Photobook Community Meta-list 2025
Your favourite 2025 photobooks, together with ours
🤶
Nov 25 – “Here are the most interesting, relevant, notable, exceptional, favourite photobooks of 2025, according to the photobook community. We are having a smaller party this year, but we know how to celebrate, and you are invited to join.”
I was worried at the beginning of Listmas 2025. Neither Photobookstore nor photo-eye was hosting a ‘year-end list party’. I foresaw many voices lost for this year’s Meta-list. So I talked about an informal photobook community list, a smaller party, but a lot to celebrate anyway. And I invited you to join and feed the list with year-end lists you found. A big thank you to those who did!
Two months later, we are looking at the results of 79 original lists, for which 227 photobook experts and lovers fulfilled the difficult and painstaking task of choosing their favourites from the many great and barely comparable new books they enjoyed this year. And yes, 💥 I think we can call it a Meta-list after all.
Special thanks go to Lensculture, which again asked many professionals for a selection, and to Deadbeat Club, which is looking forward to throwing a big party next year as well. I hope we will celebrate at all our favourite hangouts again 🖤❤️
Photobook Community List
It is Feb 7, 01.15 (UTC+1), and I am pleased to show you the top 176 photobooks and zines of the moment on the Photobook Community List 2025. These are the books that received two or more mentions on the year-end lists of 2025 so far. Currently, the complete informal Community List comprises 590 photobooks, selected by 227 210? individuals and institutions who deemed them the most interesting, relevant, notable, exceptional, and/or favourite, but not necessarily the best books of the year. They were originally recommended on 79 unique lists worldwide.
🔔 The list-makers and List of Lists are in this same document. Find them quickly by using Ctrl+F or by scrolling down a great list of books. The List of Lists (links to all individual lists) and List-makers are usually updated as soon as I receive or find a new year-end list. Possibly a few times a day.
15 selections
15 You Are What You Do – Daniel Arnold (Loose Joints)
Chosen by 5 Robin Titchener, 13 Lucia De Stefani, 16 Blind Magazine, 28 Joe Dilworth, 38 Kalel Koven and Valentine Zeler, 40 Martin Amis, 41 Moira Gonzalez, 47+76 Ed Templeton, 49 Stephen Goldblatt, 50 Narrativa, 52 Brad Zellar, 57 Ted aka sixteensecondshappy, 60 Christophe Périgois, 76 Mike Brodie, 76 Kristine Potter.
Interview by Marco Frattaruolo for Lampoon
15 Blank Notes – Marshall To (Charcoal Press)
Chosen by 10+76 Todd Hido, 16 Blind Magazine, 23 Gabriela Cendoya, 39 Misha Kominek, 40 Martin Amis, 52 Brad Zellar, 74 Mark Power, 76 Michael Ackerman, 76 Kenneth Dickerman, 76 Gianluca Gamberini, 76 Gianmarco Gamberini, 76 Pia-Paulina Guilmoth, 76 Jake Knapp, 76 Christopher McCall, 76 Bryan Schutmaat.
Interview by Martin Kaninsky for About Photography Blog
12 selections
12 Twelve Acres – Henry O. Head (Twin Palms)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 19 Mireia Alises, 20 Raymond Hagewoud, 40 Martin Amis, 52+76 Brad Zellar, 60 Christophe Périgois, 76 Mike Brodie, 76 Matthew Genitempo, 76 Jake Knapp, 76 Bryan Schutmaat, 77 Viory Schellekens, 78 QT Luong.
Review by Walter Borghisani for F-Stop
11 selections
11 The Weight of Ash – Ian Bates (Deadbeat Club)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 24 Molly Roberts, 45 Daniel Agee, 47 Ed Templeton, 49 Stephen Goldblatt, 52 Brad Zellar, 60 Christophe Périgois, 76 Gregory Harris, 76 Christopher McCall, 78 QT Luong.
Presentation by the staff of BOOOOOOOM
10 Riverland – Marjolein Martinot (Stanley/Barker)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 19 Mireia Alises, 22 Colin Pantall, 38 Kalel Koven and Valentine Zeler, 40 Martin Amis, 52 Brad Zellar, 60 Christophe Périgois, 76 Terri Weifenbach, 78 QT Luong.
