ALINE SMITHSON, Lenscratch Founder and Editor

ALINE SMITHSON is an interdisciplinary artist, editor, filmmaker, and educator based in Los Angeles, California. She has exhibited widely including over 50 solo shows at a variety of international institutions and her work has been featured in publications including The New York Times, The New Yorker, and PDN.

Smithson is the Founder and Editor- in-Chief of Lenscratch, a daily journal on photography.  In 2012, she received the Rising Star Award through the Griffin Museum of Photography for her contributions to the photographic community and she also received the prestigious Excellence in Teaching Award from CENTER. In 2014, 2019, and 2025, Smithson’s work was selected for the Critical Mass Top 50.  The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum commissioned Smithson to create a series of portraits for the upcoming Faces of Our Planet Exhibition. In 2018 and 2019, her work was exhibited in the National Portrait Gallery in London as part of the Taylor Wessing Prize. Kris Graves Projects published her book, LOST II: Los Angeles and included her work in SOLACE and On Death. Peanut Press released her monograph, Fugue State. In 2022, she was named a Hasselblad Heroine.

Instagram: @alinesmithson

FAVORITE BOOK of 2025

©Kevin Cooley, The Wizard of Awe, published by The Eriskay Collection

So what happens when the person who documents fire, becomes the documented? While photographing the fires in the Palisades, Cooley’s own home was destroyed in the the Altadena fires as seen on his instagram. After evacuating, he left to photograph the destruction on both ends of Los Angeles…the Pacific Palisades, Malibu, and Altadena.

The irony is that Cooley had just released a new monograph through The Eriskay Collection, titled The Wizard of Awe. It’s a difficult and fascinating story of another man’s journey with fire and smoke, a story that had unexpected consequences for a pyrotechnic junkie named Ken Miller.

FAVORITE EXHIBITION of 2025

©Laetitia Ky, from the Love & Justice exhibition

Laetitia Ky, Love & Justice at the Kyoto Graphie International Photography Exhibition, Japan

It’s not that often that I am moved to tears in an exhibition, but this was one of them. Ky’s honest sharing of her journey of empowerment, activism, and embracing Black Beauty, using hair and creativity to share her stories was truly profound and inspirational.

The Ted Talk below shares more about her work.

SARA BENNETT, Lenscratch Editor

SARA BENNETT, a 2024 Guggenheim fellow, is a former public defender who primarily photographs women with life sentences, both inside and outside prison, as a way to draw attention to the problems of mass incarceration. Her work has been widely exhibited in museums and galleries, including group shows at Blanton Museum of Art’s Day Jobs, MoMA PS1’s Marking Time: Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration and the Museum of the City of New York’s New York Now: Home, and at solo shows including the Blue Sky Gallery in Portland, Oregon, Photoville in Brooklyn, New York, and Rotterdam Photo 2023. Her work is in the collection of, among others, the John Hays Library at Brown University, the Cantor Museum of Arts at Stanford University, and the Museum of the City of New York, and has been featured in such publications as The New York Times, The New Yorker Photo Booth, and Variety & Rolling Stone’s American (In)Justice. She is the 2023 Emerging Laureate of the International Women in Photo Association.

Instagram: @sarabennettbrooklyn

FAVORITE BOOK of 2025

Holy Land USA published by Stanley/Barker,features photos taken over the course of one year in the early 1980s in Waterbury, Connecticut, by Lisa Barlow, then a young college student who became embedded in a small town close to her college campus. The black and white film photos are absolutely gorgeous and the book is one I keep on pulling off my shelf to study—the composition, the light, the connection with the people she photographs.

FAVORITE EXHIBITION of 2025

The Lams of Ludlow Street at Baxter Street Camera Club in New York City—a solo exhibition of Thomas Holton’s two-decade-long series on a single family in New York City’s Chinatown. From the very beginning, Holton’s eye was impeccable, and as the years go by — and he becomes closer and closer to the family he is photographing until he becomes an honorary member — he and the family grow older, the photographs morph into color, and his work becomes more and more nuanced. I have been following for over a decade, and I’m still blown away by it every time I see it.

FAVORITE NEW DISCOVERY

My mother, who died a few years ago, could have been a Jane Austen scholar, given how many times she read her books and how deeply she thought about them. But, as mother/daughter relationships often go, I never gave my mother the satisfaction of my reading the books until this year, when I can no longer discuss them with her. Even though I won’t reread them in the years to come, I do now I understand her fascination. They feel surprisingly contemporary and I’m glad I finally read them.

