Henri Cartier-Bresson is one of the finest image makers of our time. Born in 1908, he studied painting before embarking on a career in photography in the 1930s. In 1940 he was captured by the Germans and spent three years in prisoner-of-war camps before escaping to join the Paris underground. With Robert Capa, David Seymour and others, he founded the photographic agency Magnum in 1947. Since then his work has taken him all over the world - from Europe to India, Burma, Pakistan, China, Japan, Indonesia, Bali, Russia, the Middle East, Cuba, Mexico, the United States and Canada. This new collection of work by Cartier-Bresson, created on the occasion of his ninety-fifth birthday, provides the ultimate retrospective look at a lifetime's achievement. It includes the first photographs taken by him, a significant number of which have never been published, rarely seen work from all periods of his life, classic photographs that have become icons of the medium, and a generous selection of drawings, paintings and film stills. The book also features personal souvenirs of Cartier-Bresson's youth, his family and the founding of Magnum.

Cartier-Bresson's extraordinary images are shaped by an eye and a mind legendary for their intelligent empathy and for going to the heart of the matter. This definitive collection of a master photographer's work will be an essential book for anyone interested in photography - indeed, for anyone interested in the people, places and events of the last century.

2005-02-26 a moving and emotional journey

This book is full of incredibly emotive imagery, I was amazed to find so many photos that I have admired over the years were taken by Cartier-Bresson, maybe you will too. The photos make you rethink historical events, times gone by and about the construction of a 'good' photograph; unpicking why each photogrpah works so successfully. The only drawback is some of the larger images are interrupted by the spine of the book, and some are a little too small. Overall worth the expense.