The best photography books for portrait photography inspiration

Audio Overview Podcast

I came across Google Notebook and I’m completely hooked! This podcast is an AI audio overview of my blog posts. Let me know how this is working for you? In this discussion the host are discussing the blog post about a list of my favourite photography books.

Here is the summary about the conversation. Enjoy!

Rachel Vogeleisen, an artist and photographer, shares her favorite photography books that have shaped her approach to portraiture and lifestyle photography. She highlights the works of Peter Lindbergh, known for capturing women’s confidence, and Sabine Weiss, a humanist photographer who documented raw emotions. Vogeleisen also discusses Annie Leibovitz’s glamorous storytelling, Sally Mann’s controversial yet bold images of young women, and Saul Leiter’s painterly use of color. The list continues with Richard Avedon’s elegant simplicity and Vivian Maier’s candid street photography, aiming to inspire readers in their own photographic journeys.

Read the Post

Christmas went by either you’ve already got the best Christmas present. Or you’ve got some vouchers and still have to make a decision about what you’re going to buy with these. No worries, I have the perfect photography books list for you.

I love photography books, and I sometimes have to hold myself back not to buy more!

In this post, I’ll share my favourite photography books. Books that have inspired my approach to portrait photography. From Peter Lindbergh to street photographer Sabine Weiss and storyteller Saul Leiter. These artists have left an influence of timeless beauty in my mundane everyday.

Peter Lindbergh. On Fashion Photography. 40th Ed. – 40th Edition (Hardback)

Looking at Peter’s photography makes my heart jump. I find his portraits mesmerising and I can’t get enough of looking at these beautiful portraits. He captured women as free spirits. They trust him, they’re exuding confidence with their beautiful femininity and sexiness. He let their authentic selves shine through; they are not pretending, they are! His photography is bold, dramatic, and he is a master of light.

Learn more here.

Sabine Weiss: The Poetry of the Instant

Sabine’s photography meant a lot to me as a teenager. The people, the lives, that she was documenting fascinated me. People were oblivious to her presence. She captured a fleeting moment in their life, with true meaning and raw emotions.

She was what we called a humanist photographer. She was under the influence of Doisneau, Cartier-Bresson, and Willy Ronis. In her work, she managed to transcend the everyday into poetry.

Learn more here

Annie Leibovitz – Women

For me, Annie Leibovitz’s photography is the epitome of glamour and elegance. She’s got incredible storytelling skills. To be honest, I could never reproduce any of her conceptual fashion photography. But I always find something that I can take away from her photography. One of my favourite photographs of Annie is the one she took of Queen Elizabeth. She combined the Windsor brand and made the Queen stand proud as an independent woman in her own right.

Learn more here

Sally Mann: At Twelve, Portraits of Young Women (30th Anniversary Edition) (Hardback)

Sally Mann is a photographer based in the Deep South, in America. I discovered her work through the photographs of her children. And young girls on the verge of adulthood. In the time before #metoo, the images of her kids set in an adult pose were considered candid. Today, while I still enjoy these photographs, I look at them with a different eye. This brings up the question of the eye of the photographer and the right over her children. I still love these images. They are bold, striking, and say something about these girls in becoming. Her work is rebellious and anticonventional. In a way, as a photographer, she teaches us to see beyond the norms.

Learn more here

Saul Leiter: The Centennial Retrospective (Hardback)

Saul’s is like a painter’s. He grasps colour in his images in the perfect combination. His images are like poetry, inviting the viewer into an extraordinary everyday. Saul’s invites us to find beauty in stillness and to hold our breath in contemplation.

Learn more here

Woman in the Mirror (Hardback)

Richard Avedon’s portraits are a hold of stark simplicity and emotional depth. They are the epitome of elegance and class. When you look at his portraits, you can see where Annie Leibovitz took her inspiration.

Vivian Maier: Street Photographer (Hardback)

I discovered Vivian’s photography through a documentary on Channel 4. I fell in love with her photography. This woman has spent her life documenting other people’s lives. All while hiding away, standing in the shadows. She watched passers-by and photographed their every move across the city. Her candid portraits capture the essence of life on the streets. She is offering a unique perspective on lifestyle photography.

Learn more here

I hope these books will give you a good grasp of inspiration, please share your suggestions in the comments.