1 comments about World Press Photo 2008 (World Press Photo).

1. The World Press Photo competition is an annual event, drawing entries from the world's leading photojournalists. And it's FREE to enter!! The judges have tens of thousands of images to choose from and the process for doing so has been refined and improved over the years. The result is an annual publication that features much of the top photojournalism content from the previous year. This is an essential purchase for anyone with a serious interest in world affairs, journalism, and/or photojournalism.

5 comments about Prohibited Book.

1. Luis Royo has talent. You would know, or else why check out the reviews to 'double-check'? His finished pieces are amazing, as you can see on covers of his books, but is it worth getting? Hmm... Well I bought it and liked it for the first 5 minutes, but afterwards regretted owning it.
   
   It's a thin book without much paintings. You see sketches and ideas that was flowing through him at the time, but not much to be satisfied. It's not something you would carry and impress others with.
   
   Just be prepared to be impressed and ending up ebaying it.



2. The artwork that is in the book is interesting but the number of larger artworks is disappointing, most are small. The book itself is thin and small. Overall a great disappointment compared to the other Royo books I own and not worth the price when compared to what I paid for the other full size Royo books that are packed with full page artworks.



3. this was my first non-photo art-book, and i gave it a try because i enjoy Royo's work when i see it in various places. maybe because i'm used to big and heavy photo books, this one was such a disappointment. the book is physically small and thin. then i open it, and it's easy to count how many of the pages have been actually used to show a full page size drawing; 11. i think 11 is not much. there are several smaller sketches and drawings thrown on the pages here and there, but they are seriously small and i would enjoy seeing more detail since i'm sure the detail does look great. the layout all in all is a bit weird in places... i suppose it is harder to work with drawings than photos tho since the afore mentioned don't have clear borders always.
   
   the 11 or so full size pages are great, Royo's work is inspiring and sexy and raw. i think i bought this one used and it was really cheap, so i guess i somewhat got my money's worth but i'm not going to risk it buying another one his books before i see it in real life.



4. On the plus side this is a hard cover book so that sort of makes up for the smaller size and low page count.
   some reviews may rate this book low due to its explicitness, but
   that's really what the prohibited series of books represents..
   not just nude - seminude pinups..
   In here you'll find some of the same type of art you may be used to from Royo.. and some more explicit.
   With the prohibited series Royo seems to like using a sketch like technique for most of his pics.. very dull browns or stained looking pages, a few images are the full or vibrant color that Royo is famous for. It's a different style to his first books, but you can tell its by the same artist.
   Even his son Romulo chimes in with a few pieces of his art, they are very tiny images. it looks like he uses real photos and manipulates them with a computer.
   Prohibited is a must have series for fans of Luis Royo that want to find out some Malefic Secrets, Dreams and Visons of Luis Royo's Women



5. Well I enjoyed this book to some degree, but it just wasn't what I expected. The images in it are incredbly beautiful, but the text seems to be a little bit over the top, and ever silly at times. This is a nice book of illustrated erotica, but I usually find myself ignoring the words and just appreciating the artwork.

5 comments about Male Bondage.

1. This is a beautiful book of photography. Unfortunately I was expecting it would be a book with instructions on bondage particular to the male anatomy. But my expectations were not the books faults, I should have read the descriptions more carefully. This is fine book of photographs of men tied up in various situations. Very artistic.



2. The images will linger long after you have closed the pages of this magnificent book.



3. i loved this book. the guys are hot, the ropework is great, the photography is great. if you enjoy men and rope bondage, this is a must have.



4. I enjoy the coffee table type of book mainly due to their large size and clarity of images. I have a collection of books dealing with Male Photography. This book is not the usual type of book that I would think of buying. But, I decided to take a look at it, you never know in life if you don't take a moment to look at something different. Well, much to my surprise I was really blown away by both the photography and models, an exquisite blend of eroticism and beauty. I think I have been converted and from now on will look for more of Van Darkholmes books. Kudos to him!



5. Just an absolutley stunning book, photos are high quality, men are also..
   
   A nice variety of different men and every one is easy on the eyes.
   
   Sexy, stylish and worth every penny.

5 comments about Photoshop Lightroom Adventure: Mastering Adobe's next-generation tool for digital photographers.

