Terri Weifenbach is an American photographer who thinks "bookmaking is central to [her] artistic practice". She published her first book, 'In Your Dreams', in 1997 - which was included in 'The Photobook: A History Volume 2' by Martin Parr and Gerry Badger - and had authored 18 more publications. During the span of her career, she has had many solo and group exhibitions internationally, and her work has been published in magazines such as The New Yorker. As well as being a successful photographer, she is also a "renowned teacher" - she's taught national and international workshops as well as taught at Georgetown University and is a lecturer at American University. 

Her work, in my opinion, is similar to that of Uta Barth through the camera techniques used. Weifenbach uses shallow depth of field and bokeh in her work, similarly to Barth. She also experiments with exposure - whilst most of her work is to a correct exposure, some seem almost under/over exposed. Sometimes, she will include two versions of the same subject with slightly adjusted exposures.

I like the simplistic approach to this cover, something that is reflected in her other work. The main colour of the book compliments the many tones of the photograph. The image also sets up the content of the book nicely.

The title, translated in English to 'birds', sets up the content by telling the viewer what to look out for as there is a repetitive motif of birds running throughout the book. However, by using a different language, she is making the viewer (assuming they are an English speaker like myself) think. When I first saw the book, it took me a while to fully notice the bird motif because I wasn't necessarily looking for it. I think this is a really interesting way to link the images together as it is such a small detail that you really have to look at the images to see. It also makes you look at the images longer, makes you more interested, because you are trying to find something. Despite the motifs, I like the variation of the images. For example, the snowy image doesn't fit into the same aesthetic as the garden images, nor does the extremely under exposed image either. 

I like how the selection explores different techniques, for example, shallow depth of field and exposure. Some images appear to have more of a 'correct' exposure, whereas others appear more under exposed. Mostly, in this work, unlike others, her use of shallow depth of field is used to draw the attention to a certain aspect by blurring the foreground or the background. I think this is a good use of the technique for this work because it helps draw your attention to the birds and the delicate trees which are a frequent feature in her work.

Some of the images from this book were used alongside another book called 'Centre of Gravity' as a portfolio.

These two images drew my attention out of all of the photographs in the book. the slight contrast between images is highlighted because they have been placed together, a decision that I think was purposeful. There is a slight difference in exposure, with the image on the right being slightly under exposed - I think this Ould be an interesting technique to explore in my work as I like showing how an object can be changed by how it is portrayed with light. The set also show the progression of 'real time' as we see the birds appear and disappear and move, showing how the images were taken at an interval.

I really like the image on the cover of this book, it reminds me (just as many other pieces of her work) of paints by the likes of Monet. I think it is interesting that this image isn't involved in the rest of the book, it is also interesting that it doesn't really set up the book like others of her work do.However, her website states that this book is a work in progress, therefore, the meaning could become more apparent once it is finalised. 

I really like the wide array of subjects in this book. From the title 'Cloud Physics', one would immediately assume the book is primarily made of images of the sky, and whilst this is partially correct, I like how she has included different images as well because it throws the viewer off and splits up the images of clouds. Despite this, I really like the images she has included of the clouds because they show different times of the day and different seasons/weather. I think this differentiation between the images aids to the 'physics' part of the title. I like how with most of the sky images, there is another focus, either it be insects, trees, birds or peculiar objects in the foreground. I really like the image of the dark sky as it gives a mysterious atmosphere that feels quite ominous, with the pitch black trees and the only light source coming from the lightning bolt. I think it is the most effect image of the sky.

It is odd how she has included the first five images because they don't relate to each other nor do they relate to the title or the images of the sky. But, much like the cover, some of this could become more apparent in the final version of the book. This, however, doesn't mean I don't think they are effective because each is artistically strong and create an individual aesthetic.

This image strongly relates to my work with Weifenbach's use of bokeh and close-up flower photography. As with my own work and the work of Uta Barth, I like the softness created in the aesthetic. The only thing part of the image that is in focus are the leaves and this makes for a beautiful image. The blurred petals also give the impression of a cloud, relating to the title.

I think this image is really strong, most especially in its technical elements. I like the impression of peering through that is created through the camera's position and how the vines almost frame the tree. 

This cover runs with her style fo including an image from the book on the cover, but, I think the overall cover is slightly boring. Nevertheless, it fits with her professionalism as it isn't too garish and more simplistic.

The selection of images in this book are rather different, however, they all carry the spring time aesthetic that is set up through the title, 'The May Sun'. The only images that I don't think fit with this aesthetic is the images of the pressed flowers at the end of the book. The monochromatic colour scheme doesn't fit with the vibrancy of then rest of her work, making them seem very out of place. The rest of the images in the set are beautiful and artistic. I really like her use of bokeh and shallow depth of field in this book that sets a soft and happy atmosphere. In my opinion, the book seems a bit like a study in spring and nature. From the close-ups of flowers to the images of the pressed flowers. 

I really like the feelings that are created from this image. There are strong feelings of isolation and a slight eeriness to the image because of the singularity that is given to the web. The drab colours of the background aid these feelings because it gives the impression that nothing is happening behind the web. The background of the image is almost split into thirds through colour and light. Whilst the bottom third is clearly distinguishable through its stark green, the sky is separated through the dull grey and then the sharp white, changing the tones of the web.

