Japanese photography is now one of the most vibrant genres in the rare book world. The photobooks of Nobuyoshi Araki, Daido Moriyama and others provide thought-provoking visions of Japan and beyond.
Shocking and often surreal, these are powerful books.
Eastman Kodak, one of the giants of photography, has filed for bankruptcy protection, reports the BBC. Sad but not surprising news as they have hardly been a player in the digital age although I do have a very good little Kodak video camera for filming the children playing the fool.
Kodak has been around for 133 years and that means there is a wide selection of books about Kodak itself, books featuring Kodak’s cameras, adverts and catalogs, instruction books and even books written by founder George Eastman. Here are some Kodak books (and an antique camera!) from the collectible end of the spectrum.
The most interesting one is Through Jamaica with a Kodak by Alfred Leader. Published in 1907, this travel book sheds light on the era when photography was becoming available to ordinary people. The cover, which is eye-catching, is an early example of a photo being incorporated into a book’s cover artwork.
There are a couple of interesting books dealing with the company’s legacy – The Story of Kodak by Douglas Collins and History of the Kodak by Mina Fisher Hammer.
One of the best parts of my job is the frequent stumbling upon of weird and fantastic things. My discovery for today? The monograph Salami by Swiss photographer Hans Gissinger and writer/big eater Gerard Oberle.
Published in 2001 by Woodstock Press, the print run for Salami was limited to 500 copies, each numbered and signed by Gissinger.
With 60 (arguably) beautiful photographic portraits of various salamis, with accompanying essays, 
I can only imagine this book would be a unique and memorable gift for anyone who loves meat and art. In fact, I wonder whether my colleague Richard, who delights in making his own sausage, would fancy a copy on his coffee table (vegetarian colleague Julie, however, blanched at the photos).
AbeBooks has both copies of the whole book for sale, as well as the individual, limited edition salami prints (one pictured at right).
I stumbled across this book from yesteryear yesterday. Eves without Leaves, published in 1940, is wonderful title for a book of nude photography. And it was swiftly followed by More Eves without Leaves.
John Everard was an important British photographer for four decades and specialized in nude photography. He must have been very relieved when the 1960s finally arrived and some sort of permissive culture started to seep into British life.
One bookseller describes the Eves without Leaves series as “Very scarce and banned in the U.S. on publication.”
The foreword to Eves Without Leaves is provided by Reginald Arkell, who was a scriptwriter and comic novelist who wrote penned many musicals.
When I heard there was a photography book called Chicks with Guns, I forlornly hoped that it was baby chickens with guns but it’s ladies packing heat. The Today Show featured the book this morning and MSN has a dramatic slideshow of images from the photo-book.
The book features nearly 80 portraits and captions in which women describe the role of guns in their lives in their own words. It quickly becomes apparent that rich women, poor women, young women, old women, athletic women, sedentary women and a fair number of confident girls possess guns for reasons that are peculiarly their own.
The photographer behind the book is Lindsay McCrum. Flicking through the slideshow, I thought the book should be called Scary Women with Shotguns. Her next project is Youths in Hoodies with Knives.
The Museum of the City of New York is running an exhibition about Cecil Beaton from October 25 until February 20, 2012. Cecil Beaton: The New York Years describes Beaton’s adventures in the Big Apple from the 1920s until the 1960s.
Our feature about this author, designer and photographer puts his long career into perspective. This man lived a full life.
My colleague Julie loves the White Stripes, and Jack and Meg and all that. I only know one song by them but then again the Beatles were still together when I was born.
This photo-book documents the White Stripes’ Under Great White Northern Lights tour across Canada. Photographer Autumn de Wilde travelled with the band and was able to capture the country, the band and backstage life. There are nearly 300 photos in The White Stripes: Under Great White Northern Lights. It’s a must-have for fans of the band.
You may not be familiar with Cecil Beaton unless you are a person of a ‘certain’ age (hello, baby boomers!). Beaton photographed the world’s rich and famous for six decades. He also designed Oscar-winning costumes for famous movies like My Fair Lady and Gigi. He led a remarkable life and was an avid diarist. This selection of books – covering his photography, books he illustrated and his own writing – reveals a man of rare versatility.
Further proof that books and kittycats are like peanut butter and jam: an entire blog dedicated to photos of writers and their kitties. Pages and pages! Go. Scroll. Smile blissfully. The gods are pleased.
Two of my favourites of the many selections on offer:
George Bernard Shaw, cat-grabber.
Edward Gorey, covered in cats
One of the most searched for books on AbeBooks at the moment is Teenage Lust by Larry Clark, the influential photographer and filmmaker. Clark will be featured in a major retrospective called Kiss the Past Hello at Musée d’Art Moderne in Paris. The show is already stirring emotions because there is going to be an age limit on the entrance.
Teenage Lust was originally self published by Clark in 1983. The photo book documents a group of teenagers in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in a very honest and open fashion. There are more than 90 images in the book. Clark followed the teenagers and snapped everything they did, and I do mean everything. A second edition followed featuring 10 extra images. Both editions are scarce and expensive. There is also a Japanese edition.
Clark specializes in documenting youth culture, particularly sex, drugs, violence and the various sub-cultures. Teenage Lust and Clark’s earlier book, Tulsa, have influenced many people including Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and Gus Van Sant.
Further to the comments of my colleague Beth below, here’s my two pence on this subject. 
I do not believe anyone should place their hand beneath their chin when posing for a photograph. No-one does it in real life. Just looks silly. I blame Rodin.
In our author interview section, there are a good number of authors bringing their hand or hands to their chins. There are also shades (Chris Knopf), a cowboy hat and shades (I like it, Daniel Kalder), chef whites (the super cool Anthony Bourdain) and bonkers hair from Malcolm Gladwell, which really gets you noticed in a crowd.
We also have a picture of a lady in a uniform (romance writer Merlin Lovelace) and you can’t beat that. I like how Lynne Truss is sort of looking a little unhinged and Julian Barnes looks debonair, which I think he actually is. Elizabeth Hand has no sleeves and has a tattoo in plain view – I like that too. Elizabeth looks like she can kick ass and take names.
Personally, I recommend that publishers incorporate props into their author promotional photographs like a rifle, a screwdriver, a walking stick or perhaps a scythe. I probably wouldn’t use a chicken, even if it’s been roasted, like in chef Rick Browne’s photo. There’s nothing worse than a boring promotional photo. if I ever made it as an author, I’d wear a beret (to show I am cosmopolitan) and be carrying a mop (to illustrate my kinship with the working classes.)
The impact of Ansel Adams on photography can be measured by the fact that a pile of glass negatives, discovered at a secondhand sale and believed to represent his early work, were recently valued at £1.2 million.
There are many books dedicated to his work, including some very collectable editions. Yosemite, New Mexico and Yellowstone have all been portrayed through his work. AbeBooks has dived into his books and this feature reveals the collectible editions, the out of print editions, the collections, his autobiography and even his tutorial books. Read the feature.
Some of you may remember an old story about someone finding Ansel Adams’ negatives at a garage sale and buying them for $45. Now an appraiser has confirmed the find is kosher and worth $200 million. However, Ansel’s grandson, Matthew, says it’s all cobblers.
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