In 1956 Robert Balcomb studied with American Master Photographer William Mortensen in his Laguna Beach studio. This long-awaited book on Balcomb's time with Mortensen is a richly illustrated, inside look at one of the world's finest Pictorialist photographers of the last century. The author delves into the lessons that he learned from the Master, and describes how he took the teachings and made them his own over a successful fifty-four-year career as a fine portrait photographer. In addition to the numerous photos and illustrations accompanying the text is a gallery of eighty-two portraits, still lifes, and pictorials from Balcomb's long career, and six Mortensen prints-some being published for the first time. Every now and then there comes along a photographer who, in every sense of the word, is an "artist." Robert Balcomb is that man: He has accomplished with his camera what Master painters have done for centuries. -John Isaac, former Head of the United Nations Photography Unit. Balcomb's portraits are original works of art on a plateau of their own. They are insightful... they are creative... they are live... they connect the observer to the person on the paper emotionally. -Al Stewart, photographer, trumpeter for Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, Dizzy Gillespie, Billy May, Harry Belafonte, Lena Horne, Tony Bennett, Della Reese, Judy Garland. From the Foreword: Of all Mortensen's students, I have always felt that Robert Balcomb's work comes the closest to capturing the feel, both technically and emotionally, of his later images. For that he is to be congratulated. Robert truly took up the torch of Mortensen's work while clearly making his work his own. That is a difficult thing to do. -Larry Lytle, Mortensen scholar, contributing author to Mortensen: A Revival, Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, Arizona.

Me And Mortensen - Photography with the Master

Arts & Photography

Robert Balcomb

Photography & Video

Amphora Editions

Between 1919 and 1923, Kenneth Balcomb was assigned a WWI Army surplus Model T while he worked as an engineer for the United States Bureau of Public Roads, traveling over 63,000 miles to survey, inspect, and construct highways in New Mexico. This important book is a snapshot of a unique time in America, right when the country was converting from the horse-and-buggy to that new-fangled contraption, the automobile. Trails and roads, if there were any at all, were deeply rutted from wagon wheels and littered with nails, screws, and spikes that had fallen off of supply wagons. Maneuvering through the countryside and over mountain passes, day or night, proved to be for the hardy of spirit and was a true test of stamina.

Me & the Model T: 63,000 Miles in Mr. Ford’s Wonder Car

Kenneth C. Balcomb

Price at publication $29.00. From radio to scores of TV and movie soundtracks, Artie Kane's music has touched and inspired millions of people. In his newly released memoir, "Music To My Years: Life and Love Between the Notes," he captures the romantic as well as the unrelenting perfectionism demanded in the entertainment industry. Mr. Kane conducted scores for over 60 motion pictures, wrote music for over 250 television shows ("Wonder Woman," "Vegas," "Loveboat," "Hotel," "Dynasty," "Matlock," "Question of Guilt," "Man Against the Mob") and seven motion pictures, such as "Looking for Mr. Goodbar," "Eyes of Laura Mars," "Night of the Juggler," and "Wrong Is Right." Artie Kane, with candor and acerbic wit, recounts his quest to find love through eight marriages as he pursued his dreams as a pianist. His memoir is infused with provocative and poignant stories about the celebrities he worked with and gives an insider's look at Hollywood culture, films, and TV shows of the last five decades. "Music to My Years" captures the romantic as well as the rough-hewn and unrelentingly perfectionist sides of the world of professional entertainment. For the love of music, and in quest of love through eight marriages, Artie reimagines his dreams, and with characteristic candor and acerbic wit, proves that the American landscape thrives as a place for misfits who follow their dreams to success. "Music to My Years" is also the story of the ever-changing world of professional entertainment, told by an artist whose talents helped to define the transformative era. This memoir will delight and inform lovers of music, fans of Hollywood culture and films, and devotees of TV shows of the last five decades and resonate with anyone who has pursued a dream or struggled to find true love.

Music to My Years, Life and Love Between the Notes

Biographies & Memoirs

Marian Blue

Artie Kane

JoAnn Kane

Arts & Literature

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the Amphora Editions publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Amphora Editions