MICHAEL HONEGGER, Lenscratch European Editor

MICHAEL HONEGGER is a visual artist born in Germany with a B.A. in History & Spanish from Duke University, a M.S. in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and a Professional Certificate in Visual Arts from Maine Media College. His practice as a fine art and documentary photographer explores the performative nature of self-portraiture, the complexities of memory and family and an investigation of the ironies of American culture with an expatriate’s eye. He has exhibited his work in numerous juried group shows throughout the United State and Europe including the Center for Fine Art Photography, Photo Place Gallery, A.Smith Gallery, the Southeast Center for Photography and P.H. 21 Gallery among others. His documentary project on the refugee crisis on the island of Lesvos, Greece in 2015 was widely published in major European newspapers and by Amnesty International in their initial press release on the crisis. The Economist The Guardian, Newsweek and Lenscratch have also published his images. He currently resides in Nice, France and has lived in France for the past 14 years. His autobiographical monograph, The Need to Know, has received numerous prizes and recognition, published by Blow-Up Press.

Instagram @michaelhoneggerphotos

Dan Estabrook’s, “Forever and Never” The book is photographic theater in three acts with the photographer as magician in a starring role. But the book is much more than a multi trick pony as Estabrook delves into the layered realms of time and memory, love and death as well as a pastiche of the origins of photography.

FAVORITE EXHIBITION of 2025

Wolfgang Tillman Exhibition

Wolfgang Tillman Exhibition

Wolfgang Tillman’s takeover of the Pompidou‘s second floor just before the museum closed for the next five years.  The exhibition included the full array of Tillman’s talents with photographs, videos, installations and more.  A delightful romp through a vast series of nooks and crannies.

FAVORITE DISCOVERY 

The Art Island of Naoshima, Japan  A stunning immersion into the contemporary art of Japan with occasional foreign wunderkinds represented including James Turrell and Claude Monet…in a magnificent landscape totally devoted to art and architecture.

FAVORITE MOVIE  

The Blue Caftan by Maryann Touzani A middle-aged tailor and his wife find their relationship turned upside down by the arrival of a handsome new apprentice. A Moroccan gem of a film about the depth of love at many levels.

https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Caftan-Lubna-Azabel/dp/B0B8JFXPJ2

MONTSE CARTY, Lenscratch Editor

Montserrat Andrée Carty (Jusseaume) is a writer and photographer. She also hosts the podcast Musings of the Artist and is the Interviews Editor for Hunger Mountain. Montserrat is named after a mountain just outside Barcelona, Spain where she spent her early childhood. She is dual-national (Spain / US) and grew up in a cultural stew, with a Spanish-French mother, a Colombian-born father and Argentine stepmother. She has worked in various areas of the art world at Sony Music, Pandora, the San Francisco Symphony, Boston Ballet and Goodreads. She currently teaches at Berklee College of Music (Online). She has an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts, MS from Boston University and BM from Berklee College of Music, where she extended her studies in Dance at the Boston Conservatory and Theatre at London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts.

Instagram: @montseandree

 FAVORITE BOOK of 2025

©Odette England, To Be Developed, To Be Continued, published by Tall Poppy Press

One or two sentences why you selected it: What can I say, I love everything Odette England makes and this book is no exception! Her work is playful, thoughtful, beautiful and not afraid to get messy. I so enjoy hearing Odette talk about her process and was lucky to be in conversation with her about her new book this year. She also did a fabulous interview with LACP a few years ago that is quite inspiring!

ELIZABETH STONE, Lenscratch Editor (with a focus on Photographic Educators)

Elizabeth Stone is a Montana-based visual artist exploring potent themes of memory and time deeply rooted within the ambiguity of photography. Stone’s work has been exhibited and is held in collections including the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas; Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, Arizona; Cassilhaus, Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Yellowstone Art Museum, Billings, Montana; Candela Collection, Richmond, Virginia; Archive 192, New York, New York; and the Nevada Museum of Art Special Collections Library, Reno, Nevada. Fellowships include Cassilhaus, Ucross Foundation, Jentel Arts, Willapa Bay AIR, the National Park Service, and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts through the Montana Fellowship award from the LEAW Foundation (2019). Process drives Stone’s work as she continues to push and pull at the edge of what defines and how we see the photograph.

