Grand Canyon Wild: A Photographic Journey [Hardcover]

John Annerino (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2004

Go deeper into the Grand Canyon, beyond its rims, by taking an expedition to the most remote, beautiful, and rarely seen vistas in North America.

Grand Canyon Wild takes you beyond the handful of scenic vistas which have defined the popular concept of the Grand Canyon. A well-known author and photographer of the American West and Old Mexico and other coffee table books, Annerino takes you on a visual and spiritual journey down into the land below the canyon's rims. His photos and prose lead into the heart and soul of the canyon, highlighting the historic expeditions, colorful history, and legends of Native Americans and explorers alike, who bravely lived and died, within the canyon's realm.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Grand Canyon Wild: A Photographic Journey by John Annerino captures the glories of this natural wonder in photographs and essays."
-- Publishers Weekly

"We all know what the Grand Canyon looks like. John Annerino wasn't satisfied with that. We're introduced to a host a stunning images---dramatic panoramas, chasms, petroglyphs, waterfalls, caverns, sunsets, rapids, Sea of Cortez---Annerino shows us where the canyon's grandness begins and ends."
-- Chicago Tribune

"Grand Canyon Wild is the exception. Annerino, a longtime boatman on Arizona's Colorado River, doesn't just take pretty pictures. His well-crafted text pays homage to John Wesley Powell and salutes the neglected Charles F. Loomis."
-- Albuquerque Journal

"Wherever you go in the Grand Canyon, you're likely to be treading in the footsteps of John Annerino. There's no one better to tap for insights on Grand Canyon lore, history and geography . . . Here, canyon master John Annerino unveils the greatest tales of Grand Canyon history."
-- National Geographic Adventure

"Each of Annerino's photographs gives an answer of imagination -- a spirit of mystery and danger, light and dark, life and death. He uses his gift of stunning contrasts, wildfire red and oranges with cool blue of sky and water in the Grand Canyon."
-- Tucson Citizen

""In the Grand Canyon, Arizona has a natural wonder which, so far as I know, is in kind absolutely unparalleled throughout the rest of the world...The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it. What you can do is to keep it for your children, your children's children, and for all who come after you, as the one great sight which every American ... should see."

From the Author

Book of the Month Club selection
* View images from this photo collection at johnannerinophotography.com
* Read the author's illustrated biography at johnannerino.com
* Get updates about the author's published work at Author Central
* Order now from Amazon
* Autographed and inscribed copies available at johnannerinobooks.com

Images from this collection featured in:
* Arizona Highways Magazine
* Desert Light single-artist Browntrout calendars
* Geomundo, Latin America
* Phoenix Magazine
* Travel & Leisure Magazine

Writing and research from these essays featured in:
* National Geographic ADVENTURE

Mini Interview:
Few natural sites in the world have inspired  more human folly, more entrepreneurial fervor, and more blind courage than the Grand Canyon. And few people understand this better than writer-photographer and Big Ditch expert, John Annerino, who lends his canyon savvy and historical knowledge to our Grand Canyon cover story:

"The lure of the Grand Canyon is so strong," says the author of Grand Canyon Wild, "even prospectors realized they could make more money guiding tours into the canyon than hauling low grade ore out of it."
-- National Geographic ADVENTURE

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Countryman Press (September 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881505935
• ISBN-13: 978-0881505931
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,036,565 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John is pleased to share the exciting news two of his new photography and literature books were published on January 24, 2012: the "Land if Enchantment's" 100 Year Centennial Edition, New Mexico: A Photographic Tribute; and the "Grand Canyon State's" 100 Year Centennial Edition, Arizona: A Photographic Tribute. His third new book, The Virgin of Guadalupe: Art and Legend, will be published by Gibbs Smith on March 1, 2012. His landmark photograph commemorating the World Trade Center was recently published in the 2011, 10th Anniversary editions of the New York Times No. 1 bestselling books, LIFE One Nation, America Remembers September 11, 2001, and LIFE In the Land of the Free. The iconic image and others can be viewed online at www.johnannerinophotography.com. John Annerino's indelible photographs were published previously in the New York Times No. 1 bestselling book, America 24/7: 24 Hours, 7 Days, Extraordinary Images of One American Week, and the Grand Canyon state sequel Arizona 24/7: Amazing Photographs of an Extraordinary State. John is the author and photographer of many books, among them 17 distinguished photographic essays and thirty-two single-artist calendars, including Wild & Scenic Arizona, Wild & Scenic New Mexico, La Virgen de Guadalupe, and the award winning books Indian Country, Desert Light, Grand Canyon Wild, Vanishing Borderlands, Canyons of the Southwest, The Wild Country of Mexico, and Roughstock: The Toughest Events in Rodeo, (acclaimed by the Rodeo Hall of Fame). John's credits include Arizona Highways Magazine, National Geographic Adventure, LIFE, Newsweek, People, Scientific American, Time, Travel & Leisure, and many prestigious clients worldwide. In his quest to explore the renowned landscapes and secret places of the Great Southwest and Old Mexico with a camera and pen over last 25 years, John has climbed its hallowed mountains, rafted its wild and scenic rivers, journeyed on foot through its mystical chasms, and crossed its alluring deserts. He has photographed and come to know the region's Native peoples and ceremonies, Western cowboys and traditions, and Spanish heritage and celebrations. John Annerino is a member of The Authors Guild, New York. Visit his illustrated bio online at www.johnannerino.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grand Canyon photographer extraordinaire, June 20, 2007

By 

Alex D. (Lost Horizons, Santa Fe) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Grand Canyon Wild: A Photographic Journey (Hardcover)

"John Annerino captures the glories of this natural wonder in photographs and essays."
- Publishers Weekly