Interview by Mee-Lai Stone for The Guardian
8 selections
8 And Then There was the Night – Magdalena Wysocka/Claudio Pogo (Outer Space Press)
Chosen by 3 Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 13 Dance Panchaud, 19 Mireia Alises, 32 Youvalle Levy, 76 Andrea Copetti, 76 Clint Woodside, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Review by Brad Feuerhelm for American Suburb X
8 Flowers Drink the River – Pia Paulina Guilmoth (Stanley/Barker)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 10 Brian Clamp, 29 Giovanna D’Ascenzi, 48 Tania Franco Klein, 56 Regina Anzenberger, 59 Photobook Journal, 75 Brian Arnold, 78 QT Luong.
Review by Brian Arnold for PhotoBook Journal
Interview by Alessia Glaviano for Photo Vogue
8 Homesick New York – Michael Ackerman (Blow Up Press)
Chosen by 22 Gabriela Cendoya, 32 Youvalle Levy, 39+76 Misha Kominek, 56 Regina Anzenberger, 58 Julia Borissova, 73 Thomas Gust and Ana Druga, 76 Jesse Lenz, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Podcast interview by Nick Touro Jr. for Right Eye Dominant
Flip-through by Tipi Photo Bookshop
8 Track – Hajime Kimura (Neck)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 39+76 Misha Kominek, 64 Oliver Burgold, 73 Thomas Gust and Ana Druga, 76 Andrea Copetti, 76 Matthew Genitempo, 76 Bryan Schutmaat, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Podcast interview by Gabriele Chiapparini for Small Photobook Kult
Flip-through by Andrea Copetti of the Tipi Photo Bookshop
7 selections
7 Cheryomushki — Nikolay Bakhare (Stanley/Barker)
Chosen by 49 Stephen Goldblatt, 59 editors Photobook Journal, 74 Mark Power, 75 Brian Arnold, 76 Gianluca Gamberini, 76 Pia-Paulina Guilmoth, 76 Ahndraya Parlato.
Review by Blake Andrews for Collector Daily
7 Sistermoon – Siri Kaur (Void)
Chosen by 29 Rosy Santella, 37 Gerry Brakus, 39 Misha Kominek, 40 Martin Amis, 50 Narrativa, 52+76 Brad Zellar, 76 Henry O. Head.
Interview by Emma Jacob for Aesthetica
🔔 Please look beyond the ‘Top 10’. Some of the finest cherries, with your name on them, are at the bottom of the bowl. This list is great (and also meant) for discovering less-promoted books, picked by people whose tastes you trust or interests you share. Enjoy!
6 selections
6 Aux Ombres – Simon Vansteenwinckel (Lamaindonne)
Chosen by 3, Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 19 Mireia Alises, 46 Ola Søndenå, 66 Sébastien Cuvelier, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Review by Fabien Ribery for l’Intervalle
6 The Classroom – Hicham Benohoud (Loose Joints)
Chosen by 10 Francesca Marani, 16 Blind Magazine, 18 Guillaume Delacroix, 28 Joe Dilworth, 37 Gerry Brakus, 61 Sugar Paper.
Interview by Dale Berning Sawa for The Guardian
Flip-through by Rafael Bosko Vieira
6 Too Many Products Too Much Pressure – Janet Delaney (Deadbeat Club)
Chosen by 5 Robin Titchener, 10 Monique Deschaines, 40 Martin Amis, 47 Ed Templeton, 49 Stephen Goldblatt, 52 Brad Zellar.
Interview by Tracy L. Chandler for Lenscratch
5 selections
5 As Long as the Sun Lasts – Joselito Verschaeve (Void)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 13 Karolina Kluza, 19 Mireia Alises, 53 Viktor Várad, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Review by Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily
5 Borderland – Filippo Barbero (Witty Books)
Chosen by 10 Erin Hoyt Harris, 44 Wim van Sinderen, 53 Viktor Váradi, 76 Gianmarco Gamberini, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Shown in Penumbra Members Gallery
5 Chicago – Mark Steinmetz (Nazraeli)
Chosen by 40 Martin Amis, 47+76 Ed Templeton, 52 Brad Zellar, 57 Ted aka sixteensecondshappy, 60 Christophe Périgois.
Text by the editorial staff of Exibart Street
5 Dimma Brume Mist – JH Engström (Void)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 18 Emmanuelle Lequeux, 48 Paul Graham, 60 Christophe Périgois, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Review by Emmanuelle Lequeux for Le Monde
5 Easy Days – Sage Sohier (Nazraeli Press)
Chosen by 28 Joe Dilworth, 39+76 Misha Kominek, 60 Christophe Périgois, 76 Henry O. Head, 78 QT Luong.
Exhibition review by Nandika Chatterjee for Musée
5 Emerald Drifters – Cig Harvey (Phaidon)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 24 Molly Roberts, 55 Karen Bullock, 78 QT Luong.
