Understanding a Photograph

Lately, I’ve been reading through the book Understanding a Photograph by John Berger.

The title of the book is both accurate and deceiving. Mr. Berger does, in fact, address a number of photographs. However, the compilation of his various writings — while centered around photography — in reality represent deep and thoughtful ponderings over wide-ranging topics (primarily, social/political issues, and predominantly from a moderately left-leaning, intellectualist point-of-view).

Because it’s more philosophical than technical in nature, the book has really stimulated thought of my own, as well as quite a bit of self-reflection regarding my own photographic pursuits. I’m not going to write a full review (I haven’t even finished the book yet), but I do plan on writing some of my own thoughts now that I’ve been “inspired.” Stay tuned.

Special thanks to Devan Grimsrud for buying Understanding a Photograph for me.