Customer Reviews

Looking At Los Angeles

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

 

 

How do you photographically sum a city like Los Angeles? The editors of this sumptuous coffee-table book give it a go and I think succeed, just look at the names in the Book Description above. Eighty-eight photographers in all and some I've never heard of but their 225 images do give a feel of this extraordinary endless place. Look through the pages and the only conclusion is that this must be Los Angeles.

The book is loosely divided into themes: freeways and autos, shops, buildings, suburbs, signs, vegetation, swimming pools, beach and the last section LA at night. Julius Shulman with fourteen photos rightly has the most. No other photographer captured the range and style of LA contemporary architecture over the decades. His well-known night photo of Pierre Koenig's Case Study home is included. Another famous photo is Stephen Shore's stunning 'Beverley Blvd and La Brea Avenue'. Other photos just stop you like Michael Light's aerial freeway shot on page forty-three or John Divola's '5800 South block of Hoover Street' which opens up to an image just over twenty-seven inches wide on pages seventy-seven and eight. However, as far as I can see there is nothing to represent NWA-land: Compton or Watts.

The photos (in 175dpi) are impressively large and mostly one to a page and more or less split equally between color and black and white. There is though an annoying fault with the production - so four stars - the captions are all at the back making the reader to constantly keep turning the pages to find out about a photographer and their work. Most pages have plenty of space for a caption. There is an extra wrinkle unfortunately because many pages have no numbers either: 56 to 61, 156 to 161, 172 to 189 and in the night section nothing between 200 and 225. It must have been amateur night at the publishers and it really is inexcusable for an expensive book!

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

Beautiful images. The thing I like most about this book is it photographs a number of different elements; the city, landscapes, areas, iconic buildings, etc. Another well known L.A. photography book "Los Angeles Deluxe" while beautiful and also fantastic, does tend to focus more on architecture and shots of buildings. While there are some beautiful buildings in L.A., "Looking at Los Angeles" covers everything from famous shots of the landscapes, beaches, mountains, as well as the buildings and iconic tourist destinations of the city.

The images themselves are also of the highest quality (I have to wash my hands everytime I pick this book up to read it! It is so glossy and given the quality of the images I couldn't bear to have any stains even on the edges!) This book really is a labour of love for all those who participated in its creation.

The only minor negative I would note is in agreement with one of the reviewers below who note that you do have to turn to the back of the book every page to see where/when the photo was taken (at the index - the image descriptions are not contained together with the images but rather in the last few pages of this very large book). Given 'Looking at Los Angeles' is indeed a large/heavy book, this can be a little cumbersome sometimes. Then again, on the other hand the images are so beautiful that to have a brand 'new' page after every image to introduce a description of the next one would have probably disrupted the flow and beauty of the images so, not really a negative but just a point to note.

4.5 stars for me and highly recommended.

This book is a treasure for LA lovers. It accomplishes the formidable task of reflecting both the outer and inner layers of this beautiful, complex city.

The copy and photography complement each other elegantly and thoughtfully in this great tribute to a wonderful city.

It is a must-have for anyone who loves Los Angeles.

Nice time captures of LA images.

This book is great as a gift, eye-candy, or a conversation starter for anyone living in greater LA. The format is large and allows the photos to draw you in. It's no glizt, all the real deal photography of true LA.