Interview by Aline Smithson for Lenscratch
5 Place de la République 2019-2023 – Thomas Boivin (Stanley/Barker)
Chosen by 3 Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 16 Blind Magazine, 20 Raymond Hagewoud, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Review by Brad Feuerhelm for American Suburb X
5 The Dead Are Glad to Be Remembered – Todd Hido (Atelier EXB)
Chosen by 16 Blind Magazine, 34 Fisheye editors, 46 Ola Søndenå, 64 Oliver Burgold, 76 Christopher McCall.
Flip-through by Andrea Copetti of the Tipi Photo Bookshop
5 Thought Trails – Jackie Mulder (self-published)
Chosen by 3 Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 19 Mireia Alises, 40 Martin Amis, 46 Ola Søndenå.
Interview by Laura Chen for Discarded Magazine
5 Ukraine – Eddy van Wessel (Fw:Books)
Chosen by 9 Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema, 26 Ruben Lundgren, 31 Focus editorial team, 44 Wim van Sinderen, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Review by Joshua Yaffa for The New Yorker
5 Where the Light Came in – Judith Black (Stanley/Barker)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 37 Gerry Brakus, 40 Martin Amis, 55 Deanna Dikeman, 76 João Linneu.
Interview by Martin Kaninsky for About Photography
5 Yoko – Masahisa Fukase (Akaaka)
Chosen by 36 John Sypal, 47 Ed Templeton, 57 Ted aka sixteensecondshappy, 60 Christophe Périgois, 73 Thomas Gust and Ana Druga.
Review by Colin Pantall for PhMuseum
4 selections
4 American Photography – edited by Mattie Bloom and Hans Rooseboom (Rijksmuseum)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 12 Rianne van Dijck, 26 Ruben Lundgren, 31 Focus editorial team.
Exhibition review by Christian House for The Guardian
4 Between the Mountain and the River – Rick van der Klooster (Fw:Books)
Chosen by 12 Rianne van Dijck, 20 Raymond Hagewoud, 46 Ola Søndenå, 68 Tung.
Podcast interview by Gabriele Chiapparini for Small Photobook Cult
4 Binom – Nata Drachinskaya (self-published)
Chosen by 19 Mireia Alises, 56 Regina Anzenberger, 58 Julia Borissova, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Review by Olga Bubich for Photobook Journal
4 Birds of a Feather – Claire Rosen (Warwick Editions)
Chosen by 10 Chloe Coleman, 10 Ron Haviv, 11 Donny Bajohr, Jeff Campagna and Quentin Nardi, 24 Molly Roberts.
Podcast interview by J.M. Giordano and Molly Roberts for 10fps
Interview by Martin Kaninsky for About Photography
4 Calling The Birds Home – Cheryle St. Onge (L’Artiere)
Chosen by 13 Lucia De Stefani, 37 Gerry Brakus, 61 Sugar Paper, 76 Sage Sohier.
Interview by Aline Smithson for Lenscratch
4 Catálogo – Ricardo Cases (self-published)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 19 Mireia Alises, 48 Sema D’Acosta, 48 Nicolás Combarro.
Review by Blake Andrews for Collector Daily
4 Ctrl Shift+J – Sayuri Ichida (the (M)editions)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 19 Mireia Alises, 58 Julia Borissova, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Review by Sarah Knobel for Lenscratch
4 Corbijn, Anton – Anton Corbijn (Hannibal Books)
Chosen by 10 Sacha Lecca, 10 Andreas Trampe, 29 Giovanna D’Ascenzi, 31 Focus editorial team.
Words by David Nobakht for Buzz
A few more words in Dutch by Jannie de Kruijff for Focus Magazine
4 Dissonances – Boris Snauwaert (Grani Edizioni)
Chosen by Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 20 Raymond Hagewoud, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Presentation by Leporello Books
4 Distribution – Daniel Shea (Mack)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 32 Youvalle Levy, 33 Zach Ritter, 77 Viory Schellekens.
Text by Orla Brennan and Daniel Shea for AnOther
4 Early Work – Stephen Shore (Mack)
Chosen by 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 47 Ed Templeton, 48 Paul Graham, 76 Nick Waplington.
Review by Victoria Gonzalez for Musée
4 Entendue – Charlotte Dumas (Fw:Books)
Chosen by 9 Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema, 52+76 Brad Zellar, 79 Staff member C.
