though the same publisher's sports photography book is light-years beyond this one.



3. There is much to learn and like from this book. As a photographer moving from photographing inanimate objects to people, I very much appreciated the breadth of information in this book. The author illustrates and covers solutions to several of the problems I've experienced, and helpful tips that have shaved a lot of time off my learning curve.
   
   The steps and lessons are abundantly illustrated, showing how small changes can vastly improve the images. Showing how `bad' photos are made hits the point home of "oh yeah, I've made that mistake." Of particular interest was the use of models of various body-types and how to approach the challenges each one presents.
   
   I refer to this book often as a reference; this is not just a one-time read, but contains pointers and lessons that can be reviewed and executed often.
   
   With fast-changing technology, I expect the digital equipment sections to become outdated quickly, but this is a rather small portion of the book, and was not a factor in my buying it.



4. The info in this book is ridiculously elementary for anyone with even intermediate experience with a camera. The models are not particularly attractive. And, while I appreciate the idea of making average-looking women look great in the image, even the resulting images are just average-looking and amateurish. Most of the shots do not look professionally done at all, but just look more like they were done my some guy with his new-fangled digital camera.
   
   Sorry... but there are far better books out there on this topic, even for beginners.



5. Having retired from 25 plus years as a professional photographer I wanted to revert to being an advanced amateur. I have always enjoyed photography of women and had wanted for sometime to locate a book depicting boudoir photography with emphasis on lady next door type models. Most books I have seen on the subject use models who are either professional or could work as professionals. I don't have a desire to work with this type of model. This book has been a great place to start from.. The authors use of basic equipment is also to be commended. I am fortunate enough to have several strobe lights at my disposal however many would not.
   
   The only disappointment is the fact that the author does not include photos of even more Rubenesque figured models and more mature (ok older) models. The photographs of the models he does use are very nicely done
   
   Other than that small short coming I feel this book will be very useful to me in my new found hobby and was a good investment.
   C.M. Cook CM Photographics

5 comments about Radiant Identities.

1. Many of the images in this book hold me totally spellbound, even after enjoying it (in hardcopy) for several years. I experience a sense of "beckoning", a call to enter the images and pursue the stories that most of them so strongly hint at. The cover photo so captivated me that I bought a official/authorized print of it.



2. While Jock Sturges has almost flawless control of the technical aspects of the photographs in this book (excellent exposure and placement of the subject matter): the moments it captures leave much to be desired.
   
   Perhaps it is simply that I am looking at it from the wrong perspective, and I am expecting of it something that cannot be expected of straight portraiture, but I don't believe this to be true.
   The black and white photographs are very well done in that they have wonderful transitions of gradient tones, and the subject matter is always very clear and concise with little confusion as to what aspect of the photo you should be concentrating on. What i don't like is the overall emotional aspect of the photographs, and the reactions of the people in them. For me, there is only 2 photographs in this book that have any sense of emotive quality that i would actively seek out - and even those two photographs have problems.
   
   - In the photograph of the boys holding hands, and in several others, I see apprehension on the faces of the subjects. I see someone looking at a camera not knowing if they should be going about there normal business, and someone who is unfamiliar with the person taking the photograph. It is not outright anger or dislike - just apprehension.
   
   - In the photograph of the girl and the boy leaning on each other on the beach; it is a beautiful sentiment and it is well done, but you can see, you can FEEL the boy looking at the photographer with a sense of protectiveness, a sense of disconnection from his activities in order to be watchful of this person taking photos of them.
   
   In all but a few of the photographs - the person being photographed is looking at the photographer or the camera itself. this is fine in most photography - but the setting of this book is not the studio, and it is among other people. I would like to have expected an interaction with the people around the subjects, with the surroundings, or at VERY LEAST, an internal reactions of the subject themselves (wonder, happiness, sadness, questioning, SOMETHING).
   
