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A Tour d'Force Tour Guide for the Luxury Set!
This book is your guide to the best hotels in the world. It has THE places to go before you die - the most beautiful places on earth to spend a week or a weekend. Even if you never go there, this book is the perfect fantasy travel guide. It will make any rainy cold day disappear as you walk through the pages of the world's greatest hotels. Trisha Wilson knows what she's talking about - she designed many of these top picks. This book is for anyone who loves travel, luxury and room service! ... Read more

Product Description
A portfolio of portraits by a legendary photographer contains a treasure trove of new images of America's best-loved and most highly regarded personalities from the worlds of politics, the arts, the military, athletics, and more. 40,000 first printing. $40,000 ad/promo. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Must have Karsh book
This book is a 'must have' if you like Karsh and his work, and what photographer does not? A bargain at this price too. ... Read more

Product Description
True Places is an emotionally charged photographic documentary of the lives of evangelical pastor Floyd Knowlin and his close-knit African American congregations who live, work, and worship in a rural stretch of coastal South Carolina.

For more than a decade photographer Stanley F. Lanzano has immersed himself in the daily practices of this community in Williamsburg and Georgetown counties, befriending Reverend Knowlin and becoming a welcomed part of his extended church family. The respectful relationship that Lanzano has forged with his subjects and the trust that they have extended to him shines through in the eighty-three black-and-white and eight color photographs included here, illustrating a vibrant coastal subculture rarely witnessed by outsiders.

Many of Lanzano’s photographs document services and church revivals, conveying the great joy, sorrow, and fervor of these meetings while highlighting Knowlin’s captivating persona. Lanzano also grants us glimpses into baptisms in the murky, still waters of lowcountry South Carolina rivers.Beyond the church he takes us into the private homes and lives of Knowlin’s flock, many of whom are of Gullah descent and keep elements of this heritage alive in their daily practices. Collectively these images show a society in transition, where pain and grief are juxtaposed with redemption and bliss.

Lanzano’s narrative of his meeting Reverend Knowlin and his continuing relationship with Knowlin’s community is a tale of self-discovery. It is also a testament to the power of faith in the lives of often forgotten South Carolinians. It is a rarity for a photographer to be granted such unlimited access into these communities. Through these images Lanzano creates with the utmost reverence and respect a powerful record of the hardships and hopes he witnessed among Knowlin’s congregations to preserve their legacy and to share their inspirational attitude toward life in these true places. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A warm visit with America's soul
Full disclosure: The author was my college roommate and is my lifelong friend.To say we are like brothers would be appropriate.So when he told me that he was going to live in rural South Carolina for a few months and take pictures of people in church and at home, I said, "How about those Yankees?"Then he sent me his book a few years later and, well, I was blown away.As I marveled at page after page of fascinating images and engaging commentary, I couldn't help but think of Pearl Buck's novel, The Good Earth, that gave us a peek into the enigma that once was China.Well here is a self-taught, profoundly curious and deeply perceptive American who takes us on a unique little trip through an unseen part of our own world, where time stands still.It is a modern work of social anthropology and inspiring discovery. Mr. Lanzano spent months at a time over several years to build strong bonds and a lasting rapport with a rural South Carolina community of African Americans of faith and family with cultural and ethnic bonds that are centuries old. I loved every page, every image and every thought. It belongs on every coffee table in America. The gift of our friendship has paid many joyful dividends over the years.None more wondrous than True Places.I am so proud of my brother.Thanks, Stanley.
Jack GrassoTrue Places: A Lowcountry Preacher, His Church, and His People

Understanding Community
To be transparent, I have know the author for 50 years, been aware of his dedication to this work,and was quietly curious about his photography.
I pre-ordered a copy and was treated to an uplifting picture of a community of believers through the eyes of the author.The joys and sorrows experienced over the period of time taken to being this book to print, expressed through the printed word and photos, moved me to want to visit,celebrate,sing and pray with them. I purchased several more copies and gave them as gifts to friends and family for Chirstmas, all have thanked me more than once and then with smiles we say together "Lord, I wish I had a prayin Church tonight!"

It's a Gem!
I'm most impressed with the author's dedication in spending so many years researching, documenting and photographing the congregation of Rev. Knowlin in South Carolina. He weaves a beautiful story with words and photographs and give us an intimate portrayal of this beautiful culture. I'm very impressed with his vivid profiles and captivating imagery. A must read!

compelling look at insulated African American community
This book is a photographic journey through a world which many Americans would not have the opportunity to visit.Lanzano's friendship with the preacher and his flock is evident through the bright and often funny text and the array of marvelous black and white (a few brilliant color shots, too)medium format photographs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A little boring
Not what I expected and wasn't really into it. I found it a little slow and stopped reading halfway in.

