Peter Turnley's Love Letter to Paris

There are photo books and then there are photo books that you go back to repeatedly over time. Peter Turnley's new self-published collection "French Kiss: A Love Letter to Paris" is one such publication that begs to be savored. A monochromatic study of Paris captured over 40 years on the streets, the 138-image hardcover is an homage to the romance of the City of Lights captured with a reverence for the aesthetics of famous French street photography.

Turnley, who has called Paris an adopted home since 1975, is an award-winning photojournalist and former Newsweek staff photographer with over 40 covers to his credit. An assistant to famous French photographer Robert Doisneau in the 1980s, Turnley’s work is informed by his résumé as a conflict photographer and his ability to craft definitive, layered imagery out of the everyday.

The work is romantic with tones of great affection for the city and its people. Captured almost exclusively on Leica M cameras, ranging from the M3 to the Monochrom, the images were reproduced from silver gelatin prints by master printer Voja Mitrovic, who printed for Henri Cartier-Bresson.

Press run for the initial offering of the book with slipcase is 3,000 and will likely sell out prior to Valentine’s Day 2014. It is available online through Peter’s web site, where select silver gelatin prints from the book are also available. Turnley teaches workshops all over the world and is currently leading one in Havana, Cuba.

All images appear courtesy of Peter Turnley.