Japanese Photobooks of the 1960s and 70s

darkosaric · Aug 4, 2014

Hi all,

I have this book for some time now, and often I look and enjoy. Style of almost every photographer from Japan in that era is with very high contrast and deep blacks. A am wondering why is that, is it because of equipment and book paper quality that was available in that time in Japan, or they were trying to make more emotional impact with this approach, or it was just fashionable in Japan to print that way?

Regards,

erikg · Aug 4, 2014

It's a very interesting history. You should check out "The photobook, a history" by Martin Parr, Jerry Badger. http://www.phaidon.com/store/photography/the-photobook-a-history-9780714842851/ Volume I covers that period pretty well. Basically it was stylistic preferences. Emotional impact for sure. There were a lot of cross influences between American photobook makers like Robert Klein and Japanese artists. Very cool period there.

MDR · Aug 4, 2014

The high contrast of the japanes photobooks is also often the result of their production, many of the now famous japanese photobooks of that period were xerox copies that were bound together. For example the reenactment of an earlier Moriyama print Show http://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/music-and-live-performance/daido-moriyama-printing-show and the Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk_CyvXeLcs
Moriyama was not the only one to produce books in that inexpensive way.
The look is a very hard look that enhances emotion and dynamic something and a look that a lot of japanese photographers of that period were after. Another reason for those xerox hard look books was/is the japanese decency/Anti pornography law many subjects were simple not publishabe except by selfpublication. ErikG is right get the Parr/Badger book the new one there is a whole chapter dedicated to those hard books. Badger seems to like them a lot at least he mentioned them quiet often when I talked to him last year.

Jim Jones · Aug 4, 2014

When on Okinawa in the late 1960s, I used Mitsubishi Gekko graded paper in preference to the American papers of that time. It seemed to make "snappier" prints than American paper. Perhaps this is reflected in photos published in Japanese magazines and books.

darkosaric · Aug 5, 2014

My interest to this era started not with Moriyama Daido like usual is the case - but with Fukase Masahisa and his book Ravens. Too bad it is not reprinted - so that one can buy the book without taking credit in the bank.

erikg · Aug 5, 2014

That is indeed a beautiful book.

AgX · Aug 5, 2014

As you all seemingly are quite some photobook buffs, you migh enjoy this initiative of a photobook-museum:

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

darkosaric · Aug 7, 2014

AgX said:
As you all seemingly are quite some photobook buffs, you migh enjoy this initiative of a photobook-museum:

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

Thanks for the link .

Yes - photobooks are for me great medium: buying real silver gelatin print from masters of photography is for rare lucky individuals. Visiting galleries and exhibitions is cool - but having a nice photobook - you can enjoy whenever you want.

RalphLambrecht · Aug 7, 2014

Jim Jones said:
When on Okinawa in the late 1960s, I used Mitsubishi Gekko graded paper in preference to the American papers of that time. It seemed to make "snappier" prints than American paper. Perhaps this is reflected in photos published in Japanese magazines and books.

I can say the same for German paper (Agfa)of that time period;don't miss it,very frustrating experience for beginning printers and a good reason to learn the Zone system.

Japanese Photobooks of the 1960s and 70s

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