The universe has endless scenery and moments that would leave us in awe. Experiencing the beauty of nature as it unfolds is something not all of us have the opportunity to do but with the help of photos, we might get a sense of what it's like.
Looking at photos is different from the real thing but it does capture much of its essence. It leaves us wanting more of it, to know and see it with our own eyes. Photography has given us a gateway toward seeing the universe in a new light.
There are probably millions of stills from nature that would give us an idea of how wonderful it is. But for Marvin Heiferman, he is able to do that with 224 photos collated from various science photographers and photojournalists.
In his new book "Seeing Science: How Photography Reveals the Universe", he consolidates all past work and curates a lot of stories, images, and essays that show us how nature and the universe move, change, and grow. It gives us a concise picture of the state of our world.
The 70 themed chapters (corralled into parts called ‘Knowledge’, ‘Culture’ and ‘Imagination’) reveal a range of approaches to framing photographic projects. Some chapters feature analysis by five or so panellists: photographers, historians, cultural theorists. These were developed as conversations that took place online, with a virtual audience. They feel guarded at times — often too broad, and therefore less engaging.
What works better are the chapters featuring photographers’ own words, or Heiferman’s distilled biographies of the images’ creators alongside descriptions of the science of the time. Here, we recall that we’re seeing science through that artist’s particular lens.
You may take a look at some photos from the book which have been featured on Nature Magazine online.
(Image credit: Wikimedia Commons)