"Over a period of 20 years, professional photographer and writer John Annerino has explored some of the most remote corners of the Grand Canyon. Armed with a backpack and camera he expertly captured the magnificent beauty of this natural wonder and transformed his adventure into a book for all to enjoy."
- Petersen's Photography Magazine

"Before John Annerino even thought of being a photo artist, he wondered how to really capture the Grand Canyon, how to get to the real depths beyond the standard coffee-table books. After years of running, climbing, paddling and imaging through those depths and chasms, he produced Grand Canyon Wild. Annerino sees it all through what he calls the "human landscape," through the eyes of early explorers, prospectors, surveyors, river runners, and especially its original inhabitants, the Anasazi and Hopi, whose ancient routes he follows in this delightful book. What did they see? What were their impressions? Each of Annerino's photographs gives an answer of imagination - a spirit of mystery and danger, light and dark, life and death. Annerino uses his gift of stunning contrasts, wildfire red and oranges with cool blue of sky and water. He stands in awe of nature. He sees inside of nature."
- The Citizen

"Coffee-table books too often combine breath-snatching photos with dead-in-the-water prose. John Annerino's Grand Canyon Wild is an exception. Annerino, a longtime boatman on Arizona's Colorado River, shows us a whole bunch of off-the-grid, butterscotch crawl spaces. And he doesn't just take pretty pictures. His well-crafted text pays homage to John Wesley Powell and salutes Charles F. Lummis, who walked from Ohio to Los Angeles in 1884 to take on a job as a newspaper editor."
- Albuquerque Journal

"John Annerino presents the Grand Canyon we haven't seen. In 144 pages, we're introduced to dramatic panoramas and a host of diverse images - chasms, petroglyphs, waterfalls, caverns, mudflats, sunsets, rapids, even the Sea of Cortez - as Annerino presents a less dogmatic view of where the canyon's grandness begins and ends. Because of the range of his photos, we see them as part of a much grander picture."
- Chicago Tribune

"Packing into the Canyon off-and-on over the last 20 years, Annerino focused his camera and writing on seldom-seen, remote-area, natural beauty. Discover wild, ancient areas via his lush photographs and descriptive prose."
- Lovin' Life

"Grand Canyon Wild. What a beautiful book!"
- Arizona Historical Society

The Photographer's Guide to the Grand Canyon
* * * * * Grand Canyon Photographer Extraordinaire

"Considered by many one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Grand Canyon is one of the most photographed sites on earth. A staggering 5 million people visit each year. The average person spends only 20 minutes there. The vast majority, according to author John Annerino, view the Grand Canyon from the same angle that's been taken over and over by countless other people. In his book, he offers suggestions on how you can do it differently - how and where to get the best shots, what gear to carry, and much more."
- Chicago Tribune

"I had almost given up on a photo of America's most dramatic landscape when I read what Grand Canyon photographer extraordinaire John Annerino writes in The Photographer's Guide to the Grand Canyon about shooting from far-less visited North Rim at Bright Angel Point: No other vista in the Grand Canyon offers photographers such magnificent scenery.".Which is what led my wife and I to reserve a comfy cabin at..."
-- Sky Magazine

"The Photographer's Guide to the Grand Canyon is a great addition to our book collection in the Arizona Historical Society's Library and Archives."
- Arizona Historical Society.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good Reading...But, this is supposed to be a photography book as well, April 28, 2007

By 

Wildness (Colorado Plateau) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Grand Canyon Wild: A Photographic Journey (Hardcover)

(This is a combined review of John Annerino's three photo essay books: *Grand Canyon Wild*, *Desert Light*, and *Canyon Country*)

John Annerino knows the desert southwest well and his writing about it is enjoyable and informative; and, this holds true with *Grand Canyon Wild: A Photographic Journey*, *Desert Light: a Photographer's Journey Through America's Desert Southwest*, and *Canyon Country: A Photographic Journey*. In addition to his nature writing on the topic, he has also published a couple of useful guides to photographing in the Southwest.

But, even with pretty text, I can't recommend any of these three books. Why? Because the photography is just not that good. This may not be a critic on Annerino's photography...but, at the same time it might. He has a good eye for composition, but what you can't tell is whether he has a good eye for color reproduction or a good eye for light in general. I want to believe that the less than stellar - less than average actually - photographic reproductions in two of these books (*Grand Canyon Wild* and *Desert Light*) is down right horrible! In *Canyon Country*, it is better than the other two, but definitely not great.

So, why is that? Is it just plain bad printing in China? Is it bad design work by the publisher? Is it just average photographic skills of the author? Probably, a combination of all three. Even just the covers of *Grand Canyon Wild* and *Desert Light* are enough to question the capabilities of the designer for these books - they are weak images with average lighting and no pop whatsoever. The cover of *Canyon Country* is muxh better than the other two - so much so, that it must have been designed by a different person. The fact that *Canyon Country* is better on the inside and outside says that it was better produced altogether.

Since I live in the landscape that is the subject of these three books and I am a photographer myself, I can tell you that some of the scenes photographed in these books look better to the naked eye...in the middle of the day when the light is washed out and flat.

If you just want to read the good text, then find them at your local bookstore and enjoy with a cup of coffee while sitting in the store's comfortable seating. But, definitely pass on purchasing, especially if you are looking for great photography from the Colorado Plateau.

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A Guide to my Book Rating System:

1 star = The wood pulp would have been better utilized as toilet paper.
2 stars = Don't bother, clean your bathroom instead.
3 stars = Wasn't a waste of time, but it was time wasted.
4 stars = Good book, but not life altering.
5 stars = This book changed my world in at least some small way.