   I am of the school of photography that believes in capturing the essence of a moment, the little tricks the body does to convey an emotion, that which is a moving changing thing, that has a reason, a direction; an engagement. You'll see them every now and again in the people your around a lot, a furrowed brow, an upturning of the mouth.
   A big part of being able to capture such moments requires that the person never be looking at the camera. they should be looking at you. at the person behind the camera - and not at a photographer, at a person with whom they FEEL something towards. and if they are simply looking at the camera, there should be something more in it then simple apprehension.
   Personally, this book fails in many ways for me. It is titled "Radiant Identities" - but I see no identities, I see no emotional personality, I see only bodies who are unsure and aware of a man taking photographs of them. I give this 3 stars because the techniques are well done; and because as a resource for artists, it has a few selections that are wonderful anatomical and surface muscle studies that are hard to find elsewhere. From the perspective of art however I would give it a 2 at best.



3. I first came across this book about ten years ago and when I did I instantly became a Jock Sturges fan. But it wasn't until resonantly that I realized just how powerful and deep his art can be. Visiting an art gallery I was stunned by the detail, contrast and the three dimensional quality of Jock's full sized prints. The images you see in his books might have been taken with a medium format camera such as a Hasselblad. Viewing his full sized images, with all their extraordinary detail, you become aware of just what an 8 by 10 view camera can achieve in the hands of a true master. The models seem almost alive.
   
   But this wasn't my only surprise. Many of the images I saw at the art gallery had never been published and I thought that these were Jock's most profound and challenging work. One such print, "Julien et Antoine, Montalivet, France; 2004", really knocked my socks off. We see two beautiful young twin brothers, as naked as the day of their birth, in a bedroom. We know this to be an adult's bedroom as there are no toys or other childish things about, only an adult sized backpack beside the bed. The translucent canopy draped over the large bed and the house plant visible in the upper left corner gives the room a romantic, almost feminine feel. Yet the boys, still a year or two from puberty, seem to own this very adult space.
   
   Antoine is seated on the bed, very relaxed with his arms at his side. Julien stands before him and with an almost sensuous sence of self-confidence he establishes a relationship with us by gazing directly into the camera. His arms are crossed over his chest-perhaps for protection-but, like his brother, he makes no attempt to hide his exposed genitals. His weight is resting on his left leg and his body is shifted sideways in a pose that suggests he is well aware of his beauty and emerging sexuality. This little boy is no longer entirely innocent. He knows that evil exists. He is aware that there are those who would see his beauty as an obscenity and his trust as a come on. We feel privileged that this beautiful boy has allowed us, the viewers, to examine every detail of his stunning body as he meets our gaze without fear or shame. But at the same time we feel challenged. The boy knows that if there is any indecency the fault lies not with him, or with his brother, but with us the viewers. If there is evil then that evil is in us, not him. This picture is worth much more than a thousand words.
   
   If "Julien et Antoine, Montalivet, France; 2004" were to be compressed to the point where it was small enough to fit in a book-or be posted on the net-the stunning technical skill and detail of the photo would be lost and as a result it might well appear pornographic. I felt as if Jock had lead us right up to the edge of the void and then, at the last possible moment, pulled us back to safety. This is surly one of the most beautiful, powerful and potentially disturbing images of the twenty-first century.



4. Read my review on "The last day of summer" if you are looking for a book to sexually excite you. In my opinion this is his second best book, maybe is the fact that the book is not as "complete", as it covers too many different surroundings. It still is a 5 star work of art, go ahead and buy it, you'll be pleased!



5. Mr. Sturges second book, by now he'd fully developed the style his fans all know so well. Some of his best nudes, and clothed portraits, are featured here. This is one of the better photo books I've got, maybe one of Sturges better books.
   The most notable feature are perhaps the two contributed essays, the one at the front of the book quotes unidentified subjects of Mr. Sturges on their feelings about posing for him, you won't find anything else like that until the most recent book "Notes".

5 comments about Richard Avedon Portraits.

1. I looked at this book that I just received today and I thought, "These are good fotos but.....but....there is something missing." What is "missing"? The background for one thing! I want to KNOW MORE about these people than Avedon gives us. These portraits are "better than nothng" but...but...who are these people? There are very few "clues" to help us answer that question. On the contrary, Diana Arbus DOES "tell" us who her people are"---both in words and in their surroundings or background environment which Ms. Arbus DOES include. I think Mr. Avedon should throw away his "white sheet" or whatever he uses and show the subject with their environmnet. I'm sure the subjects in this book do NOT carry around a white sheet to put behind themselves! So, why does Mr. Avedon feel he has to use the white sheet? I don't get it and I don't like it. But, the above being said, these ARE very good portraits even with their alledged "defects". Boland7214@aol.com



2. This book is absolutely exquisite. The photographs are stunning and insightful If you are not familiar with Avedon's male nudes--I wasn't--you should be aware that many of them are full frontal and not in any way prettified, pornographic, or erotic. I include this because none of the other reviews mentioned it. Had I been more familiar with the book's contents, perhaps I would not have left the book out on the kitchen counter for the wrong (adult) friend to unfold it before I did!! Yeah, I know, I should have known better . . . . Duh.



3. I bought this book for my photography friend for Christmas. She was blown away. From the moment you open the package, it is clear this book is worlds apart from your standard photography book. Every photo is frame-ready. I highly recommend for the picky photography enthusiast.



4. The format allows for a stand-up display down the entire length of a coffee table! Pretty cool if you ask me;
   Got this as a christmas gift for my art-school-grad photographer/niece. It caused something of a stir when the holiday guests started to look at everyone elses presents.. Along the lines of "Don't let the kids look at that book" and "Let me see it' and "Ewwww".



5. It is not really a book, but an art object: accordion folded and neatly ensconced in a box, its heavy cardboard structure makes it a durable thing, one that transcends the notion of a mere "book." It is an object of intrinsic beauty and the mere holding of it in one's hands conveys the good taste, fine quality, and the superb craftmanship that were blended to create PORTRAITS.
   
   One side of the fold contains text -with some pictures- and the other the portfolio of portraits. Maria Hambourg and Mia Fineman collaborate in the essay "Avedon's Endgame," which presents, analyzes and brings into focus the extraordinary talent behind the portraits; and Richard Avedon gives us a touching essay called "Borrowed Dogs," in which he addresses some of his unquiet talents. The other side is one's private gallery of 27 pictures (including the covers) to be savored at home, each image a meticulous print. In all it is an extraordinary performance by those involved, and a jewel to possess.
   
   Avedon has pushed the borders of his art far beyond picture taking: a master psychologist, his portraits are potent statements about the soul and the fears and the anger and the dilapidation and the triumph and the humanity of his subjects. His pictures are so intense and revealing that the viewer cannot remain neutral. The diptych of Clarence Lippard, a drifter, makes one see more than we have any right to ask for: because if we must view the horror of a wasted life on one panel we must also accept the defiant triumphalism and humor that the second panel conveys. Waste no pity on Mr. Lippard, he asks no such thing from you.
   
   I shall often return to this jewel for solace; and for a jolt about the meaning of being alive and a human being.

No comments about America and the Tintype.

5 comments about Photo by Sammy Davis, Jr..

1. Don't look at this with the eye of a photo critic or you may miss the magic. This is an intimate glimpse into the life of Sammy, his family, friends, and acquaintances as only someone "on the inside" can capture.
   
   A wonderful book!



2. an amazing collection of photos that serve as a historical and entertaining view of the times he lived through.



3. Few have personified the phrase "self-made man" as did legendary entertainer Sammy Davis, Jr. (1925-1990). The world remembers Davis for his varied and extraordinary accomplishments as an actor, singer, musician, dancer, and comedian.
   
   But hardly anyone outside his circle of friends and family has been familiar with his photography--until now. With this hefty book, interspersed with reminisces by longtime friend Burt Boyar (who co-wrote Davis's autobiographies Yes I Can and Why Me?), his old fans and a new generation can revel in hundreds of images that reveal yet another significant facet of Davis's far-reaching talents.
   