1. I know some reviewers have critized this guide as being neither fish nor fowl, but I think it is a worthwhile purchase. The photos of Iceland are the icing on the cake--the text is clear and informative. I was not sure I really wanted to purchase the program until I got a better grasp of its potential; this book provides the overview I needed, and is sufficiently detailed that I should be able to use the program effectively. The page layout is quite good and the photos really are outstanding. Highly recommended!



2. As far as the book goes, its a fairly conventional tutorial - but the layout makes it stand out. Filled with colorful pictures on glossy paper, Lightroom Adventure is part coffee-table book, part technology tutorial. Its pages are divided horizontally into thirds: a third is devoted to text while the other two thirds are reserved for screen caps and photographs.
   
   Its a format that is hugely engaging to read. Periodically Aaland will break with a two page splash of a particulary striking photograph shot by someone on the team. It is embellished with something personal about the photographer and the circumstances under which the picture was taken. The pictures may interrupt the flow but actually do a stellar job of integrating the book under the Icelandic Expedition theme.



3. When I started using Adobe Lightroom I was really impressed with the feature set and work flow options. It turns out that I didn't know the half of it. I picked up this book and it was tough to put down. It's not really a technical reference manual. However, it is still a very good reference as relates to the Lightroom software.
   
   The book takes the reader through the Lightroom features while telling the story of testing the Lightroom product with a group of photographers shooting in Iceland. Through this format I not only learned how to improve my use of the Lightroom features, but it helped me improve my workflow. Since I shoot a lot of photos, this made it worth the read for the time savings alone. I also learned some significant things about digital photography. Not that I thought I knew everything, but I wasn't expecting some of the great info I found.
   
   The layout of the book is easy to follow and well organized. The example photographs are a stunning inclusion as well. Even if you already have a bit of experience with the software and photography this book is a great tool that will help you step it up.



4. Great book, not only from a reading perspective, but from an art
   perspective. The book is beautiful, inspiring, and informative. I
   really enjoyed the read, and the pictures are fabulous. Initially,
   when I requested a review copy, I thought it was for Photoshop CS3, I
   was unaware that Adobe made software called Lightroom. I have a Mac
   with Apeture, which is similar to Lightroom, but I downloaded
   Lightroom and tried it out as I read through the book. I love the way
   the book tells a story as well as teaches you about the software.
   Mikkel does a great job teaching about the software, I learned a
   great deal about the software and found that I really like it. The
   imagery in the book is breathtaking and, Mikkel really helped me
   develop my photography eye further to make my images much more
   appealing. I thought the book not only teaches you how to use the
   software, but also how to critique photos.



5. Terrific book. It explains everything you would want to know about Lightroom. I'm particularly pleased that Mikel Aaland delayed the book to include the 1.1 upgrade to Lightroom. The book is well laid out, with lots of photos and illustrations. The format is easy to read and specific info is easy to find, if, like me, you want to read up on a particular topic rather than read the book from front to back.

5 comments about Dirty Wow Wow and Other Love Stories: A Tribute to the Threadbare Companions of Childhood.

1. When I opened the book, I was drawn in by the sweet photographs of the well-loved "companions". The photos alone tell a story of what each stuffed toy or blanket meant to each child. I LOVE this book, and I think that it make a perfect gift for new parents, empty nesters and everyone in between. My guess is that the Katzes will start to receive photos or letters about companions from around the globe!



2. I agree with the reviewer that said this book was just so-so - I really thought this a great book concept and was looking forward to heartwarming stories of people who remember their toys fondly, and funny pictures of wretched, worn, well-loved toys. However, the authors seem to fall short of the promised delivery on the cover - one of the "toys" was simply a photo of torn up cloth and the entry was called "Rags"...and the "story" was about how children may take to rags instead of stuffed toys. I felt a bit cheated. I would much have preferred real people and real stories about their stuff - maybe a photo of an interviewee and toy today and his/her childhood photo clutching the toy when new. I always loved those photos. But this book doesn't have such things - it seems superficial, more an artsy pretty photo book than a book where real legwork was taken to uncover the stories.



