Perception and Imaging

Perception and Imaging explores the fundamental act of photography – seeing – through a uniquely comprehensive combination of technique, history, visual perception, philosophy and psychology.

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When you look at an image, what do you see, think, and feel? How do you want your audience to react when they view your work? For over 30 years the late Richard Zakia helped photographers enrich their creative vision through his classic book, Perception and Imaging. Now he is joined by co-author John Suler. Together they present their insights into the principles of perception, memory, color, time, space, shapes, illusion, subliminals, rhetoric, personality style, and photo critique. Unlike any other book, Perception and Imaging will give you an extensive understanding of how photography relates to art, design, advertising, psychology, and philosophy, as well as what makes photography unique among the image-making disciplines. Whether you are a beginner or a professional, this information will help you appreciate photography not simply as a mastering of technique and composition, but as a way of truly seeing, especially now in the digital age.

– New sections about photo sharing in social media and online groups devoted to photography critique.

– Includes inspirational images from some of the world’s most well-known photographers, including Henri Cartier-Bresson, Man Ray, and Ansel Adams.

– A comprehensive discussion of the "decisive moment" photo, its vital ingredients, and why some consider it the essence of photography.

– New sections about body language in photographs, camera angles, aspect ratios, self portraits and selfies, and how memory and personality affect photography.