}Weegee was among the first to fully realize the cameras unique power to capture split-second drama and exaggerated emotion. But his profound influence on other photographers, most famously on Diane Arbus, derives not only from his sensational subject matter and his use of the blinding, close-up flash, but also from his eagerness to photograph the city at all hours, at all levels: coffee shops at three in the morning, hot summer evenings in the tenements, debutante balls, parties in the street, lovers on park benches, the ...
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}Weegee was among the first to fully realize the cameras unique power to capture split-second drama and exaggerated emotion. But his profound influence on other photographers, most famously on Diane Arbus, derives not only from his sensational subject matter and his use of the blinding, close-up flash, but also from his eagerness to photograph the city at all hours, at all levels: coffee shops at three in the morning, hot summer evenings in the tenements, debutante balls, parties in the street, lovers on park benches, the destitute and the lonely. No other photographer has better revealed the non-stop spectacle of life in New York City.Weegees first book, Naked City (1945), was a runaway success and made him a celebrity who suddenly had assignments from Life and Vogue. By the publication of his second book, Weegees People (1946), he had cut the wires to his police radio and had begun to photograph the furred and bejeweled grandes dames at the Metropolitan Opera as well as his beloved street people. Naked Hollywood (1953) and Weegee by Weegee (1961) feature portraits of Marilyn Monroe, Andy Warhol, John F. Kennedy, Nikita Khruschev, and Liberacemany of them viewed through the distorted lens of his Weegee-scope.Regarded as some of the most powerful images of twentieth-century photography, Weegees work now resides in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art. }
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I like Weegee's work and was looking forward to this collection. As you might know, Weegee's photos were generally high contrast. This book was printed on extremely cheap, non-glossy paper. The paper used is probably barely one step up from the basest quality newsprint. Because of this, the pictures have lost almost all of their details and are basically unviewable. I do not know why this book was ever printed like this in the first place. During a long life-time passion for photography and having purchased many fine photo books over the years, I have to say this is the absolutely worst produced photo book I have ever seen. DO NOT BUY THIS EDITION OF THIS BOOK!
