Book excerpt: Surveying the spectrum of photography from the mid-nineteenth century to the present, Photography: A Critical Introductionis the first book to examine key debates in photographic theory and place them in their proper social and political contexts. While most histories of photography invariably focus on the works of the "great photographers," this book is written especially to provide a coherent introduction to the nature of photographic seeing and its personal and cultural significance through history. Contributors lucidly examine a range of major photographic theories, histories, genres and issues, covering such topics as key debates in photographic theory and history; documentary photography and photojournalism; personal and popular photography; photography and commodity culture; photography and the human body; photography as art; and photography in the age of electronic imaging. This completely revised and updated second edition includes detailed case studies; key references, biographies of key thinkers, and margin notes; a full glossary of terms, comprehensive end-of-chapter bibliographies, and resource information, including guides to public archives and useful web sites. The lavish illustrations include images by Bill Brandt, Lee Friedlander, Hannah Hoch, Roshini Kempadoo, Dorothea Lange, Lee Miller, Alexander Rodchenko, Jacob Riis, Sebastio Salgado, Andres Serrano and Jo Spence.