Instagram: @elizabethstonevisualartist/

FAVORITE BOOK of 2025

©Aaron Rothman, The Sierra published by the Eriskay Connection

Aaron Rothman
The Sierra

The Sierra by Aaron Rothman pairs stunning precipitous photographs of the Sierra Nevada with Leah Ollman’s silvery prose. The book’s tactile materials deepen the experience—it simply feels good to hold in your hands.

FAVORITE EXHIBITION of 2025

Deer Diary by Lauren Grabelle
Missoula Art Museum

The Deer Diary exhibition took me by surprise, and the images lingered in my mind for weeks afterward. Starting with a trail camera, artist Lauren Grabelle weaves an otherworldly narrative about her animal neighbors in Montana.

FAVORITE DISCOVERY 

Guy Dickinson
Guy Dickinson’s art work appeared on my Instagram feed and I couldn’t look away. I was transported.

FAVORITE MOVIE
I watch it every year, Days of Heaven 1978 film written and directed by Terrence Malick. Starring Brooke Adams, Richard Gere, Sam Shepard and Linda Manz.

LAILA NAHAR, Lenscratch Artist’s Books Editor

Laila Nahar is a lens-based artist and book-maker in California, USA. She lived her life in stark cultural contrast, born and brought up in Bangladesh and eventually migrated to US in her late 20’s for pursuing higher studies in Engineering. Laila recently retired from the high-tech industry after 24 years to devote full-time for the passion of her life as a photo and book artist. Her background from Bangladesh continues to shape her artistic identity and her work goes back to her roots in the Indian subcontinent, namely Bangladesh and India.

Laila’s handmade artist photo books are in permanent collections of several University libraries including The Fleet Library, Rhode Island School of Design, Boatwright Memorial Library, University of Richmond, Virginia, University of Colorado Libraries, Boulder and Museum of Fine Arts (Houston). Laila had solo exhibitions from ‘Memories from Bangladesh’ series in Steps Gallery (Arizona) and Nelson Gallery (California). Photographs from this series are in permanent collections of ASU and UCDavis photography Museums. Photographs by Laila has been displayed in several group exhibitions by Viewpoint Gallery, UC Berkeley, PH21, PhotoPlace, Griffin Museum of Photography, curatedfridge.

Instagram: @naharlaila

FAVORITE BOOK of 2025

©Yael Martinez, Firefly

©Yael Martinez

Firefly by Yael Martinez

I discovered Firefly by Yael Martinez this year. Yael physically intervened in his photographs which, literally and symbolically, represents his shift from straightforward documentation to creating images and experimenting with collages. Spent hours in this book pondering how it meditates on resilience by shining light on trauma of disappearance, memory and hope, literally and symbolically.

FAVORITE EXHIBITION of 2025

Turning the Page, Pier 24

This exhibition, the very last one held by Pier 24, was in celebration of photobooks by all these artists (under the same roof, in different rooms): Richard Avedon | Libby Black | Rose Marie Cromwell | Rineke Dijkstra | Robert Frank | Masahisa Fukase | Jim Goldberg | Curran Hatleberg | Rinko Kawauchi | Baldwin Lee | Helen Levitt | Zanele Muholi | Cindy Sherman | Donavon Smallwood | Alec Soth | Larry Sultan | Ed Templeton | Vasantha Yogananthan.

Brilliant but very sad also, since it was the last exhibition by Pier 24. Once in a lifetime kind of experience.

FAVORITE DISCOVERY

Sikkim – one of the most beautiful places on earth where we encountered waterfalls in every corner while going through a 8-hour long extremely bumpy and dangerous ride. Beauty and danger lie next to each other. Also, the momos and roasted corn were amazing.

FAVORITE SONG (from any period of time)
If you can find a link, otherwise just the title and artist.

Ghodey Pe Sawaar (Tripti Dimri |Amit Trivedi, Amitabh Bhattacharya, Sireesha B)

Reminds me of old times; I cannot stop humming this song.

Dragula by Rob Zombie –

On opposite spectrum.