Nice text in Dutch by Jan Postma for De Groene Amsterdammer
4 Frida Forever – Frida Lisa Carstensen Jersø (Disko Bay)
Chosen by 3 Christer Ek, 13+22 Colin Pantall, 25 Kate Schultze, 49 Stephen Goldblatt.
Review by Colin Pantall for PhMuseum
4 Maputo Diary, 2000 – 2022 – Ditte Haarløv Johnsen (Disko Bay)
Chosen by 22 Colin Pantall, 50 Narrativa, 51 Blake Andrews, 76 Dickerman.
Review by Dalia Al-Dujaili for British Journal of Photography
4 Mary’s Book – Robert Frank (MFA Publications)
Chosen by 3 Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 16 Blind Magazine, 76 Terri Weifenbach.
Exhibition review by Amy Wei for Musée Magazine.
4 Mother’s Land – Daniel Lee Postaer (Deadbeat Club)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas King, 40 Martin Amis, 47+76 Ed Templeton, 52 Brad Zellar.
Essay by Magali Duzant for Lensculture
4 Radiations of War – Yana Kononova (XYZ Books/Fotodok)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 10 Alexa Beckee, 20 Raymond Hagewoud, 54 Untitled | Ukrainian Photography.
Review by Brad Feuerhelm for American Suburb X
4 Small Death – Martha Naranjo Sandoval (Mack)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas King, 10 Liz Sales, 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 35 Tom (TPG).
Words by Olivia Hingley for It’s Nice That
4 Starlings – Jem Southam (Raft)
Chosen by 10 Martin Parr, 10 Rachel Barker, 10 Dewi Lewis, 74 Mark Power.
4 Sunshine Terrace – Emily Shur (Deadbeat Club)
Chosen by 45 Daniel Agee, 47 Ed Templeton, 57 Ted aka sixteensecondshappy, 60 Christophe Périgois.
Interview by Lou Noble for The Photographic Journal
4 The Fold – Hoda Afshar (Loose Joints Publishing)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 25 Kate Schultze, 32 Youvalle Levy, 61 Sugar Paper.
Article by Dalia Al-Dujaili for British Journal of Photography
4 The Reservoir – Mimi Plumb (Nazraeli Press)
Chosen by 47 Ed Templeton, 49 Stephen Goldblatt, 76 Gregory Harris, 78 QT Luong.
Review by Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily
4 The Ramble, NYC 1969 – Arthur Tress (Stanley/Barker)
Chosen by 10 Richard Renaldi, 16 Blind Magazine, 40 Martin Amis, 60 Christophe Périgois.
Interview by Jordan Tannahill for Interview
4 The Turtle and the Monk – Anaïs Lopez (self-published)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 12 Rianne van Dijck, 26 Ruben Lundgren, 64 Oliver Burgold.
Exhibition review by Sritama Bhattacharyya for Musée Magazine
4 To Be Developed, To Be Continued – Odette England (Tall Poppy Press)
Chosen by 10 Daniel Boetker-Smith, 23 Gabriela Cendoya, 55 Montserrat Andrée Carty, 76 Ahndraya Parlato.
Podcast interview by Gabriele Chiapparini for Small Photobook Kult
Podcast interview by Montse Andrée for Musing of the Artist
4 What if Jeff were a Butterfly? – Jeff Mermelstein (Void)
Chosen by 33 Zach Ritter, 37 Gerry Brakus, 57 Ted, aka sixteensecondshappy, 76 Jason Eskenazi.
Article by The Guardian
4 Wish This Was Real – Tyler Mitchell (Aperture/ Atelier EXB)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 18 Ronan Deshaies and Clement Ghys, 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 62 Rachele Pari.
Review by Josh Bright for The Independent Photographer
4 Yellow Pine – Harrison Miller (Underlife)
Chosen by 3 Christer Ek, 5 Robin Titchener, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 76 Jake Knapp.
Flip through by Photobookstore
3 selections
3 4 Sides of the Table – Ruth Lauer Manenti (RM)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 40 Martin Amis, 76 Todd Hido.
3 Americans Seen – Sage Sohier (Nazraeli)
Chosen by 40 Martin Amis, 74 Mark Power, 76 Jason Eskenazi.
3 Atlas of Echoes – Sarah Van Rij (Note Editions)
Chosen by 9 Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema, 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 40 Martin Amis.
3 Blood Green — Curran Hatleberg (TBW Books)
Chosen by 49 Stephen Goldblatt, 60 Christophe Périgois, 76 Kristine Potter.
3 Blue Sun – Genesis Báez (Capricious Publishing)
Chosen by 11 Donny Bajohr, Jeff Campagna and Quentin Nardi, 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 76 Pia-Paulina Guilmoth.
