National Geographic Simply Beautiful Photographs (National Geographic Collectors Series)
Product ID: 33656302
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This spectacular visual journey captures some of the most stunning photographs—portraits, animals, landscapes, seascapes, nature, etc.—from National Geographic’s renowned image collection. Award-winning photographer Annie Griffiths culled the images to reflect the many variations on the universal theme of beauty. Now in mini-format, chapters are organized around the aesthetic concepts that create beauty in a photograph: Light, Composition, Moment (Gesture and Emotion), Motion, Palette, and Wonder. Beyond the introduction and brief essays about each featured concept, the text is light. The photographs speak for themselves, enhanced by lyrical quotes from scholars and poets. In the chapter on Light, for example, we read these words of whimsical wisdom from songwriter Leonard Cohen: “Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything. That's how the lights get in.” And then the images flow, of light entering scenes through windows, clouds, and spotlights, from above, alongside, and behind, casting radiance upon young ballerinas and weathered men, into groves of autumn trees and island-dotted seas, revealing everything it touches to be beautiful beyond expectation. To illuminate the theme of Wonder, Griffiths chose a wish from Andre Bazin: “If I had influence with the good fairy...I should ask that her gift to each child in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last throughout life.” This thought is juxtaposed with an exquisite vision in white, a frame filled with the snowy-pure dots and rays of a bird’s fan tail. And on it goes, picture after tantalizing picture, alive with wondrous beauty. When she created National Geographic Simply Beautiful Photographs, Annie Griffiths set two goals: to maximize visual delight, and to create a book unique in the world of publishing—one in which many of the photographs could be purchased as prints. She has succeeded on both counts. Many of these stunning images are available for order, and there can be no doubt as to the visual delight. You must open this book for yourself, and take in its radiant beauty. Review: Simply a beautiful book - This is one of the most exciting books that National Geographic has published in recent times. One stunning image after another it lives up to its representation by showing the best photos found in the National Geographic archives. There is little text in this book and it relies heavily on the quality of the images selected. The sample photos and the video only give you a taste of what is between the covers. I must admit that I am biased, because one of my photos is in the book. It was an honor to have one of the only photos I ever sent to National Geographic to be selected by Annie Griffiths to be included in the book. As a photographer, I will be learning from this book for years to come. What makes beauty in a photograph is a question this book answers. It may seem like a small trivial question to some, but Annie gives an elegant answer with some of the most beautiful photos that represent the best of our world. This book helps reaffirm to me that photography can be a medium of how to view this world and live our lives in the simple pursuit of beauty. What greater purpose could a photographer or a person have? It is no wonder to me that the popularity of this book is rising, and I applaud Annie Griffiths for the theme of beauty that opens before your eyes with each turn of the page. When I sit for awhile with this book a quote from George Eliot comes to mind: "The golden moments in the stream of life rush past us and we see nothing but sand; the angels come to visit us, and we only know them when they are gone." I treasure the moments that each photographer has brought to my eyes. Review: A MUST HAVE - STUNNING!! the photos & stories are wonderful. Even if you don’t read the stories, the photos are a work of art.
| Best Sellers Rank | #95,865 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #23 in Photojournalism (Books) #34 in Photo Essays (Books) #37 in Landscape Photography |
| Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 809 Reviews |
R**.
Simply a beautiful book
This is one of the most exciting books that National Geographic has published in recent times. One stunning image after another it lives up to its representation by showing the best photos found in the National Geographic archives. There is little text in this book and it relies heavily on the quality of the images selected. The sample photos and the video only give you a taste of what is between the covers. I must admit that I am biased, because one of my photos is in the book. It was an honor to have one of the only photos I ever sent to National Geographic to be selected by Annie Griffiths to be included in the book. As a photographer, I will be learning from this book for years to come. What makes beauty in a photograph is a question this book answers. It may seem like a small trivial question to some, but Annie gives an elegant answer with some of the most beautiful photos that represent the best of our world. This book helps reaffirm to me that photography can be a medium of how to view this world and live our lives in the simple pursuit of beauty. What greater purpose could a photographer or a person have? It is no wonder to me that the popularity of this book is rising, and I applaud Annie Griffiths for the theme of beauty that opens before your eyes with each turn of the page. When I sit for awhile with this book a quote from George Eliot comes to mind: "The golden moments in the stream of life rush past us and we see nothing but sand; the angels come to visit us, and we only know them when they are gone." I treasure the moments that each photographer has brought to my eyes.