EPIPHANY KNEDLER, Lenscratch Editor

Epiphany Knedler is an interdisciplinary artist + educator exploring the ways we engage with history. she is inspired by the aesthetics and geopolitical landscapes of the midwest, surveying the storied past of bold exploration and quiet melancholy. she graduated from the university of south dakota with a BFA in studio art and a BA in political science and completed her MFA in studio art with an emphasis in photography at east carolina university. she is based in aberdeen, south dakota serving as an assistant professor of art and art history and the coordinator of the art department, the co-curator for the art collective midwest nice art, with her husband, tim rickett. her work has been exhibited in the New York Times, the Guardian, Vermont Center for Photography, Lenscratch, Dek Unu Arts, and awarded through the Lucie Foundation, Lensculture, F-Stop Magazine, and Photolucida Critical Mass.

Instagram: @epiphanysk

Delegation – Wendy Red Star

History is Painted by the Victors, Kent Monkman, Denver Art Museum

FAVORITE DISCOVERY

I have two!

Taskmaster

I know it’s been around for awhile, but it’s a new find for my husband and I! So entertaining.

Art in the After-Culture: Capitalist Crisis and Cultural Strategy, by Ben Davis

One of my friends, Eli Show, recommended this book and it has been a really nice change of pace from the traditional early post-modern critiques of the art world.

FAVORITE SONG (from any period of time)

My recent go-to is Talk Is Cheap by Dr. Dog!

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SUZANNE THEODORA WHITE, Lenscratch Editor

Trained as a painter, SUZANNE THEODORA WHITE studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Tufts University, and completed her MFA at Maine Media Workshops and College. She was a two-time winner of fellowships awarded by the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. After receiving the first of these awards, she spent eighteen months on the road traveling alone, overland, through Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the Far East. In the 1980’s and 90’s she made extended trips to Central and South America to catalog birds in the Amazon basin and Central America.

Suzanne has had many solo exhibitions and has been included in group shows over her long career, some of which are listed here: Yale University, New Haven, CT; Cove Street Arts, Portland, ME; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; The De Cordova Museum, Lincoln, MA; Newport Art Museum, Newport, RI; Art Institute of Boston; Thomas Segal Gallery, Boston, MA; The French Embassy, NY, NY; and Colby College, Waterville, ME.

Suzanne lives in Maine with her two dogs and a large flock of chickens

Instagram: @shepherdess1

©Courtland Bennett, The Dragon

When considering my Favorite Things of 2025,   I have opted for choosing one of my husband’s sculptures.

In the last years of my husband’s life, he began to lose his eyesight.  Nonetheless he continued to work, carving by feel, making what he called unnecessary wooden objects. While most of them are abstract this one, which I think of as an enchanted dragon – is one of my favorites. As an artist Court had a whimsical mind.  He had a way of seeing beyond the appearance of things as if his loss of sight meant nothing. This little sculpture makes me smile and it I sense his continued presence in my life.

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 LINDA ALTERWITZ, Art and Science Editor

Ensnaring the Moment: On the Intersection of Poetry and Photography by Leah Ollman

FAVORITE EXHIBITION of 2025 

Richard Mosse: Broken Spectre. The color, scale, and intensity of Mosse’s images create a beautifully science-infused, thought-provoking experience.

https://artvault.thomafoundation.org/richard-mosse-broken-spectres/, Santa Fe, New Mexico

©Chance DeVille, Growing Tired of Calloused Knees, plublished by Gnomic Book

Chance Deville: Growing Tired of Calloused Knees,  Published by Gnomic Book, Spring 2025.

This monograph by Chance Deville is astounding in its intimacy, especially the depictions of his mother. The collaborative process with his mother and her story honors her in a way we don’t typically get to see, or understand the complexities of someone’s personal history.

FAVORITE EXHIBITION of 2025

©Amy Lovera

Amy Lovera, Securing Shadows at the Wallace Anderson Gallery at Bridgewater State University, MA

The large format photograms created by Amy Lovera are magical and withholding at the same time, created with her children to reenact moments of joy and mystery as a parent. Her ability to tell stories through her images is unique in its approach and ability to nurture symbols and objects to coalesce in a single image.

FAVORITE DISCOVERY

My favorite discovery is Behind VA Shadows in Cambridge, MA. This artist run space was founded by museum workers in Boston, and is incredible in how it thinks about who and how we can consume art in Massachusetts. The rotation of exhibitions in a window format is compelling in how making art accessible and live outside of a white cube space.

FAVORITE SONG

Doechii – NISSAN ALTIMA

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ANA LEAL, South American Lenscratch Editor

Born in Recife and based in São Paulo, ANA LEAL is an artist who works primarily in photography exploring themes of fragility, temporariness and impermanence. Inspired by impressionism and minimalism her images share an abstract aesthetic.