3 Bravo – Felipe Romero Beltrán (Loose Joints)
Chosen by 13 Katy Hundertmark, 48 Nadine Wietlisbach, 50 Narrativa.
3 Christmas – Lee Friedlander (Eakins Press Foundation)
Chosen by 11 Donny Bajohr, Jeff Campagna and Quentin Nardi, 52 Brad Zellar, 76 Sage Sohier.
3 El vuelo lleva al vuelo – Juanan Requena (Ediciones Anomalas)
Chosen by 3 Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 46 Ola Søndenå.
3 Exactitudes – Ari Versluis en Ellie Uyttenbroek (Nai010 Publishers)
Chosen by 9 Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema, 12 Rianne van Dijck, 44 Wim van Sinderen.
3 Feline – Tim Flach (Harry N. Abrams)
Chosen by 11 Donny Bajohr, Jeff Campagna and Quentin Nardi, 30 Peter Dench, 62 Rachele Pari.
3 Floating Signifiers – Daan Paans (The Eriskay Connection)
Chosen by 12 Rianne van Dijck, 26 Ruben Lundgren, 72 staff member T.
3 Fruiting Bodies – Ying Ang (Perimeter Editions)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas King, 35 Nick (TPG), 48 Laura González Palacios.
3 Ground Rules – Alejandro Cartagena (Aperture)
Chosen by 48 Tania Franco Klein, 49 Stephen Goldblatt, 78 QT Luong.
3 Gumsucker – Rory King (Charcoal Press)
Chosen by 40 Martin Amis, 47 Ed Templeton, 76 Andrea Modica.
3 Heustock / Hayloft – Bernhard Fuchs (Verlag Walther König)
Chosen by 56 Regina Anzenberger, 74 Mark Power, 76 Mark Steinmetz.
3 Homo Ludens – Masahisa Fukase (Akaaka)
Chosen by 47 Ed Templeton, 60 Christophe Périgois, 77 Viory Schellekens.
3 I Will Keep You in Good Company – Liz Johnson Artur (SPBH Editions)
Chosen by 10 Simon Bainbridge, 13 Katy Hundertmark, 35 Rawanne (TPG).
3 Interesting Things – Salome Erni (self-published)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 61 Sugar Paper, 66 Sébastien Cuvelier.
3 Intimate Distance II – Todd Hido (Aperture)
Chosen by 46 Ola Søndenå, 60 Christophe Périgois, 78 QT Luong.
3 Konkursas – Francesca Allen (Steidl)
Chosen by 16 Blind Magazine, 37 Gerry Brakus, 41 Moira Gonzalez.
3 North North South – Ayda Gragossian (Gost Books)
Chosen by 38 Kalel Koven and Valentine Zeler, 45 Daniel Agee, 74 Mark Power.
3 Oasis: Trying to find a way out of nowhere – Jill Furmanovsky, Noel Gallagher (Thames & Hudson)
Chosen by 6 Claire Valentine McCartney, 8 Carly Tagen-Dye, 71 editor Z, Moom.
3 Our Hidden Room – Mohamed Hassan (Ediciones Posibles/Fundación Photographic Social Vision/Phree)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas King, 13+22 Colin Pantall, 74 Mark Power.
3 Punto Ciego – Santi Donaire (Palermo)
Chosen by 10 Raquel Villar Pérez, 19 Mireia Alises, 48 Jaime Narváez.
3 Poppy Promises – Thomas Duffield (Witty Books)
Chosen by 19 Mireia Alises, 37 Gerry Brakus, 40 Martin Amis.
3 Portrait of J – Takashi Homma (Dashwood / Session Press)
Chosen by 5 Robin Titchener, 40 Martin Amis, 76 Miwa Susuda.
3 Quartet – Daido Moriyama (Thames & Hudson)
Chosen by 22 Colin Pantall, 30 Peter Dench, 60 Christophe Périgois.
3 Ripples in the Pond – Bharat Sikka (Fw:Books)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas King, 65 Cas Bochner, 76 Miwa Susuda.
3 Sacred Place – Balarama Heller (TIS Books)
Chosen by 11 Donny Bajohr, Jeff Campagna and Quentin Nardi, 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 76 Keith Cullen.
3 Tall Socks – Mark Cohen (Gost Books)
Chosen by 17 William Meyers, 47 Ed Templeton, 57 Ted, aka sixteensecondshappy.