Delightful Reflection On the Mingling of Life, Image, and Memory
A delightful read that mixes photographic history and chemistry with the chemistry of ones life and memory.Photography is intimately connected to memory and Garrett goes searching for her mother and ultimately herself through academic considerations of the nature of photography.We are drawn into Garrett's life by her poetic words and left to consider our own stories told and untold by photographic remnants and tracks.I will never see my photos in the same way again. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (4)

A must have book
This book is important for lovers of industrial architecture of any rust belt city, and especially we Cleveland expatriates who miss our own days of photographing the ever-fascinating Flats area.Cleveland, the Hill etc beautifully conveys the simple majesty of working landscapes.The sun and shadow composition of the photos is splendid, so evocative of both times gone by, but in some photos, the present as well.Borowiec definitely has an artist's eye and feel for his material.The Flats are unique to Cleveland, and Borowiec captures the spirit and identity perfectly.

Tough Photographs of a Tough City
As author Les Roberts states in the Introduction to this book, "Cleveland is a tough town." The weather, politics, and economy requires that this city be tough. However, if you say you live in Cleveland, you may not actually live IN Cleveland. "Clevelanders" live in Shaker Heights, Bay Village, Brecksville, and many other cities that surround Cleveland. Thankfully, I have worked and played in Cleveland and am familiar with many of the neighborhoods depicted in Andrew Borowiec's book, Cleveland: The Flats, the Mill, and the Hills, but I have not seen them until now.

Contents:
Introduction: Living in Cleveland by Les Roberts
The Plates
Afterword: What's Left? by Rod Slemmons
List of Plates
Acknowledgements
About the Author and the Essayists

Commissioned by the George Gund Foundation, Andrew Borowiec took photographs of Cleveland for its 2002 Annual Report. However, once he was finished, the George Gund Foundation provided the support for their publication in an imprint of the Center for American Places. What you see is a Cleveland that many know but never see. The pictures, all in black and white and with only a couple of people, are stark, gritty, industrial, touching, and beautiful. Black and white is the perfect medium for Cleveland. Some photographs, taken in winter, seem colder; like a wind off of Lake Erie. Others, in the summer, seem hotter, more humid. Much like some of our summer days. In short, this is how Cleveland should look. The photographs that really make an impact are of people's back yards, overlooking the industrial Flats. Their choices of furniture do not seem out of place; car seats, mismatched chairs, makeshift tables. Gritty furniture for a tough people. Two photos require a careful reexamination - the disappearance of a small house for an upscale townhouse. All that remains of the house is its fence. It is strange that the fence seems to belong, but with a much different meaning.

Andrew's choices of Les Roberts and Rod Slemmons for the essays was a masterstroke. These two individuals add more depth to the wonderful photographs and provide excellent insight into Cleveland. While probably not popular with the Cleveland Travel and Convention Bureau, this is a book that all Clevelanders should read. For those that wonder about our fair city, it will reveal our industrial legacy. Slemmons;' essay is a perfect ending to this wonderful book, as he recalls the people that have populated this town. And in the end, you will realize that Les Roberts was correct, this is a tough city and Borowiec has captured it.

book review
a little disappointing. Plowden would
have done an excellent job on this.
shows the decaying industrial landscape
of Cleveland form various viewpoints.

where I worked - the flats and the mill
I enjoyed the pictures of places I had driven past or worked at for thirty plus years - much of the landscape changed while I worked there but more has changed since. Many of the places are weed patches now that used to be alive with men, machines, and traffic going to and from as well as part of the mills. I could only wish there were more pictures from when the place was really alive. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

my photo mentor!
Bob Thall happens to have been my Photo/Darkroom 1 teacher in college back in the late 80s. This gentleman is the bomb! Hey, I already got my grades, so I have absolutely nothing to gain here! Going into the class, I had, to put it mildly, a very poor eye for photography. I mean, anyone can use a camera. However Bob enabled me to acquire a real appreciation for photography as an art form, to the extent that I am still taking photographs, almost every day of my life, literally! In fact, I recommend to every serious student that I meet (I am still taking classes!) to enroll in a Photo/Darkroom 1 class with Bob Thall. He has helped imbue me with an artistic sense and keen eye that is helpful in any art class or artistic related endeavor. OK now about the book: It rocks! While some consider his work dry (he said it himself almost 20 years ago), if you take a close and careful look at every aspect of his work including content, composition, shooting, printing, etc., you may see what I see... Who else could make a photograph of a Chicago alley look so darn beautiful?!