3. This is a darling book of photographs and loving tributes to some of the scruffiest and best loved of childhood "lovies". It's currently getting much attention as my coffee table book and is bringing both smiles and sighs of remembrance to our visitors. I wish only that my own "Lindy", "Andy Pandy", "Ted" and "Snoozer" had been honored among its pages.



4. I so wanted this book to be wonderful, but I found it just so-so. I'm going to return both copies, since I don't feel right giving a friend something I don't treasure. Sorry :-(



5. I received this book as a gift and immediately had to order it as a gift for my sister who turns 65 next week. Her threadbare companion until our family left it in a motel enroute from Chicago to Seattle, was a small down pillow, called her "My My". She was only four years old, I was nine and I can still remember her cries of anguish.
   
   Almost anyone can relate to this charming book.

3 comments about Brassai, Paris (Taschen 25th Anniversary Special Editins).

1. Everyone in the know knows that Taschen is a top-of-the-line publisher of Art and Photography books so naturally this one is beautifully done. However, even Taschen can make blunders. The flaps of the cover on this book are a dark shade of lipstick red with small black lettering. Ironically the blurb on these flaps describes Bendikt Taschen's twenty-fifth anniversary as an art book publisher. Because of the tiny black type on the dark red background it is virtually impossible to read about how great Taschen books are. Fortunately, this is the only flaw I found in this excellent book, it's just amusing that the mistake involves the text it does. At least the reader can read the testimonial on the back cover's flap because it is in larger black type and simply proclaims "The most exquisite books on the planet."
   Brassai didn't take his first pictures until 1929. In 1932 a journalist friend told Brassai he knew of a publisher who wanted to publish a book of photographs of Paris at night but had been unable to find a photographer who could handle the task. Brassai had already been exhaustively exploring exactly that subject with his camera. Later that same year in December 1932 Brassai's first book PARIS DE NUIT was published. Almost a dozen more books followed during his long life and career. It wasn't until 1976 that the more erotic pictures of Paris nightlife were published in Brassai's LE PARIS SECRET DES ANNEES 30, which is one of this reviewer's favorites. Those pictures that were also taken in the 1930's were too hot for a publisher to risk bankruptcy and or jail by publishing before 1976 when the obscenity laws were relaxed somewhat.
   This volume contains some pictures from all or at least most of Brassai's books including LES SCULPTURES DE PICASSO, GRAFFITI, PICASSO & CO., HENRY MILLER: GRANDEUR NATURE and THE ARTISTS OF MY LIFE. Brassai, who was also an accomplished artist in several mediums, was a member of the Bohemian Montparnasse or what I call the "Camelot of Art." He was friends with most of the artists and writers of the period. Much of his early photography was to document them and their work for publication. He was their contemporary and while his non-photography work is also masterful, it was photography that was to make him famous. Throughout his life he kept switching back and forth working in various art mediums. He loved the variety and couldn't, wouldn't really specialize in any one facet of art. He liked his freedom too much to only practice one of his passions. He was a master craftsman of several including writing. He often wrote articles to pay his bills especially after he first arrived from his native Transylvania where he was born in 1899. I apologize in advance but when I learned that Brassai was from Transylvania I could not keep myself from wondering about his fascination with photographing Paris after dark. He loved those pitch-black forays and at one time was familiar with the most unsavory and criminal characters populating the sleazy nighttime world of Paris. This was dangerous information to know because the local gangsters would rub out any stool pigeons they even thought might be spying for the police. Just maybe the man from Transylvania simply was not frightened of these mere mortals? Nobody else had previously done it and most photographers weren't up to the job or were too scared to attempt taking midnight pictures of gargoyles on the top of Norte Dame by the light of a full moon, street harlots and their pimps, muggers, murders and thieves, homosexual clubs and brothels of all sorts, heroin dens and any other unsavory activity including perverts trysting clandestinely in various infamous Paris Loos. That may have been where Brassai picked up his fascination with graffiti? He eventually turned that graffiti into a book, which must be something akin to turning a lemon into lemonade. This is the best Brassai book to own if you are only going to have one of his published photographic collections. Taschen really does do a remarkably good job of publishing art books and hopefully they will stay out of the red and in the black. Sorry about that folks, I couldn't resist. Have fun discovering the world of a remarkable photographer from what is now Hungry. (I'm resisting another bad pun.) This really is a very, very good, terrific collection of historically significant photographs.