3 The Anthropocene Illusion – Zed Nelson (Guest Editions)
Chosen by 30 Peter Dench, 40 Martin Amis, 62 Rachele Pari.
3 The Great Room – Katherine Hubard (Loose Joints)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas King, 76 Ahndraya Parlato, 76 Mark Steinmetz.
3 The Heart of the Matter – Carrie Mae Weems, edited by Sarah Hermanson Meister (Aperture)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 16 Blind Magazine, 21 VSCO’s editorial team.
3 The Nineties x Anna Sui – Anna Sui (Rizzoli)
Chosen by 6 Claire Valentine McCartney, 8 Carly Tagen-Dye, 41 Moira Gonzalez.
3 The Overmorrow – Damien Daufresne (Lamaindonne)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 40 Martin Amis, 77 Viory Schellekens.
3 This is ̶n̶o̶t̶ about the Devil Inside – David Ameye (self-published)
Chosen by 3 Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 77 Viory Schellekens.
3 Transcripts of a Sea – Stephan Vanfleteren (Hannibal Books)
Chosen by 9 Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema, 31 Focus editors, 77 Viory Schellekens.
3 Valparaíso – Sergio Larrain (Thames & Hudson)
Chosen by 75 Brian Arnold, Kenneth, 76 Dickerman, 78 QT Luong.
3 Vanishing – Anne Arendt (Charcoal Press)
Chosen by 5 Robin Titchener, 76 Jason Eskenazi, 76 Ben Smith.
2 selections
2 A Discreet Exit Through Darkness | Things We Lost Last Night – Soumya Sankar Bose (self-published as Red Turtle Books)
Chosen by 64 Oliver Burgold, 77 Viory Schellekens.
2 Acédia – Louise Desnos (Witty Books)
Chosen by 34 Fisheye editors, 65 Cas Bochner.
2 Agony in the Garden – Lúa Ribeira (Dalpine)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 39 Misha Kominek.
2 An index of botanical desires-notes on touch – Madeline Cass (plant thief press)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 22 Colin Pantall.
2 A Period in Time: Looking Back While Moving Forward – Ed Kashi (Dolph Briscoe Center for American History)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 59 Photobook Journal.
2 Asa Nisi Masa – Blake Andrews (Eyeshot)
Chosen by 36 John Sypal, 47 Ed Templeton.
2 Atlantic Coast – Anastasia Samoylova (Aperture)
Chosen by 16 Blind Magazine, 21 VSCO’s editorial team.
2 Atlantis – Oriane Thomasson (The Eriskay Connection)
Chosen by 13 Rosa Lacavalla, 46 Ola Søndenå.
2 Atlas Of The New World – Giulia Piermartiri and Edoardo Delille (L’Artiere)
Chosen by 29 Mélissa Jollivet, 42 Giuseppe Oliverio.
2 Atmosphere – Takeshi Tokitsu (self-published)
Chosen by 10 Hideko Kataoka, 60 Christophe Périgois.
2 Balloons – Jens Klein (Spector)
Chosen by 2 Clément Chéroux), 67 Clerk b 👓.
2 Billions Served – Richard Renaldi (Deadbeat Club)
Chosen by 45 Daniel Agee, 47 Ed Templeton.
2 Buried in Style: Artistic Coffins and Funerary Culture in Ghana – Regula Tschumi (Kehrer Verlag)
Chosen by 10 Gulnara Lyabib Samoilova, 30 Peter Dench.
2 2 City Confessions #4 Milano – Ed Templeton (Super Labo)
Chosen by 36 John Sypal, 57 Ted aka sixteensecondshappy.
2 Collider – Carl Wooley (TIS books)
Chosen by 14+76 Tim Carpenter, 76 Clint Woodside.
2 Constant Bloom – Lucas Foglia (Nazraeli Press)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 65 Cas Bochner.
2 Coreen Simpson: A Monograph – Coreen Simpson (Aperture)
Chosen by 10+76 Noelle Théard, 21 VSCO’s editorial team.
2 Deceptions – Ye Zeng Li Yi (Lato Paper/Grani Edizioni)Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 77 Viory Schellekens.
2 Defense Language – Claire Beckett (GOST Books)
Chosen by 10 Kristen Gresh, 66 Sébastien Cuvelier.
2 De grote boom, het vergeten verhaal van de Boeroes in Suriname – Ton Groot Haar (Lecturis)
Chosen by 9 Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema, 12 Rianne van Dijck.
2 Democratic Vistas – Jason Lee and Tim Carpenter (Smog Press)
Chosen by 52 Brad Zellar, 57 Ted aka sixteensecondshappy.