Instagram: @analealphoto

FAVORITE PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK 2025

©Alex Lovett, Summer’s Almost Gone

Summer’s Almost Gone, by Alex Lovett, is a splendid and quietly elegiac book—one that reflects on the passage and persistence of time, the power of embodied experience, and the paradoxical way photography both connects us and returns us to our own ontological solitude. It approaches the future not as a source of anxiety, but as an unfixed enigma, open and resonant.

What captivated me most, however, is not only the imagery itself but the way the book is physically conceived. Each spread unfolds as a four-part polyptych, inviting a rhythmic, almost meditative reading of sequences. The deep, near-black paper and the enigmatic black cover heighten the sense of mystery and potency, giving the work a material gravity that mirrors the emotional terrain of the photographs. The book becomes an object to inhabit slowly—a tactile extension of its themes of transience, presence, and quiet revelation.

FAVORITE EXHIBITION OF 2025

I had the pleasure of visiting Huis Marseille, Museum for Photography in Amsterdam in September 2025 and I was absolutely struck by the experience. The museum occupies two historic canal houses dating from around 1665 — the kind of elegant, old-world architecture that evokes centuries of history. Walking inside, I was enchanted by how the classical structure of the house merges with contemporary photographic exhibitions.  The contrast between the timeless physical space and the modernity of photography makes the museum a unique place.

The exhibitions I saw there were wonderful — varied, vibrant, and thoughtfully curated. But beyond any single show, what impressed me most was the museum as a whole: a place that houses multiple photography exhibitions, constantly renewing, offering a rich panorama of artistic visions. For anyone who loves photography, this is a destination not to be missed.

FAVORITE DISCOVERY

Nine Days Motion Picture

One of the greatest discoveries of my year — and truly one of the most remarkable revelations of recent years — was the film Nine Days, directed by Edson Oda. It wasn’t just a beautiful cinematic encounter; it felt like an awakening. The film is breathtaking in its visual poetry, guided by a sublime score that deepens every emotional contour.

Nine Days invites you to reconsider so many aspects of your own life — its choices, its fragilities, its mysteries — with a gentleness that is nonetheless profoundly transformative. It lingers in the mind and heart long after the credits roll.

For me, it was nothing short of extraordinary, an experience I would call essential. Truly unmissable.

FAVORITE SONG

Dusk Light Movement – Beethoven Blues – Jon Baptiste

My absolute favorite piece of music in 2025 was “Dusk Light Movement,” from Beethoven Blues by Jon Batiste — an album in which he reimagines and interprets Beethoven’s works with astonishing originality. The entire album is wonderful, but this track, along with “Moonlight Sonata Blues,” feels especially meaningful to me.

What I love most is the remarkable freshness Batiste brings to Beethoven. His interpretations are vibrant, inventive, and deeply respectful, yet they carve out something entirely new — a true contemporary renewal of these classical masterpieces.

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KAREN BULLOCK, Lenscratch Editor

KAREN BULLOCK is known for her documentary-style photographs of the American South, with a focus on expressions of faith, considerations of home, and the enduring spirit of nature. Primarily lens-based, her practice uses vivid color and light to explore the unheard voice via gesture, sense of place, and mood.

Featured in Lenscratch, Karen’s project, Presence Obscured, was selected for PhotoNola’s Currents at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, Atlanta Photography Group’s Portfolio 2020, and PhotoLucida’s Critical Mass Top 200. Her series, See Me, was included in the Rfotofolio’s Selections. Her work has been featured in over 30 exhibitions and various publications.

Most of her photographs are made during road trips. Sometimes Karen travels solo but since being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2021, she prefers to go with other photographer friends when taking longer trips. In 2023, Karen and her husband took a three-month cross-country road trip in a mini camper with their two dogs. She made photographs almost every day.

In addition to photography, Karen enjoys curating and collaborating to create group installations that foster community.

Instagram: @karenbpix

FAVORITE BOOK of 2025

Emerald Drifters by Cig Harvey, published by Monacelli, 2025 Photo by Karen Bullock

Emerald Drifters by Cig Harvey, published by Monacelli, 2025 Photo by Karen Bullock

My favorite book of 2025 is Emerald Drifters by Cig Harvey, published by Monacelli. Drenched in luminous color and the extravagant beauty of life, the photographs remind me that this world is glorious. Cig encourages us to “Be here now” lest we miss it.

