It is said that an image is more than a thousand words. Althought I don't think it is exact, it is what I have to say about this excellent book. Not only the quality of the images (those like the "Embrace" series, the ones about Mishima, some of the "Man and Woman" series), but the text indeed, makes this book a must for those who search the spirit behind the photographs, and who think that photography is much more than only a matter of "being in the right place at the right time".

Creativy at its maximux display.

Irving Penn has, for decades, been one of the most remarkable fashion photographers, submitting clothes to his own crystal aesthetic in ways that bring their most interesting details to light. He is the perfect man to photograph the work of Issey Miyake, whose clothes demand an inventive and piercing eye to capture their astonishing detail and structure on film. This book, collecting dozens of Penn's photographs of Miyake clothes, spanning from the early 80s until now, shows that when Penn photographs Miyake's clothes, it is truly a collaboration (although Miyake is never present at the shoots and Penn has never been to a Miyake show), and the resulting photos are more perfect for the cooperation.

I'm glad I didn't buy this book, now that I've seen it. Although the reproduction quality of the photographs is very good, the photographs themselves aren't interesting to me and are even a bit distressing.

I haven't seen the film(s) or exhibitions about Nan's work though. There is some information about her work on the web - take a look at Yahoo.

this is one of the best collections of color photography i have seen. nan and her friends are beautiful and scary and strong and fun and sad. i have seen the slide show and bought the book when it was reprinted. go out and buy it! END

This is a good example of a real master at work. I connect more with his black and white portraits more than anything else in the book. He's the best at what he does and it's a damn shame that he's fallen off the radar screen. This is a reprint edition. Most of the photos look very dated. That's why I don't connect with much of it. The pictures lack a timelessness which takes them beyond commerce and into art.

Hiro seems to have dropped off the map which is too bad. His portrait work is great. It seems that he got a little looser in the 80's which works for me. Still, his work never strays from the spare design style which made him the hot ticket. This book does not make me want to run out and take pictures. I wonder about his lighting more than anything. These photos are paradigms of design and composition but not much beyond that. This is a great textbook for the advertising photographer. What worked then can work now. I would be very interested seeing what Hiro is producing now. Hiro, Hiro where are you?