Ramapo Professor Publishes First Comprehensive Survey of Digital Photography
(Mahwah) – Jonathan Lipkin, an associate professor of digital media at Ramapo College of New Jersey, has written Photography Reborn: Image Making in the Digital Era, published by Harry N. Abrams.
“Digital photography has replaced traditional photography as the most prevalent form of visual communication,” asserts Lipkin. Not long ago, photographers considered digital pictures an abandonment of the traditional 35mm standard. Now the digital format is replacing film as the prevailing medium for professionals, artists and everyday snap shooters.
Photography Reborn is the first comprehensive survey of this new medium of visual expression and an essential reference for anyone who wants to understand the technology. In the book, Lipkin chronicles the intersection of digital technology and photography, exploring its impact and the limits of its possibilities. He explores dominant themes of the field, including the human body, identity and the landscape. Every kind of digital image from MRI scans to fine art to webblogs is highlighted and illustrated with works by important contemporary artists including Andreas Gursky, Thomas Ruff, Pedro Meyer, Nancy Burson and Loretta Lux.
The author says digital photography is simultaneously a direct evolution and a distinct break from traditional photography. “It shares many of the same characteristics, but borrows from other media, most notably collage and painting. The most salient aspect of traditional photography – its direct relation to reality – has been forever altered.
Furthermore, another important aspect of photography, its ability to be easily reproduced and transmitted, has been amplified. In short, digital photography is photography reborn.”
For fifteen years Lipkin has studied the phenomenon of digital photography. In addition to teaching at Ramapo College, he serves on the graduate faculty of the School of Visual Arts. His photographs have been exhibited across the country, and his writing has appeared in academic journals and electronic publications. He is co-author of In the Realm of the Circuit (Pearson, 2004).
Photography Reborn is available at bookstores and from online booksellers.