I do not think we should close our eyes to pain, hardship, injustice, or daily headlines, but neither should we lose sight of hope. This book is a call to live, to notice, to appreciate a slant of light, fallen blossoms, and all that is delectable in the ordinary because, as Cig writes, “Beauty makes people better: better neighbors, better lovers, better custodians of the planet.”

FAVORITE EXHIBITION of 2025

 

©The Do Good Fund, In Threes: Photographs by Maude Schuyler Clay, Langdon Clay, and Sophia Clay.

©Ashley Gates, Sophia, Maude, and Langdon Clay at 1019

It takes about four hours to drive from my house to The Do Good Fund in Columbus, Georgia. When I went to see In Threes: Photographs by Maude Schuyler Clay, Langdon Clay, and Sophia Clay, curated by photographer/editor Ashley Gates, one of my friends called it a pilgrimage. It was. Chills went down my arms—it was that good. My laughter echoed through the room when I saw Golden Shower by Sophia. I stood, looking for a long time at Langdon Cutting Negatives by Maude, Ray’s Hats-First Lesson Free and Maudie and Willie by Langdon. I didn’t want to leave. I wish there was a book; I would turn to it often.

Unfortunately, I missed seeing Ashley’s companion exhibit Housesitting, an ongoing series that began in the Clay family home. The two exhibits are now at 1019 in New Orleans until January 10. I plan to go see it next week.

FAVORITE DISCOVERY

© Karen Bullock, Heat Intolerance, Maine, 2025, @karenbpix

Some of my favorite discoveries happened on photo road trips through Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia with my friends. I also loved rediscovering Midcoast Maine with my husband and new friends this summer when I attended a workshop at Maine Media led by Sal Taylor Kydd. More recently, it has been fun to squish some clay at Moonstruck Pottery. I am an introvert. I create my best work when I am alone, but I learn and gain inspiration in the community of other artists.

© Karen Bullock, Dad at 91 Taking a Walk, 2022, @karenbpix, http://www.karenbphotos.com

FAVORITE PLAYLIST

I enjoy listening to audiobooks, classic rock, blues, some country, bluegrass, and indie music. I love listening to my husband sing Bob Dylan songs. Right now, my favorite playlist is 39 hours long! I made it for my dad when he was still alive so he could listen to his favorite classical music in the car, in the hospital, or wherever he had his phone. I miss him every day. When I hear music that I wish I could share with him I add it to the list. Dad’s Tunes – playlist by KB | Spotify

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DEANNA DIKEMAN, Lenscratch Editor

Deanna Dikeman was born in 1954 in Sioux City, Iowa, USA, and currently resides in Kansas City. She has photographed her midwestern family and surroundings since 1985, when she left a corporate job to try a photography class. She has M.S. and B.S. degrees from Purdue University. She received an Aaron Siskind Foundation Fellowship in 1996, and the United States Artists Booth Fellowship in 2008. She is a 2023 Guggenheim Fellow.  “A Photographer’s Parents Wave Farewell” was one of the top 25 stories of 2020 in The New Yorker. She has two photobooks published by Chose Commune: Leaving and Waving in 2021 and Relative Moments in 2024. Leaving and Waving received the 2021 Prix Nadar awarded by the Association Gens d’Images in France. The book also was a finalist for the 2021 Paris Photo/Aperture Foundation First PhotoBook Award. Photographs from Leaving and Waving have been exhibited at festivals, museums, and galleries in fourteen countries: Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland, the UK, and the United States.

Instagram: @deannadikeman

FAVORITE PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK of 2025

Where the Light Came In by Judith Black, published by Stanley Barker 2025

Where the Light Came In

by Judith Black, published by Stanley Barker 2025

 

Once again, Judith Black shares her family with us. When you open this book, you will want to touch the pages and run your finger over the small glossy square photos. The book is small in size which makes it lovely to hold. It’s a beautiful object as well as a book of beautiful, tender photos.

Self-Portrait, Philidelphia, 1967” by Ray Metzker.

More Is More: Reinventing Photography Beyond the Frame
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

I got so excited when I visited this show because it took me back to thinking about analog film and the contact sheets I used to make. I have never seen the contact print “Self-Portrait, Philidelphia, 1967” by Ray Metzker. So little says so much.

FAVORITE DISCOVERY AND FAVORITE RECIPE

Chantilly Choux dessert

Bouillon Julien restaurant in Paris