2. Brassaï is one of those indispensable artists, which rarely come along every 50 years or so. Photographer, writer, painter, film maker, he recorded for us what must have been the most fruitful era for art, in the most fruitful place for art: Paris. He knew everyone from the dadaists to the surrealists and the cubists. He formed an uneasy friendship with Picasso, which resulted on his book My Conversations With Picasso, a first hand account of the comings and goings in the artist's life and studio, that I highly recommend. But it is as a photographer that he excels, providing for us unforgettable images of the city that he loved. Paris by Night, one of his colections of photos, gives us the wanderings about, of an artist and his camera at a time at which the city is at it's most beautiful, without any other equipment than a tripod to hold his camera steady. This book also includes The Secret Paris and a wonderful section of artis's portraits: Dalí, Picasso, Matisse and many others.



3. i was really happy with this book. there is some great text which accompanies the images that i had not read before. overall, i totally recommend! i love brassai and i have only seen a couple of his books that are better.

No comments about Beyond the Dunes: A Portrait of the Hamptons.

No comments about The Oxford Project.

5 comments about XXX: 30 Porn-Star Portraits.

1. This book has wonderful photography and stories. The text is large clear and easy to read, the photos are also large, stunning and in full color. They feature porn stars clothed and nude, topless or completely naked. When you look at the pictures you start to wonder if them taking off their clothes is the same as them putting on a costume.
   
   Also the stories are all informative and giving intriguing insight into the business and the actors and actresses in it.



2. the title says it all.
   It's definitely interesting to see side by side the dressed/undressed photographs, but I was expecting more insight into their life and jobs...



3. I think this collection of photos is just great. You get to see the two sides of the adult stars. Their real selves and they stage persona. It's a wonderful contrast.
   The pictures are wonderfully done and the models look great. I highly recommend this book.



4. This project was interesting, and the photography is good but not moving or exceptional. The essays are very diverse and I can honestly say I read it for the articles. [grin] I want his octabox and large-format camera, though. It shows the character that only these tools can bring, which is lost on the pro-am photographers who are not at this level.
   
   I bought it as "bargain bin" expecting it to be marked or remaindered in some way, but it arrived wrapped and unmarred in any obvious way, making it an amazing value for the price. Your mileage may vary.



5. The photographs reminicent of Richard Avedon are excellent -- infact all photos are often framed like those of Avedon -- with the negative holders shown (albeit, they are digitally overlaid). The book also includes a collection of essays and diptychs of men and women (who happen to be porn stars). Each subject consists of a clothed portrait, followed by a nude photo (full frontals to 1/2 upper body shots). The concept of a pair of portraits, one clothed and one nude is facinating regardless of whether or not they are porn stars.
   
   The book also includes essays on the subject of porngraphy -- some written by [...], mainstream actors, porns star themselves etc on the subject of pornography. Most of the writings are uninteresting and I believe are included in the book to "legitimize" the portfolio so that this coffee table book can be taken as a collection of "serious" photography.
   
   I wish the photographer, Timothy Greenfield-Sanders had (ahem) "the balls" to simply captioned his work with a brief title rather than boring pseudo-intellectual babble in order to substatiate his work.
   
   More interesting than the essays are the short concise bios written by the pornstar themselves at the end of the book.

5 comments about American Writers at Home.

1. This beautifully illustrated hardback book would be a wonderful library addition for anybody that loves all forms of literature and also biographies of famous writers.
   
   This book was well researched by J.D. McClatchy and wonderfully photographed by Erica Lennard. And for once, it's so nice to read a book in which the photos go hand-in-hand with the prose and descriptions.
   
   As stated by other reviewers, this book includes a short biography of many famous writers, such as: Ralph Waldo Emerson, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Washington Irving, Mark Twain, Wm Faulkner, Louisa May Alcott and many more.
   
   The author then visited all the places that each author has lived, and has shown the reader the rooms (& accessories) that made each home so special to each writer.
   