2 Dream Within a Dream – Masakazu Murakami (Zen Foto Gallery)
Chosen by 36 John Sypal, 40 Martin Amis.
2 Drifting Stones – Paul Cupido (iikki Books)
Chosen by 19 Mireia Alises, 53 Viktor Váradi.
2 Early Portraits – Anders Petersen (Journal)
Chosen by 47 Ed Templeton, 76 Michael Ackerman.
2 Edges of Landscape – Bas Ketelaars (The Eriskay Connection)
Chosen by 46 Ola Søndenå, 67 Clerk b 👓.
2 Elephant in the Room – Bharat Sikka (Fw:Books)
Chosen by 28 Joe Dilworth, 76 João Linneu.
2 El Paraíso Come Carne – Elena de la Rúa (Artifact)
Chosen by 10 Ângela Berlinde, 19 Mireia Alises.
2 Firelight – Amy Friend (L’Artiere)
Chosen by 29 Mélissa Jollivet, 37 Gerry Brakus.
2 Forever & Never – Dan Estabrook (Artsuite)
Chosen by 10 Tom Gitterman, 55 Michael Honegger.
2 Fragments of Fietas – David Goldblatt (Mack)
Selected by 17 William Meyers, 18 Claire Guillot.
2 Freedom – Erwin Olaf (Hannibal Books/Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam)
Chosen by 9 Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema, 31 editorial team Focus.
2 Geography – Zora Sicher (Dashwood)
Chosen by 5 Robin Titchener, 39 Misha Kominek.
2 Ginza: Through the Eyes of a Salaryman 1950-1990 – Jiro Kochi (Sokyusha)
Chosen by 36 John Sypal, 47 Ed Templeton.
2 Grace – Scott Offen (L’Artiere)
Chosen by 14+76 Tim Carpenter, 76 Andrea Modica.
2 I’m So Happy You’re Here – Japanese Women Photographers from the 1950s to Now – Pauline Vermare (Aperture/Exhibitions International)
Chosen by 30 Peter Dench, 62 Rachele Pari.
2 Invisible Sun – Amani Willett (Dust Collective)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 10 Rebecca Norris Webb.
2 I Saw a Tree Bearing Stones in the Place of Apples and Pears – Emilia Martin (Yogurt Editions)
Chosen by 34 Fisheye editors, 42 Giuseppe Oliverio.
2 It’s Hard To Stop Rebels That Time Travel – Raymond Thompson Jr (Void)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas Kin, 10 Steven Evans.
2 IUZZA: Goliarda Sapienza – Francesca Todde (Depart Pour L’Image)
Chosen by 42 Giuseppe Oliverio, 53 Viktor Váradi.
2 Journals Vol. 1 – Davide Sorrenti (Idea Books)
Chosen by 35 Albert (TPG), 41 Moira Gonzalez.
2 Kalabongó - Jorge Panchoaga (Editorial RM)
Chosen by 50 Narrativa, 66 Sébastien Cuvelier.
2 Kill Me Softly – Hot Fudge is Here (Super Labo)
Chosen by 36 John Sypal, 47 Ed Templeton
2 L.A. Polaroids - Robby Müller (Stanley/Barker)
Chosen by 16 Blind Magazine, 37 Gerry Brakus.
2 L is for Look: Children’s Photobooks – Anne Lacoste/Rose Durr (Spector Books)
Chosen by 10 Clare Grafik, 79 Staff member C.
2 Lost in Kyoto – Yasuhiro Ogawa (Photo Editions)
Chosen by 73 Thomas Gust and Ana Druga, 76 Keith Cullen.
2 Love Knot - Yuri Goto (self-published with Reminders Photography Stronghold)
Chosen by 64 Oliver Burgold, 77 Viory Schellekens.
2 Man – Erik Kessels & Karel De Mulder (RVB Books)
Chosen by 12 Rianne van Dijck, 74+76 Mark Power.
2 Meu pai morreu três vezes – Clara Simas (Propagulo)
Chosen by 42 Giuseppe Oliverio, 48 Mariela Sancari.
2 Migration Patterns – Brandon Ruffin (Setanta Books)
Chosen by 11 Donny Bajohr, Jeff Campagna and Quentin Nardi, 21 VSCO’s editorial team.
2 Moon City – Mimi Mollica (self-published/Dewi Lewis)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas King, 64 Oliver Burgold.
2 More – Blommers & Schumm (Roma Publications)
Chosen by 10 Narda van ‘t Veer, 12 Rianne van Dijck.
