Through the Lens: National Geographic's Greatest Photographs (Ng Collectors): National Geographic - Greatest Photographs ("National Geographic" Collectors Series)

Features National Geographic's some of the best photographs created since 1890. This book lets readers take a virtual tour around the world to see rice sellers in the Mekong Delta, teenagers in Brazil, duck hunters in Nebraska, and stingrays in the Cayman Islands, to name a few examples.

Since the 10.5 million images in National Geographic's possession won't fit in a book, the 250 in this moderately glossy, minimally costly collection will do nicely. Through the Lens is a stunning collection of photos judiciously apportioned to represent the regions of the earth, the sea and outer space; humans and nature; and even the history of the medium--a few historic black and whites contrast dramatically with the eye-popping modern colour shots that dominate the book.

The aesthetic key to their impact is the use of big, emotional pictures with witty little captions and, whenever possible, startling juxtapositions, such as a Boston matron's faux-fur coat that looks just like her pet Dalmatian (the caption identifies them as "spots fans"); the world's widest street (in Buenos Aires) by night looks great next to a grassy highway overpass for grizzly bears in Alberta; and the famous green-eyed Afghan refugee poses in a purple burkha with her 1985 National Geographic cover. There's also a fuzzy shot of a 1907 inventor testing a multi-winged "Katydid" flying machine contrasts with a crisp 1974 shot of Skylab soaring far above fluffy clouds; newborns are lined up like bread loaves in Shanghai. This is a beautiful collection of photographs drawn from an amazing archive. --Tim Appelo, Amazon.com