Editorial Reviews

While a deep understanding of photographic techniques is required in order to master photography, technical knowledge alone is not sufficient to create outstanding images. Beyond the technical aspects, the crucial elements that determine the quality and strength of a photograph are the content of the image and its organization within the image frame. This is where the "art" of photography comes into play. Truly creative photography is based upon knowledge and mastery of design and of how the viewer perceives images. The creative photographer can exploit this knowledge and push image-making in new directions.

Mante explores the principles of line, shape, point, color, contrast, composition, and design in significantly greater depth and at a higher level than most any book available to date. He also covers a number of techniques to enhance expressiveness in a photograph to support the photographer's intentions.

These in-depth lessons are beautifully illustrated with more than 600 images from Mante's own portfolio, plus over 160 diagrams.

The Photograph is a unique book that is sure to become an invaluable reference for anyone involved in photography-from the hobbyist to the professional; for both the digital and analog photographer; and for those practicing, studying, criticizing, or administering in the visual arts.

Customer Reviews

the language, 2008-10-28
by Klaus Joas (Germany)

I read this book in my motherlanguage, german. In deed Mante is a German university professor. No wonder he writes in a technical, sometimes not easy to understand style. Even in German I have to read some sentence once again for a complete understanding. May be that's the reason why the translation into english can't be perfect.
But the content is worth any cent.
Sorry for my poor english.

A five-star book on photography, but two-star for the English language, 2008-09-07
by QJ

Another wonderful book on photography by Harald Mante, but the English translation is too poor to read with ease - I wonder how it got passed the editorial review.

The book has many new pictures if one has read the previous "Color Design". Despite the poor translation, I still highly recommended it to anyone who wants to learn at detailed serious technical level.

Five-star for content, two for the English translation.

Excellent text on fundamentals, 2008-08-13
by Richard J. Naylor

If you have read Michael Freeman's book, the Photographer's Eye, and liked it and you have patience for a bit denser treatment, you should like this one. Just be prepared for a lot of flipping back and forth to look at examples. Like Freeman, Mante, builds the concepts from points up though colors and then veers off a bit to cover more general topics such as creative unsharpness. As with Freeman's book I'll be reding it more than once.

Not good for amateurs, 2008-08-07
by C. Bullock (Lakewood, CO, USA)

When I picked up "The Photograph: Composition & Color Design", it felt and looked like a textbook (and it was shrink-wrapped like one). But the title sounded good, and the author is well known in Europe as an author and instructor for many years. These inferences led me to make a bad conclusion as to the worth of this book to me.

I should have focused on the term "color design" in the title. This book is very technically oriented. While it does have over 600 photos and 160 diagrams (all very well done mind you), it was difficult for me to make sense of much of it. I get the full impression now that this book is geared for students of design and not a budding amateur. In reality, the concepts are just too much for the average layman (and I am not an uneducated person). It felt like I was being told, in very technical terms, why I like the color interaction or composition of certain pictures. I really don't need to know why, in my opinion. If I like something, I like it - simple as that.

If you are a student of design or photography, this book would make sense to you. It is unfortunate though that "The Photograph: Composition & Color Design" is the first book I cannot recommend for an amateur like myself.

Harald Mante is one of the most renowned teachers of photography, 2008-07-14
by Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA)

Harald Mante is one of the most renowned teachers of photography in Germany: here he explains elements of visual design in photographs for intermediate students and practicing photographers who want to add artistic elements to their results. Chapters cover what strengthens photos, where 'art' comes into play, and how design affects how a viewer sees an image. A text suitable for college-level art and photography collections as well as for classroom assignment.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch