One of the Best Photography Books I’ve Read: ‘More Than a Rock’

If you need a break from the overly technical photography articles that seem to have taken over the Internet, look no further than “More Than a Rock: Essays on Art, Creativity, Photography, Nature, and Life” by Guy Tal. This brilliant 256-page book is filled with topics that can both enlighten your artistic mind as well as challenge your views on the craft of photography, and I could not recommend it more.

I was first acquainted with Tal’s writing through his “Creative Thinking” essays published in LensWork, to me the finest printed photography magazine available. Instead of a single essay however, in “More Than a Rock” we get to see a constant stream of his thoughts as an artist working in photography. This creates a perfect pick up, put down summer book since there are so many subjects covered — 69 to be exact — that span only a few pages. Between the written essays are Tal’s beautiful photographic works of nature and landscapes. Do not feel like if you aren’t a nature and landscape photographer that this book isn’t for you, however. If you consider what you create when you pick up a camera to be art, then you will appreciate this book.

The joy for me in reading this book was that many essays would cover topics I hadn’t considered before. There would be times that I disagreed with Tal’s viewpoints, but this only made me value the book more because it helped clarify my own thoughts on the creative process.

If you would like to get the feel for Tal’s writing, I suggest taking a look at his blog where you will find many topics to peruse.

“More Than a Rock” by Guy Tal is published by Rocky Nook and is available now through their online bookstore. The soft-cover, 7x9-inch print version costs $39.95, or the eBook goes for $31.99.