The Beatles racing across Candlestick Park at the end of their final public performance; Johnny Cash pausing to give the camera a middle finger salute before playing for inmates in San Quentin; a weary Janis Joplin backstage, keeping a whiskey bottle company. Jim Marshall captured each of these iconic images with his camera. But what of the other shots taken during these legendary moments? For the first time, Marshall shares his contact sheets from the sittings, concerts, and sessions that surround his most famous pictures. Over sixty proof sheets are featured in their entirety, along with the final chosen hero shot on the facing page. This book sheds new light on Marshall's talents for revealing on film the essence of his subjects, from celebrated musicians, actors, writers, and performers, to everyday people from San Francisco to rural Appalachia. A rare glimpse into a great photographer's creative process, Proof provides a behind-the-scenes look at the making of some of the most preeminent images of our time.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
To say it's rare for a photographer to publish his proof sheets is an understatement. It's almost unheard of. As Chronicle Senior Pop Music Critic Joel Selvin says in his excellent introduction, "Proof sheets are like a look behind the curtain at the Wizard of Oz."
This extraordinary book is laid out with the proof sheet of a film roll on the left page of each spread and, on the right, the selected shot from the roll -- such as a doleful Janis Joplin backstage holding her Southern Comfort bottle, Bob Dylan rolling a tire down the street in Greenwich Village, Jimi Hendrix in his Sgt. Pepper jacket at Monterey Pop or the Beatles trudging across the field at Candlestick Park at their last live concert. Sharp and pithy anecdotes provide the context for each selected shot. -San Francisco Chronicle
About the Author
Jim Marshall has more than 500 album and CD cover photos to his credit. His shots of Woodstock, the Monterey Pop Festival, the Beatles' final concert, and the vibrant youth culture of San Francisco in the 1960s are among the most iconic images of the era. He is the co-author of several books, including Monterey Pop, published by Chronicle Books.
Joel Selvin has covered pop music for the San Francisco Chronicle since 1970. He is the author of several best-selling books on the subject, and previously collaborated with Jim Marshall on Monterey Pop.
Joel Selvin has covered pop music for the San Francisco Chronicle since 1970. He is the author of several best-selling books on the subject, and previously collaborated with Jim Marshall on Monterey Pop.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
After the stunning achievement of Not Fade Away Jim Marshall has equaled that effort with this important book. If you care about music or photography this is a MUST HAVE book. Period! Buy the book - pour yourself a single malt, put Jimi Hendrix on a (good) stereo system and enjoy!!!
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Photographer Jim Marshall captured some of the most notable musicians in historic candid shots still remembered today: Janis Joplin with whiskey bottle and the Beatles racing across Candlestick Park at the end of their final public performance: but what about some of his other shots. Proof shares his contact sheets from the concerts, sessions and sittings of his more famous shots. These contact sheets, nicely accompanied by background history and explanations of the photographic methods and shot settings, are outstanding representations and when viewed here as a unit and package, explain the origins of the famous works. Highly recommended.
By Digital Puer
Format:Hardcover
I really appreciated seeing proof sheets created from Marshall's rolls of film. For every pair of pages in this book, a black-and-white positive proof sheet is on the left-hand page, and the chosen (usually quite famous) print from that roll of film is on the right-hand page, along with a short paragraph describing the occasion of the shoot. The individual frames of the proof sheet are quite viewable: there are usually 35 frames printed on each sheet, and each sheet is printed in the book at about 8x10".
As a photographer, I envy other photographers' final products, and many times I like to see their rejected frames to catch a glimpse of their decision-making and their ad hoc/candid photos. The proof sheet serves as a documentary on how Marshall worked that day: how many repetitive frames he takes for well-prepared money shots, how he shoots horizontal portraits with the rule-of-thirds, and how many candids he takes.
The only thing missing is that the short paragraphs describing each shot do not delve into how Marshall selected the one shot from each roll. Looking through the proofs, it's clear that many good frames were left behind.
Finally, there is also a very nice picture evidently of Marshall's gear bag, containing several Leicas, rolls of film, and other stuff.
As a photographer, I envy other photographers' final products, and many times I like to see their rejected frames to catch a glimpse of their decision-making and their ad hoc/candid photos. The proof sheet serves as a documentary on how Marshall worked that day: how many repetitive frames he takes for well-prepared money shots, how he shoots horizontal portraits with the rule-of-thirds, and how many candids he takes.
The only thing missing is that the short paragraphs describing each shot do not delve into how Marshall selected the one shot from each roll. Looking through the proofs, it's clear that many good frames were left behind.
Finally, there is also a very nice picture evidently of Marshall's gear bag, containing several Leicas, rolls of film, and other stuff.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Book Great!!! Amazon Bad!!!
Love the book!!!...very dissapointed with Amazon. I bought this and the price dropped more than 40% the following day. Read more
Published on April 26, 2010 by M. Ho
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent for music lovers
i purchased this book for my 17 year old son as a christmas gift. he's a fan of music in general, no specific genre. and he absolutely loved it. Read more
Published on January 6, 2008 by C. DeMaso
4.0 out of 5 stars
Seeing through the eyes of the photographer
As a photographer myself I have always been attracted to the idea of seeing the original contact sheets from which a finished print is first judged. Read more
Published on September 8, 2005 by Henry Cline
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