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The Polaroid Book: Selections from the Polaroid Collections of Photography (Taschen's 25th Anniversary Special Editions) | 
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| Creators: Barbara Hitchcock, Steve Crist
Publisher: Taschen
Category: Book
List Price: $14.99
Buy New: $9.73
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New (24) Used (7) from $9.73
Rating:  9 reviews
Sales Rank: 20174
Format: Illustrated
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 25th
Pages: 351
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.7
Dimensions (in): 8.8 x 7.2 x 1.5
ISBN: 3836501899
Dewey Decimal Number: 770
EAN: 9783836501897
ASIN: 3836501899
Publication Date: April 1, 2008
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Product Description
This survey features more than 400 works from the Polaroid Collection along with essays by Hitchcock, who illuminates the beginnings and history of the Polaroid Corporation.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 4 more reviews...
 The Polaroid Book - A Must-Have Ode to a Fine Artistic Medium September 15, 2008
The Olio Bureau (Australia)
On my desk at the moment is a cherished copy of "The Polaroid Book: Selections from the Polaroid Collections of Photography", published by Taschen. This book is a delightful ode to a fantastic art medium that is, unfortunately, fading out.
The immediacy and intimacy of Polaroid photography simply cannot be replicated by digital photography. Sure, you can pick up a digital camera and point and shoot all you like, but you won't have a completed, printed image sliding gracefully out of the camera and developing before your eyes. You will also not get the opportunity to dismember the image during its development and experiment with such delights as transfer printing.
Don't get me wrong, digital photography definitely has its merits and its vast possibilities - I'm a fanatic and practitioner myself. However, there is no other photographic medium that can possibly compare with the inimitable Polaroid - and it is sad to see it slowly diminish and disappear from the shelves.
The Polaroid Book is, in my opinion, a most fitting tribute to the Polaroid technology. Edited by Steve Crist, and with an introductory essay by Barbara Hitchcock (Director of The Polaroid Collections and written in September 2004), the book includes 254 images and a brief overview of some of the more significant cameras sold by the company.
One of the downsides of this book, like all great photographic books, is that you are left feeling somewhat let down by the fact that it is not the original works that you are looking at. The temptation to pick the image up off the page, feel it and hold it is, in my case, quite overwhelming. It is difficult not to have your browsing completely arrested by images like Joyce Tennyson's "Suzanne in Chair", Danilo Sartoni's "Landscape", Rien Bazen's almost Rothko-esque "(Blue Chair)", Bill Burke's "Family, Kermit, W. Va." - in fact there are too many to list here, but you get the point.
The book also contains images by Andy Warhol, Robert Mapplethorpe, Ansel Adams, Harry Callahan, Paul Caponigro,David Hockney and Helmut Newton, to name but a few. Of particular interest to the book's Australian audience is "Sisters 1" by Mark Power, an image made in 1970. Is it because that photo was not taken by Bill Henson that the book has not attracted the ire of that country's wowser's?
All in all, a great reason to turn off the TV, get comfortable, and immerse yourself in the pleasures of a disappearing art medium. Maybe, hopefully, books like The Polaroid Book will trigger our collective consciences into doing what needs to be done to make this medium the giant it once was. After all, compared to the opportunities available to digital photographers, the Polaroid is quite limiting. However, isn't it limitation that is the mother of creativity? This book argues a convincing "YES". Thankfully, it has been reprinted by Taschen and is currently available at a very reasonable price. Do yourself a favour and add it to your collection today.
 Polaroid Photography Was Mostly A Passing Fad August 22, 2008
James R. Holland (Boston, MA)
1 out of 5 found this review helpful
This book of images from the "Polaroid Collection of Photography" confirms everything that was wrong with Polaroid Photography. The front and back covers of the book each contain eight Polaroid pictures. They are all so small they are difficult to see. Some of them that are not close-ups are difficult to even identify subject matter-wise. The second major problem with Polaroid photographs was the false colors. It was almost impossible to get a true red and at best reds were orange. That's obvious in this book even though the pictures were no doubt somewhat color corrected in the book printing process.
Polaroid photography was a useful tool. It was good for testing camera and lighting set-ups for regular film cameras. It was very useful for making driver's licenses and other forms of ID's since those pictures only had to be postage stamp-sized. I used it to as a Public Relations tool by handing out free Polaroid prints to primitive Indian Tribes in the Amazon and for desert nomads in the Sahara while on assignment for National Geographic. Those individuals were delighted to get a picture to keep since they knew that the photographs I was taking on regular film would probably never be seen by them or would simply eventually end up on the cutting room floor. At least with Polaroid technology the subjects got a snapshot to keep.