   Many of these rooms and writing accessories might surprise the readers, since after reading some of the authors' famous works, one would think that each author/poet had created such amazing literary works in the most inspiring and comfortable surroundings. Not so.... because when you look at each photograph, the reader may notice that some of the rooms in which the authors wrote, looked rather dark and lonely and cold (also, some of the furniture looks so uncomfortable) . In addition, many of the authors/poets wrote their famous works snuggled in their beds, (not even on a desk & chair)! Thus, J.D. McClatchy showed the reader each bedroom that the author slept in, or wrote in, and sometimes even lived in. Through these photographs, the reader can imagine what it must have been like for these famous writers to create their famous poems or short stories or novels.
   
   It was so interesting to read and visually see how each author/poet viewed their writing experience. For example, if a writer needed to be surrounded by gardens, then J.D. McClatchy made sure that chapter included photos of the author's yards. Or, if an author preferred to pace back and forth outside on their porch, then J.D. McClatchy made sure to include photos of that special porch. Or, if an author liked to eat a big breakfast before beginning to write, then of course, this book would include photos of the kitchen and eating nook.
   
   I am going to refer to this book often, so that the next time I re-read THE SUN ALSO RISES or AGE OF INNOCENCE (for example), I can imagine how the author felt during that writing experience.



2. I love visiting historic homes and especially author's homes like Cross Creek (Rawlings), the rowhouse in Baltimore (Poe) and on Prince Edward Island (L. M. Montgomery). Now this book can take me to other homes for that special insight into favorite authors. I particularly like seeing the photos of their writing spaces. For some it's a handsome desk, while another worked at a worn wooden table. Just being able to picture where Hemingway spent his days in Key West or Emily Dickinson lived her quiet life, adds dimension to their writing.
   Although this book is not unique in covering this topic, it gives a quality tour of the homes of 21 writers. Other titles that might intrigue you are Writer's Houses and the book, Home: American Writers Remember Rooms of Their Own.
   For each author, you get a brief background on that person and the house. There are photos, a listing of visiting hours, phone numbers and web sites.



3. You unlikely would read it cover to cover. Instead, like the houses it explores, you would pop in for an occasional visit. And such wonderful visits author J.D. McClatchy and photographer Erica Lennard provide. Their words and pictures share similarities-soft and gentle in color yet detailed and realistic in portrayals so vivid you feel like a guest awaiting your host(ess) to step into the room and greet you. Poet McClatchy has woven details of the authors' biographies into a fabric of words about a central pattern of the homes where they lived and wrote. The 21 homes you will visit range from the austere farm house of Robert Frost to the Victorian elegance of Mark Twain's mansion to Hemmingway's Key West estate. As you travel from home to home-including those of Alcott, Dickenson, Emerson, Irving, Longfellow, Melville, and Welty-you travel, too, through time, from when pen and ink were the primary tools of authors into the era of the manual typewriter, but not beyond. McClatchy and Lennard have given us a romantic sense of simpler times and of the lives of the men and women who wrote our Nobel and Pulitzer winning classics, mostly while sitting at simple desks and tables. Surprisingly, many of them wrote in their bedrooms, perhaps further proof that really good writing comes from those who shorten the distance between an arduous task and creative rest. This book would have a proper home on the coffee table to the classroom.
   
   -- Lowell Forte, Cupertino CA



4. This is a very unusual and wonderful book that covers the working environment of American writers. The oldest writer in the book is Washington Irving who lived almost 200 years ago. The author has researched the environment and writing space of famous writers. This book looks at how the living & working conditions of the writers impact on their works. The book includes gorgeous photographs of the homes and writing spaces of the many writers covered in the book.



5. I found this book to be quietly revolutionary in its very conception. The author and photographic collaborator set out to show how physical space influenced and stimulated various well known American writers. They look at both the writer's residence and personal writing space within that structure. As an archaeologist I spend much of my time looking at how artifacts once served to reproduce worldview. Much of that interest in my field has followed Pierre Bourdieu's notion of habitus. This book does the same in that it looks at how home and writing space might stimulate both thought and words. And this is done in an absolutely stunning fashion with thoughtful text, quotation of relevant passages from the writer, and striking illustrations. Any one with an interest in writing, writers, history, photography, architecture, or material culture (as well as the just plain curious folks) will welcome this book as a holiday gift.