2 Only Barely Still: On Women and Wilderness – Catherine Lemblé (Eriskay Connection)
Chosen by 46 Ola Søndenå, 72 staff member T.
2 Out of Date’: Pola Pan 1984-1996 – Mark Borthwick (Rizzoli)
Chosen by 76 Jesse Lenz, 76 Miwa Susuda.
2 Pas de culte – Kienjet & Van Zoetendaal (Van Zoetendaal Publishers)
Chosen by 12 Rianne van Dijck, 46 Ola Søndenå.
2 Radio Ballast – François-Xavier Gbré (Atelier EXB)
Chosen by 2 Clément Chéroux, 16 Blind Magazine.
2 Screenshots From A Series Of Videos About A Rice Field And Its Surroundings – Cintia Tortosa Santisteba (Chose Commune)
Chosen by 13 Camilla Marrese, 20 Raymond Hagewoud.
2 Setting Sun – David O’Mara (Folium)
Chosen by 3, Christer Ek, 7 Gabriela Cendoya.
2 Shipwreck of Dreams – Emilio Nasser (Artphilein Editions)
Chosen by 10 Giuseppe Oliverio, 13 Krzysztof Candrowicz.
2 Slip Me the Master Key – Thomas Prior (Loose Joints)
Chosen by 40 Martin Amis, 74+76 Mark Power.
2 Soup — Mike Brodie and Soup (Lato Paper)
Chosen by 49 Stephen Goldblatt, 77 Viory Schellekens.
2 Strange Love – Seamus Murphy (Setanta)
Chosen by 24 Molly Roberts, 76 Ben Smith.
2 Süü – Taemin Ha (Chose Commune)
Chosen by 18 Gaspard Dhellemmes, 40 Martin Amis.
2 Take a Picture, It Will Last Longer – Brooke DiDonato (Thames & Hudson)
Chosen by 10 Sam Barzilay, 74+76 Mark Power.
2 Thing – Jungjin Lee (Datz Press)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 64 Oliver Burgold.
2 Territorium – Henk Wildschut (self-published)
Chosen by 9 Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema, 26 Ruben Lundgren.
2 The Boyfriend Casting – Rosie Harriet Ellis (Libraryman)
Chosen by 4 Tim Clark and Thomas King, 10 Manila Camarini.
2 The City Is A Novel – Alexey Titarenko (Damiani)
Chosen by 10 Chris Pichler, 76 Keith Cullen.
2 The Cloud Factory – Chris Donovan (Gost Books)
Chosen by 60 Christophe Périgois, 76 Ben Smith.
2 The Look – Michelle Obama (Crown)
Chosen by 6 Claire Valentine McCartney, 8 Carly Tagen-Dye.
2 These Earthly Shores – Daphne Kotsian (Origini Edizione)
Chosen by 76 Michael Ackerman, 77 Viory Schellekens.
2 The Killing Ditch – Damien Wootten (self-published)
Chosen by 22 Colin Pantall, 77 Viory Schellekens.
2 The Snow Abides – Nina Viviana Cangialosi (Void)
Chosen by 13 Danaé Panchaud, 58 Julia Borissova.
2 The Stillness of Life – Don McCullin (Gost Books)
Chosen by 16 Blind Magazine, 30 Peter Dench.
2 The Western Edge – Mark Ruwedel (Mack)
Chosen by 1 Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy, 7 Gabriela Cendoya.
2 The Wizard of Awe – Kevin Cooley (The Eriskay Collection)
Chosen by 55 Aline Smithson, 59 Photobook Journal.
2 The Last Dyes – William Eggleston (David Zwirner Books)
Chosen by 60 Christophe Périgois, 76 Nick Waplington.
2 Trembling Earth – David Walter Banks (BS Publishing)
Chosen by 11 Donny Bajohr, Jeff Campagna and Quentin Nardi, 24 Molly Roberts.
2 Through a River Darkly – Adrianna Ault (self-published)
Chosen by 7 Gabriela Cendoya, 46 Ola Søndenå.
2 Unyielding Floods – Peter Caton (Dewi Lewis)
Chosen by 30 Peter Dench, 62 Rachele Pari.
2 Utterly Lazy and Inattentive: Martin Parr in Words and Pictures – Martin Parr and Wendy Jones (Penguin Books)
Chosen by 29 Rosy Santella, 62 Rachele Pari.
2 Virgin Suicides – Corinne Day, edited by Sofia Coppola / Important Flowers (Mack)
Chosen by 5 Robin Titchener, 6 Claire Valentine McCartney.
2 We Will Return to You – