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Chris Bell – Book Review

Tasmanian Photographer - Book Review

Tim Parkin

Tim Parkin

Amateur Photographer who plays with big cameras and film when in between digital photographs.

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Tasmania, Primal Places

Now this book is something else. Joe showed me this a couple of years ago and I was immediately taken. The reproduction and paper quality is superb and the pictures, oh my! I've included a few extracts below but all I can say is "buy this book". The narrative is also very strong, short exracts of a life in the wilderness. Don't expect any mention of photography, this is all about the wild and all the better for it.

The Noblest Stone, Carnarvon National Park (1995)

This is the oldest book availble new by Chris Bell and despite the fact that I think Beyond the Reach has stronger photographer, this is still an enjoyable book that includes a more subtle photography, less wow but still a lot there for a discerning photographer (and a few absolutely stunning pictures).

Beyond the Reach (1990)

Although Primal Places is undoubtedly Chris' masterpiece, I have a soft spot for 'Beyond the Reach'. Outwardly a natural history of lake St Clair national park, it is much more though. A collection of stunning photographs married to Chris' eloquent text. I would highly recommend digging out a good copy which should cost you £20 to £30 from Alibris or Abe Books

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A Time to Care (1980)

Published in 1980, this is Chris' first book and, I have to say, not the strongest photographically. However there are some great pictures and it's worth a purchase for the content (written by Norm Sanders) which is a great environmental history lesson which is still valid today. It overs some of the major issues relevant in the late 1970s and gives you some context for the work that was put in by the environmental movement (this was contemporaneous with Peter Dombrovskis' work in the Gordon and Franklin Rivers).



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