meticulous revelations, gorgeous results
Bob Thall has been making marvelous photographic books from marvelous big-camera photographs for more than a decade.He's also been systematically investigating the city of Chicago as a test case for the 21st century city.PERFECT CITY began by looking at the creative destruction of an architecturally significant and economically vibrant American urban downtown;THE NEW AMERICAN VILLAGE then looked at the new "urbanism" of what Joel Garreau has called the Edge Cities that have sprung up along the interstates and tollroads at a safe distance from the old metropolis.Now with CITY SPACES, he's tackling the newest phenomenon of American urbanism:the nostalgic return of downtowns as places to work, live,and be entertained.It's Thall's quirky intelligence at work that a collection of photographs of alleys could become a book about the resurgence of the old city, but that's what he shows us-- the way the city's encrustations of history, its graffiti, old signs, strange corners, odd spaces, and once-vibrant functional loading docks have become objects of nostalgic reverie, and Thall offers to be our guide in this visual treasure-hunt.This is a photographer of decidedly modernist sentiments.The play of subtle light on worn brick, the way mirror glass recedes deceptively into a non-existent, yet absurdly convincing surreal skyscape, the delight you feel as things line up into sensuous arrays when you stand precisely THERE and tilt your head like THIS and bend your knees oh-so-slightly:these are the matters of this book.Such visual sleight-of-sight requires superb printing to work in a book;luckily the Icelandic printers have labored with Nordic determination and the results are astonishing:blacks as smooth as velvet but still retaining a sense of detailed dark space; silvery sheens to steel, walls that crumble as you look at them. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

AMAZING PLACES
DEcember 3, 2009m -
I made this purchase to review the AMAZING PLACES throut our Earth.

It was on time.

It was in gret condition.

I will purchase from AMAZON agin in the future
Rip Collins in Houston

Great pictures; good words. A MUST for your travel shelf or coffee table.
The photos are amazing. Depth is limited on each place explored, otherwise the book would be 10 times bigger and you couldn't carry it.Copy editor missed a lot of things (grammar, punctuation) but otherwise the accompanying copy is quite illuminating. I saw this in an office recently, and realized I could not live without owning this marvelous book. If you love travel, but don't get to GO as much as you'd like to all parts of the globe, this is your armchair travel book. If you get to go, you'll want this book as your "places to make sure I see" tome. ... Read more

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A dazzling photographic tribute to the land, people, and sheer beauty of the other Maine. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Maine: The Home Place
When I opened Maine: The Home Place, I didn't know how much I was opening up.I looked through it, then I realized I needed to look into it: I did so at two pages a day until I went through the book.I especially love two of the pictures (although each page and picture looked more like a composition in a painting than a camera capturing a scene): The Androscoggin at Bethel, November and North Pond, Greenwood, October.There is a disarming directness in the simple presentation that drew me into the pictures, and into myself.The captions reminded me these places are here, in this world.What I found myself doing since I opened Maine: The Home Place is seeing myself and the world around me differently.Cezanne says that "Art is a harmony parallel to nature."I am wonderfully confused by Murad's presentation of nature and art that has gotten into my heart through my eyes.What more can you ask from a book than to make the world and yourself more alive?Maine: The Home Place is a book that will do that year after year, picture after picture.Great job, Murad Sayen.

Energy in Tranquility
The thing that strikes you as you turn the lush pages--the land and seascapes, the faces--is the surface sense of calm.And yet, below those surfaces there is always a suggestion of great energy, of processes being carried out.In the cover photo, for instance: a country church, maple trees in their October regalia, a cemetery, the cornstubble foreground--lies the hint that things are in motion, even there below the ground.The world is moving toward a new incarnation.

This dualism--or energy and calm--kept me turning pages, forward and back, over a period of many days, looking closely at colors, faces, cloud formations, ice crystals on a pond, dawn sunlight on a lighthouse.

At first I quibbled that Sayen has confined his camera to so few regions of the state; and yet, in truth, this only reminds us that art, in order to be universal, must be local.To develop the kind of intimacy that Sayen (a confessed "outsider") obviously has with his subject, it is necessary to keep it focused.

