A Photographer's Life: 1990-2005

In comparison to the previous collection of Leibovitz's work that I read (On Work) this book has a much more personal touch. There are far fewer of her "professional" pieces (famoous portraits, Vogue editorials, etc) and instead we are given family photographs, travel montages, and candid shots which reveal the intimacy of her relationship with Susan Sontag. While many of these images are similar in subject and style to those seen in any family album (and are therefore not really a credit to Leibovitz's artistic portfolio), they still give readers a view behind the curtain to see a life that is no different than any other human being's.

This memoir collection of photographs really cemented that I enjoy Leibovitz's portrait work rather than her landscapes. Her portraits both of family members and celebrities have such a connection to her subjects in a way that the landscapes do not. The memoir element of this collection was intriguing; I couldn't really see much change in photography style but the chronicling of her life through images with out other context drew me in. I also appreciated the diversity of subjects.

I expected more from a collection of Annie Leibovitz photographs so on balance this book is disappointing. In most instances, the print quality is decent for a book. However, the deeper shadows and brighter highlights lack complexity and richness. The images are not flat so much as lacking sufficient detail in the shadows and highlights.

This book summarizes Leibovitz’s mid-career work with images shot all around the world, in the studio, and in her refuge in Clfiton Point, NY. It includes a mixture of casual, informal snapshots of family and friends and formal, often studio shot, works of famous individuals. The images of family members frolicking in the lake and intimate photos of Susan Sontag, including Susan during her final days show more and after she succumbed to cancer, show life as real people live it. The formal portraits of the famous and influential, are more often static shots intended to reveal the subject’s personality. These include Nicole Kidman, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and Eudora Welty, to name but a few.

Yet in many ways the family photos do that better. The collection of images document the beginning and end of life, and the joys and sorrows that occur between those milestones.

The decision to print many of the images across two pages is regrettable. Some of the images do not suffer greatly but many are ruined. It would have been better to reduce them in size to fit on a single page or failing that to omit them from the volume. Examples include the images of Heidi Fleiss, O. J. Simpson, Martina Navartinova, Philip Johnson, and the Gugenheim Museum in Bilbao. For example, the photograph of Davit Rieff, Susan Sontag’s son, positions him precisely in the crease of the book, rendering his image unintelligible.

This massive volume is worth perusing, but I will not add it to my personal library. show less

She is a genius. Some of the most beautiful and moving photography I've ever seen. I received this gorgeous collection as a completely unexpected birthday gift one year, and squealed like a five-year-old when I unwrapped it.

Impact-Full....

Annie Leibovitz is een Amerikaanse fotografe die wereldberoemd is geworden door haar portretfoto's van beroemde muzikanten en filmsterren. In "A photographer's life" zijn foto's van beroemdheden afgewisseld met foto's van haar familie en vrienden. Beide soorten foto's maken veel indruk. Een prachtig fotoboek!