   Though Photo lacks the singular thematic focus of books published by such photographer-celebrities as Dennis Hopper and Gerry Spence, that's no drawback for this posthumously published volume. Rather, it pulls the reader into the exciting world of nightclubs, casinos, and Beverly Hills homes in which Davis moved, mostly from the late 1940s through early '70s. A voracious shutterbug, he took his photography seriously: his compositions are strikingly iconic, employing sophisticated use of line and form. Yet, his pictures are mostly snapshots--in the best sense of the word: they capture their subjects spontaneously, and his joie de vivre suffuses his work. Think of it as a highly stylized family album packed with candid portraits of "Rat Pack" pals Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Joey Bishop, Peter Lawford, and Shirley MacLaine, as well as other famous friends like Nat "King" Cole, Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, Sidney Poitier, James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, Jerry Lewis, and Bill Cosby.
   
   Among the more touching aspects of this book are the portraits of his actual family: his parents, his second wife May Britt and their children, and his third wife (and widow) Altovise Gore Davis. The most poignant are the many shots of actress Kim Novak, the first great love of Davis's life, who was forced by Columbia Pictures studio chief Harry Cohn to break off their relationship (interracial relationships were strictly taboo in 1950s Hollywood, not to mention in society generally).
   
   One photograph, despite its matter-of-fact framing, is particularly chilling. Through the window of a passenger train en route to Miami, Davis snapped a picture of an elderly white gentleman on a station platform holding a cigarette, standing before a pair of double doors over which the foreboding phrase "WHITE WAITING ROOM" is painted. Davis's photographic abilities and inclinations were such that we see a mostly glamorous world through his eye. Thus, when we arrive at this jarring image, it's impossible not to apprehend it from his point-of-view--and also not to feel the sense of injustice that he must have experienced in the Jim Crow South as he clicked the shutter.
   
   As Davis's show business career took off, many venues--even north of the Mason-Dixon Line--were happy to let blacks perform onstage; but the same headliner artists weren't even permitted to drink at the bar, use a dressing room, or occupy one of their hotel rooms. Photographs from Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial, and portraits of politician friends Senator Robert Kennedy and President Richard Nixon, give silent witness to Davis's largely forgotten achievements as an outspoken civil rights advocate.
   
   Photo is a coffee-table book that won't spend much time on the coffee table if your houseguests are anything like mine. Because of a car crash in 1954, Sammy Davis, Jr., was left with only one eye. But what an eye this cat had!



4. This book is so fun. It has so many candid great photo's, really intresting history on Sammy Davis Jr. and his relationship's. I really enjoyed this book. Great coffee table book.



5. I originally picked up this book as a curiosity and found its links to a bygone era utterly fascinating. The subject matter, i.e., rat pack photos were wonderful but the photographic mastery of Davis Jr. is, I think, equally as stunning. A look into Davis Jr.'s remarkable life is given by him in the way, like other great photographers, he insightfully choses to document and communicate with his subjects through the lens. Again, like many great photographers, the images are powerful and soft, crisp and dazzling. More talent revealed from a man who had more in his baby finger than most of us have coursing through our entire bodies.
   Bravo. Well done.

5 comments about On Film Editing.

1. This is one of the classic texts on the principles and practices of modern film editing. While it was written nearly thirty years ago and refers occasionally to the techniques of linear editing on actual film, its summary of the rules of good editing remains as relevant today as ever, even for filmmakers who will only ever edit video on their computers. Editing is where the film is brought to life and Dmytryk outlines in a very clear and engaging way the basic considerations that allow that to take place. The author was not only a major filmmaker but a master teacher, and it shows in both the precision and clarity of his explanations.
   
   What makes the guide as fresh today as when it appeared is that it is primarily not about technical considerations but about how an editor has to think in order to construct seamless and engaging scenes that are true to the overall story of a film. At the same time this thinking is given a practical application. The focus is on why rather than how, but it goes much further in explaining the basics of what to do when editing and how to put together a scene than many other books out there.
   
   Dmytryk makes a distinction between a cutter and an editor, and cutting is merely competence with the equipment of film editing, whether it is a moviola or Final Cut Pro. Editing is always thinking, and is as creative in its approach to the film as shot as directing is creative in its approach to the film as written. Subtle variations in editing can change completely the tone or mood of a film. Dmytryk illustrates his points with several examples from major films he directed or edited (e.g. The Caine Mutiny, Murder, My Sweet and many more). Dmytryk is a master of his craft and is generous in his description of what it takes to pursue this mastery. This little book is an indispensible part of any filmmaker or film lover's library.



2. What if you have already read another editing book? Read this and then go back and read your other book. The author has a lifetime of experience in Hollywood and explains how Hollywood movies are edited, at least until the 1970's (most still use these methods). The methods described are the standards that form the basic language of the craft. Another plus is that the work is very concise and a good read into the history of film.



3. One of the most important books in my life. I read and re-read this book in preparation for editing my FIRST film ever. Reviewers say my film possesses a "master level" edit. This book is why. Buy it. Read it. Re-read it.
   
   My message to all young grasshopper: Read. And now read some more. Read and you become master phlegm-en-zepher.



4. this is an excellent book on this very delicate craft. I also liked "the eye is quicker" but this was very informative and a better read. there is no substitute for actually editing and what works is hard to descibe in words but this book demonstrates some very subtles points and Mr. Dmytyk is a film maker. If your just starting read the eye is quicker but if you have some experience and want to go to the next level, this is a good one.



5. This is not only a really awesome book to help improve
   your editing skill, but also one of the nicest overall books I've
   ever read. Worth while buying.

1 comments about A Certain Alchemy (Southwestern & Mexican Photography Series).

1. Keith Carter has an intense intellectual curiosity and boundless enthusiasm. His knowledge of mythology, religion, literature, and poetry deeply inform his imagery, as does his wealth of knowledge of overlooked nooks and crannies in the history of photography. It is impossible to spend any amount of time around Keith and not look at the world around you in a fresh way. This enthusiasm for life and photography comes through in each and every image in his new book "A Certain Alchemy."
   
   "There is an element of magic in photography - light, chemistry, precious metals - a certain alchemy. You can wield a camera almost like a magic wand. Murmur the right words and you can conjure up proof of a dream." - Keith Carter
   
   Keith is a master of "conjuring up proof of a dream" his most recent images are certainly evidence of that. Beginning with the cover image, "Levitation, 2001" bringing to mind every child's dreams of flying, rising above it all. "Fallen Giant, 2005" evokes the wonder and curiosity of being a small child, while simultaneously resembling something snatched from a sci-fi movie. As demonstrated by his image "Fireflies, 1992", Keith can also conjure up nostalgia - arguably another form of dream. "Radio Flyer, 2000", best represents this in his recent work. This image of a child pulling a wagon looking up at the tail of an old airplane reminds me of a time long forgotten, yet as fresh as a moment ago. I think Bill Wittliff puts it very well in his introductory essay - "It's not that these pictures are telling you things you didn't already know, but rather that - like `Fireflies' - they're reminding you of things you've deep down always know but somehow forgotten ..."
   
   These evocative images which we have come to associate with Keith's vision are book ended by two new and different series - In the front, a dozen toned photograms from 2002 and at the end a dozen toned images of his mother's battle with Alzheimer's in 2006. I must say that when I first started through the book the photograms did not strike a responsive chord in me - they felt out of place. However, after working my way through the entire book, I began looking at them in relationship to the later series of his mother and gained a much greater appreciation for them.
   
   Keith's magic is his ability to see within ordinary everyday moments images that transcend the commonplace to tap into our collective subconscious. I've long been a fan of his work; the pragmatic photographer in me looks at many of the images and wants to know what and where. The quixotic side looks at the images with a sense of wonder and awe.
   
   "A Certain Alchemy" is his tenth book; I anxiously await his next endeavor.