This cover strays from Weifenbach;s natural style to book design. It includes a full bleed image for the cover, where the image's opacity has been altered. The main cover of the book is shown as the sleeve, hiding the 'real' book from the view. This is a version of the book I found on google and it's design inspired me and interested me as it as very different to that of her other work. It also showed that the book had a fabric cover - evidenced through the embossed text on the spine - which gave evidence to the presumed texture of her other books as well because you could never properly tell from the images on her site.

I really like the selection in this book because they all have a very similar aesthetic and relate to each other through their content, colour schemes, techniques, and vibes. I think this book is a study of a place - the place being this house - even though the image of the tulip and the image of the flower bush could have been taken any where. The other images give the impression of observing from a far. There is almost an ominous sense to them when you think deeper about the images because you feel like you shouldn't be able to see this, you feel like an intruder, a stalker. The title, 'Still', also gives this impression because the occupants of the house are (to our knowledge as a first time viewer) unaware of Weifenbach's presence. The shallow depth of field in the foreground of the tow images below further aids this theory.

This book was a collaboration with the photographer, Rink Kawauchi. What I like about this book is how they have designed it so that when the two books sit adjacent, the title is formed. I like that one isn't without the other, the ideas of unity.

I like how they have played with the sizes of the images in this book. Personally, I am not the most keen on the large amounts of blank space, but I think it worked with the images provided. Each image is almost widely different to the other, so separating them slightly gives the book a different feel. Since we don't see the images together, we don't immediately see the connection and reason behind including them in the same book.

I like the double spread images, I think if the book is bound correctly, those can be really powerful because they allow you to see the image clearer. As these books appear to be perfect bound, I don't image the double page images being easily seen and looked at because some of the image would get lost in the gutter.

As Weifenbach's first book, I think the cover is fairly sophisticated and tame. I can assume the the cover is made of fabric due to the texture created in the image - this seemed to start a theme with her book making because most of her covers appear to have fabric covers. I like this as I think it makes the book more real and purposeful and less like a bunch of printed images.

The images of the book reflect the title, 'In Your Dreams', because, generally, dreams are where everything is heightened, and in that is carried through with these images. Everything is bright and colourful which goes hand in hand with dreams, both in the sense of having 'big dreams' for your future, or the dreams you experience when you go to sleep.

I really like the high saturation of these images. Most of Weifenbach's images do work with a high saturation, however, these really jump out at you, especially the warm tones of red and pink. They are very accentuated in each image they appear in; one in particular where the red flower is in the mid-ground and is slightly out of focus and yet it is the first thing that draws attention out of the entire images. There are consisted colours in the book, all connoting summer and warmth, in my opinion. The bright blue skies appear in almost every image bar one, where the sky appears burned out. However, this works with the image because it makes the yellows and greens of the tree leaves stand out more. 

The images of the book reflect the title, 'In Your Dreams', because, generally, dreams are where everything is heightened, and in that is carried through with these images.

This image stand out from the rest as it is the only one that doesn't include any plant life. On the surface, it is boring and simple with not a lot going on. However, I think it fits with the exciting content of the other images, adding a break from the bright and saturated images.

I think this cover is poorly designed because the text is quite hard to read on such a dark background as it is so small and thin. 

I love the aesthetic of these images as a whole. Although, the first two in the set seem to sit apart from the rest, taking on a gloomier colour palettes, contrasting to the vibrancy of the other images. I like the varying ways shallow depth of field and bokeh were used; I think it works really well with this colour palette because the colours compliment each other really well and the blur blends them together.

This was a collaboration between Weifenbach and John Gossage. I really don't like this cover, I think it is graphically boring and uoestn reflect the excitement of her work - although, I think this is where most of her covers lack. It is very sophisticated and straight to the point with a serif font that is probably the worst part of the design, in my opinion.

I like the design of this book, especially the way the pages alternate the placement of the bigger image. The almost unnoticeable pattern is something I would like to explore in my work.

It is interesting how they have designed the book so Weifenbach's images always appear as the singular, large and colourful image, whereas Gossage's work always appears opposite. I like how they paired/grouped some of Gossage's image and left others to be on their own, it makes it feel as though some images are more important than others.

Overall, the book appears rather busy. This is a contrast to her later book, 'Gift', where the images are very spread out with copious amounts of blank space.

There is a lot of consistency in Weifenbach's book design. 

- She always includes an image on the cover. Mostly, it sits rather central and small on the cover, however, 'Des Oiseaux' and 'Cloud Physics' contrast this theme by making the image larger and off centre. Completely disregarding the normal style is 'Still', it appears in later years she experimented with different designs compared to the more traditional approach of her first books.

- She uses fabric on most of her books, making us assume the books are hard cover. This is only an assumption because of the photographs I have sourced from her website.

- She uses simple text, varying between serif and sans serif. The text is generally small and limited to what is necessary: e.g. title and name.

REFERENCES:

https://terriweifenbach.com/Artist.asp?ArtistID=46680&Akey=PRGJQ8C4&ajx=1