S**E
A MUST HAVE
STUNNING!! the photos & stories are wonderful. Even if you don’t read the stories, the photos are a work of art.
P**R
The shooter’s work
The photos are simply stunning. For anyone interested in photography, study these images. I’ve found myself slowly studying the image compositions. Just amazing skill.
J**D
Eye Candy
If youre an aspiring photographer, the best lessons that you could pick-up from this book are 1) composition, 2) patience in waiting for the right time to get the perfect picture, 3) perspective and the tug to really go way out there (not your usual places, time, subjects) to take a picture. Other than these, dont expect much of a "teaching book." There is an essay, to start every chapter, which somehow broach on theory (like 'Light') and how some the pictures were taken, but in terms of diagram, showing aperture and shutter settings, there's just none in this book. So this book serves as eyecandy more than anything, and it does a good job at that. The editor really did dig deep inside natgeo's archive, and i only see very few repeats, few familiar pictures. The book touches the heart. It will make you realize the smallness of what youve seen and experienced of this planet. The printing quality though could have been done better--the page is a bit muddled, even grainy to the touch, unlike the detailed sharp quality of photog books by Peachpit press for example. (this is the main reason why i scored 4 instead of 5) But a good buy nonetheless at 20 USD. A perfect coffee table book, at the very least.
S**.
Great little book
I initial wanted to get a larger book, but being this is smaller, it's more likely to be picked up on the coffee table. Great quality pics. Book could have been packaged better. It was loose with no protection in a larger Amazon box.
J**1
Not enough photos in this book
I purchased this book in the belief that there would be far more photographs. I was very disappointed !!! There were not that many photos. They were few and far between !
E**S
Great gift (or just for yourself!)
Got this for my grandparents for Christmas because it's getting hard for them to see to read. But this has minimal text, and it beautiful without being able to read even any of it. My grandma was breathtaken with some of the photos. They're both nature and animals buffs, so they were flipping through it just saying 'oh wow' over and over. After they left (they forgot their box of presents) my mom and I flipped through too and just loved some of the beautiful photos. Some are just unreal. A few even brought tears to my eyes when I thought about the beauty in the world and how much we're missing all of it. Enjoy.
S**Z
Good value
I bought this for a resident of a nursing home who gets anxious. Looking at books with pics keeps him occupied for quite a while. Pics are nice!
M**S
Gorgeous
Bought as a birthday present for myself & looked long & hard at which Nat Geographic coffee table book I Would get & believe me, I was not disappointed in choosing this one. Beautiful photographs, which I know I will enjoy looking at time & time again. Already have my favourite from my first look through, I wonder if this will change on my second look through . Stunning & will give me joy for years.
C**C
Preciosas fotografías
El libro me ha gustado mucho. Para quienes disfrutamos de la naturaleza resulta una lectura muy agradable y un libro muy bonito de hojear y consultar. Las fotografías son excelentes, como suele ser habitual en las publicaciones de National Geographic, y convierten el libro en una obra muy disfrutable incluso simplemente para ir pasando páginas y descubriendo curiosidades. El título refleja bastante bien lo que ofrece el libro y no lleva a engaño. Como único aspecto a tener en cuenta, el tamaño es más pequeño de lo que esperaba inicialmente. No es necesariamente algo negativo, de hecho lo hace más manejable y cómodo de transportar o consultar, pero conviene saberlo antes de comprarlo para evitar sorpresas si se espera un formato grande tipo libro de mesa o atlas fotográfico. En definitiva, me parece una compra muy recomendable para cualquier persona interesada en la naturaleza, especialmente si valora las buenas fotografías y las ediciones cuidadas.
V**A
Para os amante de fotografia
Livro belissimo. Com um acabamento impecavel, este livro nos coloca dentro de cada foto. Recomendo a compra
L**O
Foto tagliate e meta': delusione
Le foto sono belle ma tutte tagliate a meta' o a due terzi essendo stampate su due pagine. Le foto sono state selezionate e impaginate tenendone conto ma per me il risultato e' nella maggior parte dei casi infelice e in altri pessimo. Da sfogliare distrattamente puo' andar bene, oppure per chi voglia studiare le foto da un punto di vista tecnico. Sconsigliato invece per chi voglia semplicemente restare incantato guardando delle belle foto.
K**G
Gorgeous pictures! Great gift for an avid/inspiring photographer!
I bought this book for my dad for Christmas, and it was perfect for him as his hobby is photography. The pictures are beautiful and it had him hooked for a large chunk of the Christmas afternoon (and days following!).
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