Customer Reviews

Diana: Princess of Wales

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is book of photos is well-put together, stylish and fun. Diana fans rejoice!

However, the blurry images may disturb some, like myself. It's a style of photography that may work well in fashion, but I prefer portraiture to have more in-focus images. I'm a bit of a photography buff, and understand the unconventional, shoot-from -the-hip, spontaneous kind of photography that these photos show, but since Diana is such an interesting and beautiful subject, I would liked to have seen more of the rest of her, not just closeups of her face, that were often blurry. But perhaps I am being overly picky. Otherwise, I did enjoy the relaxed, comfortable and upbeat mood of the pictures and yes, they are some of the best portraits of her.

These were not necessarily about the dresses that were going to be in the auction, but about Diana, and seeing her in a fresh light. Most striking were her eyes; they were so blue, so animated and full of vitality, things that had not been revealed in previous portraits. As a Diana fan, I am very pleased, despite the blurry images. This is a perfect addition to any fan's collection.

If you only own one book about Princess Diana, this is the one to have! You can never get tired of looking at this book . . . her beauty, elegance, class and "playfulness" come right off the pages like no other book does. It's page after beautiful page of Diana - some photos just penetrate right through you. The book is touching and Diana looks relaxed and happy - as she deserved to be. It is my most favorite book about her (and I should know - I own over 200!)

Taken at Kensington Palace a few months before the Princess died (I think before her famous dress sale)you'll find a series of beautiful photographs of the Princess, some in color- some black & white. She looks very happy and relaxed in every one of them, only a few are more than head and shoulder shots and no really formal poses.
Many of the photographs seem almost as if they were snapped on a whim they are so unposed looking. More than one of them will be seen to be somewhat blurred or not quite focused, maybe that's fashion style photography but it looks strange to me.
Don't skip over the introduction/ preface stuff (written in 3 languages) there are some pictures slipped in there too, not all in each version of the writing. At the back of the book there's a listing of each photo (with a mini example of it)telling who currently owns the dress and when it was originally worn. There's even one with Testino himself posing with the Princess.
I don't have much to complain about with this book, I'm glad I bought a copy, I just wish there were more photos, some more full length. I'd also like a clearer, less blurred look to some of the pictures.
This book is worth adding to your collection even if you aren't a Diana fan, it's got a lot of great photography in it.

The title of this book seems to have thrown some fans off. The title does not mean to imply that the photos were taken at Kensington Palace. The book was produced to go along with the exhibit of Mario Testino's portraits of Diana that are on display at Kensington Palace. Anyone who is lucky enough to visit Kensington Palace to see these magnificent photos while they are on exhibit will want to have a copy of this book to commemorate the event forever.

I had never been particularly fond of the Testino's protraits of Diana that I had seen until I saw them in person at Kensington. There the photos were so large that I could see every aspect of Diana's beauty. Testino was able to capture the real Diana in all her many moods in these photos also. Diana is captured in her playful mood, laughing and being silly, and then again, caught in a moment of quiet thought. There are many photos I had never seen before. Now these portraits are preserved forever in this wonderful book. I love the artistry of the blurred photos, the black and white and the color images. They all set a tone of their own. To not have this book if you loved Diana would be a shame. And, any portrait photographer could learn much from these images also. Testino is a genius at capturing so many unique views of the woman who had been photographed more than any other woman in history. I bought two copies of the book just in case something should happen to one.

PRINCESS DIANA WAS THE MOST BELOVED WOMAN OF THE 20TH CENTURY. MANY OF US STILL ADMIRE AND WONDER AT HER INCREDIBLE LIFE, AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THIS BOOK WAS ABSOLUTELY A BREAKTHROUGH TO THE "REAL WOMAN", OUR PRINCESS BECAME. TESTINO'S BOOK IS A HEALING, AND INCREDIBLE ACCOMPLISHMENT. IT WAS A JOY TO SEE THIS BEAUTIFUL WOMAN, CONFIDENT AND VIVACIOUS. WE HAD KNOW HER LIFE WAS DIFFICULT, AND FILLED WITH PAIN. SHE WAS "ALWAYS ON". SHE SHOWED THE WORLD WHAT IT WANTED TO SEE; A RADIANT, BEAUTIFUL, AND CARING PRINCESS. WE SAW THE GLAMOUR, AND ROYAL STYLE SHE CULTIVATED, FOR HER ADMIRERS. WHAT WE NEVER SAW, AND DID'NT REALIZE, WAS HER LACK OF HAPPINESS AND PEACE. TESTINO SHOWS US THE WOMAN SHE BECAME. HE OPENS THE DOOR TO A NEW, HAPPY DIANA. FOR THOSE OF US CRUSHED BY HER ALL TO SOON DEATH; HE ALOWS US TO SEE OUR PRINCESS AT PEACE. WE ARE ALLOWED TO SEE, THAT HER PAIN WAS GONE. PEACE HAD HEALED HER. SHE WAS SUFFERING NO MORE. IT ALSO MAKES ONE WONDER WHAT SHE COULD HAVE ACCOMPLISHED WITH THIS NEW FOUND HAPPINESS? WHAT WONDERS COULD OUR PRINCESS HAVE ACCOMPLISHED; AS A WHOLE, HEALED, WONDERFULLY HAPPY WOMAN? WE WILL NEVER KNOW. THE BOOK IS BITTER SWEET. WE ARE HEALED BY BY THE HAPPINESS OF HER NEW FOUND LIFE. YET, WE ARE LEFT WITH THE SADNESS, THAT THIS CARING AND GIVING SOUL WAS TAKEN, ALL TOO SOON. SHE HAD SO LITTLE TIME TO ENJOY HER HARD WON HAPPINESS, AND PEACE.

This is a lovely book with many pictures that portray Diana at her most natural and happiest. A must have for Diana fans. I don't think I have seen any other photos of her looking so happily relaxed. This book is a must.

Absolutely without a doubt, a must have for any Princess of Wales collecter or anyone just plain interested in the art of photography. Some of the best photos of the Princess are in this book, and a majority of which have never been seen before. Beautiful book, full page photographs, a must have!!!!

Though not as much text as I would have liked, you still get to peek inside a photo shoot with the princess. And it's great to have new pictures after so many years.

These photos, taken of Princess Diana,shortly before her untimely death, are worth seeing! In all the numerous photos we have seen of her over the years,these are just lovely! we get to see how happy and confident she was in the final stage of her life! She looks natural,radiant,happy,and self-assured! It seems she truly blossomed into her own woman, post-Prince Charles.I only wish there were a few more full-length shots of her, in these gorgeous gowns! If you are a fan of Diana, and the price of this wonderful book is in your budget,by all means, purchase it.Seeing her so at peace,and content with herself,is worth every penny!!!!!!!

The title is misleading "at Kensington Palace" indicates that the photos were taken there, this is not the case, the photos were taken in a photographers studio. The photos are however, being exhibited at Kensington Palace at the time of the books publication.
Despite the mess with the title, the photographs are beautiful and at last we get see them, only a few were published in 1997 in Vanity fair and its been a long wait to see the rest of the shots. Marios photos are amongst the best ever taken of the Princess, and his work with William years later have the same 'signature' Mario look about them. Definetly one for fans of Diana and fans of photography.