It is rare that a book claiming to be a history of an artistic style is curated in such a way as this book. Featuring photographic artists from almost all historical eras that the camera has been able to capture, Face Time approaches these images in a way that makes the relevant and exciting to the contemporary reader. Featuring Victorian portraits through to post-modern memes, this book sheds light on how people have approached photography as an artistic medium and specifically how they have used this medium to capture human existence. In short, anyone who is interested in photography or portraiture must get a copy of this book. It's sublime.

*Disclaimer: I received this book in exchange for an honest review* Through 8 vignette-style chapters, Prodger explores the past, present, and future of the photographic portrait. As the title suggests, this is 'A' history, not the definitive history, nor does it claim or attempt to be. The 8 chapters instead create a pastiche of explorations into the medium, its use in different settings, by different individuals, across time by an author intimately familiar with the topic by his time as Head of Photographs at the National Portrait Gallery, London. The effect of this approach and insight results in a book that really captures, as photographs do, a snapshot of how, and what, the photographic portrait can and does mean to us, how this has evolved over time. This approach fits the format of a 'coffee-table' book well. The Below quote really encapsulates the argument of the book for me: "The whole enterprise of portrait photography, the infinity of messages it can convey, and the way we interact with it, reveals our true essence. Like all art, portraiture has many different and sometimes overlapping purposes. Arguably the most noble, powerful and enduring us the simplest. It heals, comforts and strengthens, by reminding us we are not alone" This is an illuminating book for fans of photography and history which can be picked up and browsed at any time as a coffee-table book, or read cover to cover.