With "Maine: The Home Place", Murad Sayen has created a masterful book, far more than another of the garishly colored "coffee table" books that publishers seem to crank out each year.This is a book that bears repeated readings, and which, for me, continues to offer fresh discoveries.In addition to the photographs, there is a series of elegantly written essays and photographer's notes.For anyone looking to be delighted and deeply moved by the complexity within simplicity, "Maine: The Home Place" is a volume that will do that.

Fantastic photos
Maine The Home Place by Murad Sayen is an especially appealing photography book.Not only is this book visually pleasing as you view beautiful scenes in Maine, but it also is very emotive as you also "feel" Maine.The quality of the photos is superior and most of them look as much like paintings as photos. If you are ever fortunate enough to look through this book, go directly to page 28 ( one of my favorites)and enjoy the compostion of hands.There have been numerous artists who have highlighted hands in their composition but never with the unique approach that this one does. I have only had this book on my coffee table for one month, and have already "sold" 5 copies.People's responses were so positive that 5 lucky people will be getting this book for Christmas.Maybe you could be lucky also.If Maine was ever your home, I think you will enjoy having this book around as much as I have, and Maine was never my home.

Maine: The Home Place
Murad Sayen shows us in his amazing pictoral that Maine is more than a magnificent coastline dotted with harbors and lighthouses.His photographs and essays capture the essence and beauty of Maine that those of us who are fortunate to live here can now share with the rest of the world.

He is masterful in his use of lighting.The effect is mystical and invokes a strong emotional response to his work.For all those who want an unlimited opportunity to escape to Maine, whenever the spirit moves you, I highly recommend Maine: The Home Place.....the way life is!

Kitchen table book
This is a magnificent, beautiful book.We left it open on the kitchen table, and everyone who passed by turned to a new, exquisite image.I've now snatched it back to my office and expect to browse repeatedly when I have a chance for a cup of coffee and a brief get-away moment.It is truly a gift. ... Read more

Product Description
The authors reveal how to enjoy traveling to the fullest, teaching the art of appreciating details which may be overlooked when taking photos, and showing how to capture the true spirit of the trip. 240 photos. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Beautiful, Practical,and Inspirational!
I am always looking to find practical tips and inspiration in a photography book and this one delivers that and more. The images are stunning.I felt as if I had attended a workshop and I can't wait to go onanother trip to put what I learned into use! [It was also an excellentvalue]. ... Read more

Product Description
In 250 glorious photographs Wide Angle: National Geographic Greatest Places documents the beauty and depth of every part of the world. Delving deeply into a picture archive that houses over ten million images, with many photographs being published for the first time, this new book-the third and final in the "greatest photographs" series-presents the world's amazingly diverse places with epic grandeur, unparalleled intimacy, romantic beauty, and gritty realism. The photographs are landscapes, cityscapes, famous landmarks, and unfamiliar spots that reveal special qualities of geography or culture one might otherwise never see.

Spanning more than eleven decades, the images in Wide Angle are divided into twelve chapters, each depicting a unique geography—including East and Southeast Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, and the Polar Regions. Each chapter is introduced by award-winning cultural writer and critic Ferdinand Protzman, whose essays accent the stunning photographs by renowned National Geographic photographers. Both essays and photographs carefully examine a region's special qualities, creating unique character and its own special and unforgettable sense of place. In Wide Angle, National Geographic photographers have recorded the world's places close up, in sweeping breadth, in depth, and over time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (20)

Like a collection of photos from the magazine
In any given issue of National Geographic magazine, there will be a handful of photos that really wow me, a handful that interest me, and the rest that I glance at and skip over. This book is like that.

Other customer reviews criticize that the title (and subtitle, for that matter) doesn't match the contents; I agree.

That said, my only real complaint with the book is the same one I have with almost every photo book, and that is that the spine of the book splits the photos in half. Unfortunately, in this case, it only splits those photos that do live up to the book title, the wide ones.

I don't know of any photographer who would normally consent to have his or her photos mutilated then exhibited (except, possibly as part of a conceptual performance, or to make a point). Rendering the centers of these photos unviewable is just a shame. One could argue that it's a necessary evil in order to get the photos in a cost-effective format. The only solution I can think of would be to publish a smaller version of the total composition along with the double-page spread, so at least one would be able to see the photo in totality, then view the spread for detail.

As far as the photos, themselves, go: the magazine has always straddled the line between art photography and photojournalism. This book does the same. Overall, it's less about presenting art than about meticulously visual documentation.

