Couldn't agree more about it being the best of the bunch so far. I loved it. With the odd exception there was no over analysis and it was indeed good to have the photographers centre-stage and talking about themselves and their work for once. I'm assuming that this is because it's the first show in the series where most of the protagonists are actually still alive
and if so it augers well for the rest.
Due to my background in music Eggleston is very much my man* so obviously I was chuffed to see him being the Charles Bukowski/William Burroughs of photography in front of a load of bemused French people. I was gigling uncontrollably on the sofa and urging him on to greater depths of inpenetrability. Jim Green was telling me that there's a great documentary about Eggleston available on DVD. I'll have to track it down.
Was appalled to see Martin Parr rocking a digital camera, but then he is Martin Parr so who am I to even mention it (other than a film camera bigot obviously
).
The english guy, Ray-Smith, that they mentioned was new to me and I liked what i saw. Will add him to the list. Very cool.
The James Ravilious documentary that followed great. I know a little of his work because of my frequent visits to Cornwall. The guy down there who frames all of my photographs has quite a collection of Ravilious postcards for sale as well as a few stories. It was wonderful seeing a full programme dedicated to his life and work and absolutely fascinating that they brought his human subjects to life by interviewing so many of them. They did the same thing with the locations too where possible. Engrossing.
A few weeks ago the
Genius Of Photography episode was followed by another wonderful documentary about a British photographer. Narrated by John Peel (RIP)
Chambre Hardman and the Lost City of Liverpool was a programme I'd seen before, but it worked the 2nd time around too. Here's a link to an
online gallery of hardman's stuff>
It's excellent to see so much good quality, photography-related programming on the Beeb.
