Author Description

American Photography celebrates its quarter-century anniversary with this selection of the best pictures from 2008, chosen by a distinguished jury headed by Kathy Ryan, Photography Director at The New York Times Magazine. From over 10,000 images submitted by 1,200 photographers, agencies, magazines and publishers, just 354 made the final cut. The winners include shots produced for Interview, GQ, Newsweek, Vanity Fair and many others. Opening with Fiona Aboud's snap of the first baby born the night Barack Obama was elected president, the book also sports dazzling images from the summer Olympic Games in Beijing. Celebrity culture is represented by a string of candid portraits including Dan Winters' series of past New York newsmakers--commissioned for New York Magazine's fortieth anniversary issue--and Annie Leibowitz's topless study of Miley Cyrus for Vanity Fair. Photojournalism is represented by Tim Hetherington, Seamus Murphy, James Nachtwey and others taking a look at war, global warming, human rights issues and economic crisis.