The cover and title were very intriguing to me but I did not enjoy it. I thought there would be more photography about joy. It felt like marketing rather than a book. It's kind of an autobiography.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. I loved this book that shows photos of people in joyous moments.

I really enjoyed learning about George Lange’s approach to his work I’d not come across it before but now follow him. His sense of joy certainly does come through in photos and this book captures his energy and enthusiasm for people and photography. I appreciated the message which was a reminder to find and share joy in our day to day lives. Through stories of connection and the highlights of Lange’s career, Picturing Joy offers encouragement to readers to appreciate life and open their eyes to the small moments of joy.

I’d recommend this book to people who like photography or anyone really who might need a reminder of the joy available to us or need encouragement to follow their own path. A great combination of written and visual inspiration !

I love this book George Lange photography is amazing and brought me joy as I read through the book.The background stories were excellent emotional moving.#netgalley #picturingjoy

Picturing Joy: Stories of Connection by George Lange is a guide to Lange’s approach to life as well as the highlights of his career. It is currently scheduled for release on November 7 2023. This optical and optimistic book captures his curiosity, energy, and enthusiasm for people and photography. It also distills wisdom gleaned from a lifelong search for quotidian beauty that might otherwise go unnoticed. Through intimate stories and more than eighty photos, Picturing Joy invites readers to appreciate life with all their senses and to change their perspective by being open to new things.

Picturing Joy is a lovely coffee table book that offers stories and photographs from Lange's career and life. Some of the people he has had the opportunity to work with, and the amazing shots he has taken are wonderful to read about and enjoy. I was glad that he included stories for the celebrates that he did, but that he also included 'normal' folks and lesser known individuals in the book. I love that he also included information on why and how he does this job, and offers encouragement and tips for others to follow their own path. I think aspiring photographers, and those just starting out or interested in the field will get the most out of this book.

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this before publication. I enjoyed it a lot.
I read a review where the reviewer complained that the photographer was "humble bragging," but I have to say that it didn't feel like that..The book had pictures of his own family, refugees, and celebrities. Instead of providing a technical list of how to create professionals, there were simple descriptions of how to create moments of connection. There was even a hilarious picture of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs.
I love pictures, and this book is full of pictures of love, connection, and joy. Reading the commentary and looking at the pictures made me feel the interconnection of the world and the possibilities of finding love everywhere.

I didn't know who George Lange was prior to reading this book. His photos are delightful, but the words behind each create a new sense behind them. Always fun to hear more about the process and people involved.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read the ARC for this book. This book inspires the reader to look for the moments of joy in everyday experiences. A great book to shift one's perspective from the negative to positive.

I loved hearing more of the stories behind George's images from over the years. George comes across as great fun with a playful approach to his work. The results are often relaxed portraits with his subjects at ease. As a photographer, I really enjoyed reading how some of the images came to be taken. Reading this book has definitely given me some ideas as to how to approach portrait sessions and to try new ideas. I love how George also incudes images of his family and the stories behind these images. A wonderful book which I really enjoyed reading.

I truly enjoy paging through books of photographs, and I particularly enjoyed doing so with this book for three reasons:

- George Lange focuses on the moments of joy and happiness to be found all around us in our daily lives if we will but see them.

-He also focuses on the connection we so often have with others as we share in those moments of joy.

- With each picture he tells us background about the subject of the picture and the impact of the photograph on him as the photographer.

Well done, striking photographs, and a unique presentation made me wish this book was longer!

My thanks to Flashpoint for allowing me to read this book via NetGalley. It is to be released on 11/7/23. All opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are my own and are freely given.

There were some powerful photos in this book, but they were not matched by powerful writing. I feel like much of the book was written by ChatGPT. If not, then the author must have written this as a self-flattering portfolio to use in marketing his speaking business. He has an interesting history and a great body of work for sure; I just feel like this book didn’t reflect any of those things.

I absolutely loved reading this book. I was completely drawn into the topic of photography and could not stop reading it.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. This book will be published in Nov 2023!

Ugh, I loved this book, and now I want to see more of Lange’s work. I loved reading some of the background stories to his pictures. Brought me happy/bittersweet tears several times!! While I mainly enjoyed the pictures of average people/kids/families, I also appreciated the stories and pictures of the celebrities he shot, showing their rawness.

I have no expertise in photography and didn't know who George Lange was before reading this book, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it. It contains many short anecdotes from the author's life, centering on his growth and experiences as a portrait photographer.

He seems to always be finding the joy in the situation, without trying, like it's just his natural predisposition. He somehow manages it in this book without appearing childish or naive, and despite his fame now, he seems remarkably grounded.

The stories he tells are stories of joyful human connection. One can't really help but feel a bit of the joy coming through the photos while viewing this book. It's a bit infectious, actually!

Perhaps a bit of prior knowledge of photography would help to appreciate the technical skills of the author in the photos, but I think anyone with eyeballs, a heart, and an open mind will enjoy this.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this eARC.

I appreciated how each photo captured a moment of joy, some big, some small, but always with warmth. Hearing the stories behind the work enriched my appreciation of the artist’s work and mission: to crystallize moments of joy.

Review to come closer to the release day of November on blog/goodreads.

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

WOW, this was so fun and good to read! I wasn't sure what to expect, just photographs or maybe a mix of text and photographs? But it was a fun personal read with photographs to accompany it. I do think I know George Lange, the name rings a bell, though I wouldn't know one two three what from, I do read a lot, so maybe I saw his name somewhere, or maybe I saw one of his pieces in a place. Either way, thanks to this book I learned a lot about George Lange, about his photography journey, about how he makes his photographs, how he is with the people he works with. Plus, I loved how there was a good blend of celebrities and normal people. I wouldn't mind a whole book with just celebrities, but unknown people are just a bit more interesting to read about.
I really hadn't expected to have this much fun. Often with books featuring photography the text just isn't my cup of tea. It is boring/doesn't grab me, but this one? From the first sentence, boom, I needed to read more.

The photographs were a lot of fun and they indeed capture joy, connection, and more. A lot made me smile, some made me laugh.

All in all, I would recommend this book to all. I am very happy I discovered this book!

2 "more a glossy advertisement..." stars !!

Thank you to Netgalley, the author/photographer and Flashpoint. This will be released November 2023. I am providing an honest review.

Mr. Lange appears to be a very successful photographer for magazines, advertisers, celebrities and some more everyday folk. He has a very nice website here.... www.georgelange.com

I did not connect to this book very much at all. The anecdotes were full of humblebragging and namedropping and felt like a glossy advertisement. The photographs did not (mostly) resonate for me either but I could mildly appreciate a few of them. Not for me but it might be your cuppa...

I was hoping for a deeper look of the philosophy of joy in the art form of photography.

Here is a photo off his website but not included in the book:

I truly enjoyed this latest book by George Lange, Picturing Joy, due to be released in November, 2023. Chock full of Lange’s beautiful photographs, the coffee table book also offers tips on how to get the ultimate photo, as well as colorful snippets of Mr. Lange’s career. I would be surprised if amateur photographers, in addition to seasoned veterans, weren’t immediately drawn to the book as both pure enjoyment and resourceful guide.