World book and copyright day - Photography book suggestions

Celebrating World Book and Copyright Day, I wanted to share with you a few of my favourite books about/for photography. I’ve tried to narrow down my list to 5 books that fall in various spectrums on the discourse of photography. Whether they are photobooks, educational books or even philosophical ones, they are worth a read. This article is not sponsored (unfortunately for me) so what you’ll get, is my sincere opinion on them.

‘Ways of Seeing’ by John Berger

Most probably the most influential book anyone can find about photography, it’s ambiguity and philosophy. This book is an adaptation of a TV series compiled into a 30 minute film that first aired on BBC back in 1972, hosted by John Berger and Mike Dibb. You can even find it online free to watch. Nevertheless, I much prefer the book version of it, it’s less didactical that way, but have fun watching it anyway!

‘The Photographer’s eye’ by Michael Freeman

This book basically sums up photography and it’s technical aspects in a nutshell, mainly focusing on digital photography. This is where you’ll get to know about composition, rhythm, colour and other photographic elements, deriving from real photographic assignments. Probably not a night read, however, some say you learn best just right before you sleep, so roll your dice people...

‘THE PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK’ by Ian Jeffrey

Probably the book I most often go back to and if you are a photographer yourself, a real must have. To put it simple, it’s the encyclopedia of 500 photographers and their outstanding work. Each photograph is followed by a detailed description and cross referenced to other similar artists. If you do happen to read this one, head at it’s glossary where you can find techniques and terms, movements, groups and genres and also a directory of museums and galleries.

‘The photograph as contemporary art’ by Charlotte Cotton

The title really says it all. Charlotte Cotton embraces contemporary photography by assembling a photobook full of contemporary photographers. It’s a selection of photographs that are cleverly put in a way that help the reader understand the various discourses around photography and how contemporary ideas can be pictorialised within the ubiquitous world.

‘Image Makers Image Takers’ by Anne-Celine Jaeger

A collection of interviews evolving around the making and taking of photographs by various photographers. It’s not just a photobook, it examines the process of how the interviewed photographers work, giving the readers an insight on different approaches. I think I’ve learned to embrace my comfort and uncomfortable zone by reading this. It’s just great, especially if you have a project in mind and don’t know how to start.

Just a heads up, some of them can also be found in kindle form!

Hope you enjoy reading this article and if you happen to also read any of my suggestions, do leave a comment below.