100 Photos that Changed Canada

The hard cover book just arrived. Various launches will be held across the country in the next month.
You can order it from Amazon.ca for $29...free shipping if you order two! It only took two days to get the books at my door after
ordering on line (fyi).

Many of our photogs are represented in the book!

http://www.amazon.ca/100-Photos-That-Changed-Canada/dp/1554684978

[100 Photos]

funny how only the blunts get their names mentioned  ..especially how it's the
100 Photos that changed Canada ..not the 100 stories that changed Canada

Cheers and thanks for update, Rod 

Jack

Yes, the writers get top billing ..but an effort was made to identify the photographers, a photo credit page was created, etc etc.
The original Beaver magazine article( Canada's National Historical Magazine) "Ten Photos That Change Canada" celebrated the images , the photographers and how the images came about. Unfortunately for us,the book is more Historical in its approach. I told the editor Mark Reid that without the photographers work, the writers would have nothing to write about.

a note from the author Mark Reid:

 please let the NPAC people know that they can listen to an interview with me on CBC’s As it Happens. It aired last night, and is currently on their website at:

http://www.cbc.ca/asithappens/

They have to go to Part 2 of Three, and scroll halfway through Part 2 to get to my interview.
 

We'll get 'em back, the upcoming '100 Books that Changed Canada' will be packed with photos.

How about 100 Words that changed Canada with no photos...bet that will be a big seller eh!

a note from Mark Reid: (mreid@historysociety.ca)

I was reading with interest the comments on the NPAC forum regarding our new book, 100 Photos that Changed Canada, and I thought I would send along this note.

First of all, I certainly cherish the hard work of photographers, and greatly admire their dedication to their craft.

It’s important to remember, however, that for most Canadians, it would be impossible to fully appreciate the artistry of your photographs without first understanding the context of the events they are portraying.

In other words, if you don’t know the history surrounding the photo of soldiers going over the top in 1916, or of the soldier and Mohawk warrior facing off at Oka, then you won’t fully appreciate just how powerful the actual images themselves are.

In our book, I wrote that I did not want 100 Photos that Changed Canada to be just a photo book, or just a history book for that matter.

Rather, my goal was to create a book that celebrates the power of photography to move us, and to make us feel something  - whether it’s pride, such as the photo of Terry Fox, or shame, such as the Somalia Scandal photo showing the torture of Shidane Arone.

When it came time to recruit writers to contribute essays, I tried as much as possible to choose writers with strong personal connections to the actual photos.

For instance, Peter Desbarats, the writer for the Somalia Scandal essay, actually headed the inquiry into the torture scandal.

For the photo of Newfoundland kids watching a home float away during the Outport resettlements of the 1960s, I recruited former Newfoundland premier Brian Tobin, who, as a boy, lived this very history in his home province.

And for the Ben Johnson photo, I recruited Dick Pound, who actually had Johnson’s trainer appear in his hotel room in 1988 during the Seoul Olympics to plead Johnson’s case after he tested positive for doping.

Each writer was asked to write from the heart, and make a passionate case why we as a nation should care about these photos, why they matter, and why the photographer, the photo, and the history is something we should cherish.

What this book does, for the very first time in the history of Canada, is to turn the spotlight away from the mere facts of our history, and onto the photos and photographers who helped illuminate the facts, and made them come alive.

I am sure that for many Canadians, this book will be a launching pad for many great discussions about photography, photographers, and the important contributions they make to our country and our history.

I believe the photos, combined with the poignant and moving essays that accompany them, are a powerful package that I hope will capture the imagination of Canadians across the country.


Sincerely
Mark Reid
Editor,
100 Photos that Changed Canada

All,

Pictures need words and words need pictures.

As a Canadian news photographer that works each day to try and create such images that are showcased in this book, I'd like to thank Mark Reid, the writers and publisher Phyllis Bruce Books for producing this body of work that truly celebrates Canadian photojournalists. It makes me proud to see people I call my peers and mentors being recognized for their skill, passion and contribution.

I agree the product description at the Amazon site should include some of the Canadian photographers that created the images along with this A-list of writers but alas, this is not the case and only underlines the importance of our own association, the NPAC.

This omission is why we as a group, exist. We need to continue to promote why our work is important, define who we are, what we do and where we fit into the ever changing media landscape.

It is a step forward to helping change the attitude many publishers have about photographers to point out the fact the photographers who created these images are not mentioned. And it's books like this one that Mark has produced, and words like those penned by Christie Blatchford, Peter Mansbridge and Brian Tobin (no slouches themselves) that help raise our profile.

And the sooner we realize we need words to compliment (not dominate) our work and give it context, the faster we will be able to move forward and give the recognition Canadian photographers so richly deserve for their contributions to lives of Canadians.


Ric Ernst.

I hate to be the challenger here, but if I were to ask many Canadians (non-photographers) about photographs that changed Canada few of them could recall any if not none at all. Perhaps moments in history and stories yes. However, photography is just not a part of Canadian culture as it is in the US where there have been photos that many people, including the younger generation can still recall even from years before they were born.

This is a valuable book and I hope it changes this.

However, I think it really comes down to education for children in learning how important photography is in our daily lives and I just don't believe these values are being taught to children in school. Photographs are not a big enough part of Canadian culture yet, neither are the icons that result from photographs like in many other countries.

When the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Ottawa is combined into the National Gallery after having it's own space, the arts councils cancel the individual photography grants and make them a part of the category with painting and other visual arts (a few years ago) we must concede that photography faces an uphill battle in the minds of Canadians as an important part of defining who we are.

We need more books like this and others which present photography as an all important part of Canadians lives.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/books/the-pictures-that-changed-us/article1344673/

Bravo Ric, Louie and all the other positive comments…well said.

Some of us, as Canadians, suffer from the same affliction as our British cousins…a quiet and humble modesty that is very quaint but doesn’t do much to promote our abilities, talents and causes. I’m speaking particularly of the talents of Canadian Photographers…Photojournalists, et al.

Here in the US they rattle it off from the rooftops, with true talent and ability competing with those that have the loudest voices… and it all gets blurred.

Anything…anything to promote the high standards Canadian Photographers have set over the decades is positive.

Regardless of what you may feel about the final product, Mark deserves high marks for doing this. And let’s hope it’s the beginning of more to come.

I think this is a very good discussion and without hurting the book, which is great. I still maintain that many of these photos did not change anything, they are photos of events that have been important, but the photos themselves to have changed on their own something is hard to believe in some cases.

Lots of noise about how there are no photo credits on the actual page with the photos, where-as the writers
get top billing. Photo credits are given on a separate page at the beginning of the book. If the writers help sell the book..great!

I think this is a legit complaint...but as Louie and others have said , the book is important for Canadian photojournalism and photojournalists....for $29 at Amazon.ca you could do a lot worse for your Christmas shopping list. Its huge... coffee table size ...and good quality reproductions.

The title will help sell the book....but I think the individual photos were chosen because they recall a time
and a place in our historical background that people will relate to...not because any one photo can change the country. (Mark Reid disagrees with my views on this).

I went to the Toronto launch of 100 photos last night. Doug Ball and Stan Behal were there. The rest of the guests were the writers, including my now retired colleague Don Newman.

But for a book about photos, the photographers were anonymous for two reasons.

1)I have been busy and so hadn't seen the comments here about the lack of credits.  So when I had bought the book and opened it up I asked myself where the f*** are the credits? I did look at the back because in fine art photography collections, the credits are often in the back. But there's another problem. There are bios of the writers but no bios of the photographers.  Huh? I am sure the reading public would want to know more about the photographers.

2)the public who showed up were, by and large, going for signings by the high profile writers, Don Newman, Michael Bliss, Jack Granatstein, Tom Axworthy.
The shooters, of course, are always behind the scenes and that was true last night.

If it is 100 photos, then there should be some way of raising the profile of the shooters.

Robin

speaking of credits: I attended the Vanity Fair portraits exhibit at ROM yesterday....all the photos were given photographers credits and photographers backgrounds/history , as well as full details on the subjects. The way it should be done. Of course the public wants to read about the
famous people,images and how they were made...and there are two  videos on how it was done (including a silent film showing Edward Steichen at work in his studio), its a
very good show.