Disappointed
In my opinion, Wide Angle does not hold up the National Geographic standards. The photographs are less than impressive and not the usual vivid images normally seen in NG books. Many of the photos are pooly laid out with the focal point in the binding of the book.

Gud one
The National Geographic - Wide angle has over 200 arresting photographs. It has photos picturing the beauty, life and culture of all parts of the globe.
I liked this volume a lot better than the National Geographic - 'Visions of paradise'.

'Greatest' may be a slight exggeration
I recently got a hold of this book, and I think it slightly disappointing. There are, to be sure, a lot of good pictures in it. Even some great ones. But there are too many pictures, that just doesn't cut it. They may go well in an article with text and supporting images, but not as a stand alone display of 'greatness'. As another reviewer has already mentioned, the format of the book should perhaps not be square but rather rectangular of shape. Too many pictures are left less than spectacular from the spreading over more than one page, and that's a shame.

My biggest gripe, however, is with the name of the tome. Firstly, it is called 'greatest places', which to me at least, indicates geography and/or landscapes, yet there are too many pictures in here, that are simply shots of a person in an interesting situation. This is, if you put your beige trousers on (to borrow a sentencs of James May's), not within the theme of the book. Secondly, and most importantly, is, that this is a National Geographic publication. National Geographic is probably the biggest name in photography and it is a shame to see it 'sullied' by a volume this flawed.

That being said, I still think that it is a good book at 20 dollars. But not more.

Spectacular Photos
National Geographic has, of course, always been noted for outstanding photography. The book Wide Angle is certainly no exception. It offers 260 great photos covering every corner of the Earth. The book is divided by regions so the photos are grouped appropriately. Credit is given to the photographers, and the dates and places for the pictures are clearly indicated. This is an excellent book to go through slowly while perusing the photos at length. The skill and the vision of the photographers is evident throughout.

The book is a companion volume to two other National Geographic books - Through the Lens and In Focus. All the books are excellent. ... Read more

Product Description
Imaginary Places II is the continuation of the Imaginary Places series, first published in 1995. In his quest for new dimensions, colors, and textures in his work, and the materials and techniques to achieve these, Frank Stella's creative energy galvanized the TGL workshop. the result is the current installment of the Imaginary Place II serices, twelve new images in circular and near-elliptical format. This work is an expression of many minds and skills brought together for the creation of complex imagery otherwise unattainable. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

50 World Heritage Sites to Dream About
Places of Wonder and Discovery is a "coffee table book" that provides magisterial images of World Heritage sites. My wife describes it as "National Geographic on steroids", as the book combines great photography with a broad geographic educational content. Ten photographers made the images. David Muench, my favorite living American nature photographer, made those of Yellowstone and Mesa Verde, as well as those of Uluru in Australia.

The World Heritage list currently includes 878 sites of cultural and/or natural importance. Each has been nominated by the government of the country in which it is situated, provided with a detailed management and conservation plan by that country, and subjected to extensive review before being authorized for inclusion on the list by the oversight committee of UNESCO's World Heritage Center. They represent a heritage for all mankind.

This is the first book published by Our Place, a New Zealand firm, and is the first in a series of ten books it is to produce in collaboration with the UNESCO World Heritage Center. The book includes 350 original photographs of 50 World Heritage sites in 35 countries.

Many of the sites included in the book were familiar to me and will be to almost all readers: the Acropolis, the Taj Mahal, the Egyptian pyramids, Petra, the Lagoon of Venice, and Yellowstone National Park are all included.

Other sites were previously unknown to me. The stone circles of Senegal and the Gambia include some 29,000 stone monoliths of ancient origin. Tongariro in New Zealand is truly a place of wondrous natural beauty.

The book is thoughtfully designed. A few pages are devoted to each site, combining text and images. The photos are varied in style and content, providing not only large scenic views of the sites but smaller images that stirred the artists interests and provide variety for the reader.

If I were to have a quibble with the book, it is that it lacks a list of image titles indexed by page number, making it hard to identify the large images that are found at the start and end of the book.

For the many fans of UNESCO's World Heritage program, the book will be a great find. I recommend that libraries consider it and the remaining books of the series as they are published for their collections; certainly this first book in the series has both artistic and reference value. Indeed, I suspect that many people will want a copy of the book for their personal collection, and it may indeed influence their travel plans for years to come. ... Read more

Product Description
Takes the reader to many of the fascinating places, reflecting on the many influences and cultures that found expression across New Zealand. It tells the stories behind the facades of these historic places and illustrates the history which New Zealand has to offer. ... Read more