The Photograph

As the title says really; this book is essential reading for Photography students at any level, or for those whose are looking to expand & investigate further their photographic practice. Covering photgraphy from it's inception to modern contemporary practitioners, Clarke dissects the medium & clearly explains the concepts, intention & methodologies using masters of the art, including Barthes, Sontag,as well as coving all the genres. A must read !!!

we used it for my first years course book that my photography course was basically based on for the first year. very informative and goes into the basics of photography theory in a great depth. if you are interested in the theory behind photography then graham clarke's the photograph is worth reading.

This book gives a thorough induction into photography as a major cultural force. It clearly and logically drives awareness of factors to be considered when reading, de- constructing and understanding photographic images.

I've used this relatively small book now for two years as an aid to study and it's been invaluable. This book is not a guide on how to take photographs but an academic and theoretical look at how photographs work and what they can mean to us, and how these meanings come about. When I started reading this book I had no clue about art at all (still don't ;) )and this book definitely requires a certain level of knowledge around the subjects and debates to get the full gist of what's going on. However, that's not to say it's inaccessible and if anything the book did double duty for me because it highlighted my areas of ignorance. The information is presented in a series of essays which highlight the photograph's relationship with various subjects, some analogous to genres, be it The City, Portraits, Art etc. Each essay is a very well informed and well considered look at how photographs function in those genres by bringing to the fore the main debates. Illustrations are present throughout; there are not hundreds but the ones there are are commented on insightfully and with full relevance to the rest of the text. As my knowledge grows in other areas grows I've found myself returning to this book over and over and re-reading chapters where relevant. I've always been able to further enhance my understanding by returning to this book. Every time I read a chapter another piece of the the overall puzzle falls into place or a perspective I've forgotten is mentioned thus giving a different interpretation on the area I'm researching. All in all a very informative book full of useful information without being too dry.

This became a valuable book during my Photography degree. I definitely recommend it to anyone studying photography or interested in the key aspects of the history of photography.

Excellent book with compelling writing. The imagery is lush and sometimes disturbing in a thought provoking way.

Seems strange that what arrived was a library book complete with stamped slips inside.

Excellent read and so useful during my uni studies.

Excellent book. Reading for History of Photography at UNM currently and really explains the photo and photography in an engaging and informational way. Easy and good reading.

Au top !

Muito bom! Recomendo.

Most people would rather die than think - and, indeed, they do. - Bertrand Russell I AM aware of some of the panning going on against this book in the USA - the same sort of panning that one can see frequently happening against Sontag's On Photography, which is ABSOLUTELY one of the most direct and succinct meditations on the medium I have yet seen. Precisely WHY it is that Americans seem to take such an anti-intellectual approach to these things is a bit beyond me. There seems to be, however, two distinct places from which persons unnamed approach thinking about the photograph (not totally unlike the two categories established at the start of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance) - the 'Ansel Adams Classicists' and the 'Marxist Empiricists'. The first school considers any psychological inspection of the photograph an all-out assault on the sanctity of the soul and fertile hand of the artist-genius. To explore the production of art-objects within an intellectual, social and political framework is not just offensive - it's downright 'off the map'! Granted - there IS a culture of persons who subscribe to the Frankfurt School and October Magazine but don't understand it. And hell yeah - they give the 'art' crowd a bad name. But that's REALLY not what's going on here - please trust me. If you'd like to be a little more convinced of this please see the corresponding review on amazon's UK sister site. You'll find nothing but praise for this little ditty there. For me - this book was clearly written and the thoughts expressed inside extremely well organized. I found it valuable, provocative and fruitful. A deeply worthy investment for those who are open to the idea of reframing existing knowledge in a larger and more sociably responsible way. The choice of phtoographs in this book was superb, I thought. A straight-up who's who of the more radical 'contemporary artist' oriented branch of the medium - the trailblazers from decades past - the people who made the starn twins and jeff wall and struths and others possible in the first place. If you want to cultivate a deep understanding of the photograph and it's importance in the world of art -especially contemporary art - this book is REQUIRED reading! Do your brain a favor and pick up a copy - and see some of the most powerful art of the 20th century while you're at it.

This book has a number of clear chapters focusing on debates within historic and contemporary photography that are approachable, well-written and relevant to a wide range of readers. I teach at BA and MA levels, and this book is recommended to my students as it covers many of the core debates within photographic history and theory.