The biggest problem I experienced with the early Polaroid photography was that there was no negative from which to make extra copies or enlargements. The photographer ended up with a picture in only a minute, but if you wished to make an exhibition print then you were basically out of luck. Eventually the genius of Dr. Land might have figured out how to get a negative for every format size, but when digital photography hit the market, Polaroid was instantly antiquated technology. It was not only a better tool for testing lighting set-ups, and for making ID's it replaced the need for a negative completely and it was literally an instantly viewable technology. The digital images could easily be stored and shared. The digital image could be manipulated in as many ways as the human mind could visualize.
All that said, what saves this book from being a total waste of time is the fact that many of the pictures included in it are unique. There is only one even if the image is only a few inches by a few inches. Many of the world's foremost photographers have work included in the collection. Gabriele Basilico made me smile with the two-page series on pages 306 and 307. The picture on the left hand page is a full frame picture of a chair with a wicker seat. The photo on the opposite page is a very lovely female nude's derriere with impressions on the skin of the wicker chair's seat. Since I usually look at the picture on the right side of a two-page spread first, I was puzzled about the pattern on the skin until I looked at the other picture in the spread. Then I immediately got the visual joke. It was amusing and made be almost laugh out loud.
Naturally with so many fine photographers contributing there are some wonderful images even if they are hard to see. I'm certain that some of the later, larger Polaroid format films were at least easy to see and produced negatives that could be enlarged. It's just so sad that so many typical leisure users of the Polaroid cameras will have to hang on to their single, dog-eared snapshot because that's all there is. Basically, early Polaroid Photography was a fad. Many artists and photographers such as Andy Warhol jumped on the technique because they could get a generous grant from Polaroid to experiment with the technique and because he recognized a good fad when he saw it.
Perhaps I'm a little old-fashioned, but I feel no love for the Polaroid Era. It's just another short chapter in the history of photography. Is it art? I'll leave that decision to people who are far smarter than I am. If photography itself is an art form, then some of these images must therefore be art too? But the technology was far from perfect and this book only substantiated that basic design flaw. Polaroid enthusiasts might be better off to wait for this collection to come out in a larger format. If they take a magnifying glass to many of these particular reproductions in hopes of better being able to see what the photograph was about, they will only see a blurry dot pattern. At least with actual Polaroid photos they could be examined close-up and personal with a magnifying glass. And on the larger format Polaroid films they were already working with a usable size. I'd much rather have a collection of the photographs made on the larger format films. Not only are they bigger, but because they were usually taken by more serious photographers using much larger cameras and Polaroid film.
These pictures will survive because the well-endowed Foundation set up by Dr. Land exists only for that purpose and it's unique collection is probably getting more valuable with each passing year since so many pieces of their collection are truly one-of-a- kind.
a MUST-HAVE for all polaroid enthusiasts July 7, 2008
David Tuttle (Portland, OR)
I recently purchased this book and must say that this is a beautifully created masterpiece. Give it up to Taschen for yet another exquisite piece of documentation; this time showing the love and art of the polaroid instant medium. This book provides a visual history of art created through the polaroid lens by some of the great photographers. If you love polaroid you will love this book. Simply a must-have for any enthusiast.
Do not miss the opportunity to own this treasure! May 16, 2008
Alan Philip Stolz (Houston, TX)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is a classic which sold out its first printing. BUY THIS NOW! You will have, preserved on your bookshelf the essence of what Edwin Land envisioned over 65 years ago distilled in one BEAUTIFUL volume. How can the Petters Group (who now owns Polaroid) dare to banish such a beautiful art form from humanity? That's right, Polaroid has stopped making instant film and the supply may barely run through the end of this year, and all expire by the end of next year. THIS IS A CRIME AGAINST ART AND HUMANITY!! Buy the book, then go to savepolaroid.com and join us all to save this incredible art form. JUST LOOK AT THE PAGES OF THIS INCREDIBLE VOLUME!!! You will be amazed!
What a SEXY book!!! December 4, 2005
Kimberly Sobanski (Detroit, MI United States)
14 out of 14 found this review helpful
WOW... words can't even begin to describe how much I love this book! It's about time they released a book like this! And the wrapper of this book is genius! It looks like a gigantic box of Polaroid film... I didn't even want to remove the cover at first... I fondled it for awhile and then I slowly peeled it off and curled up on the couch for an hour or two and looked at all the pretty pictures.
This book is highly recommended for any Polaroid enthusiast! And if you want to see some great 'roids on the net- check out Polanoid.net!
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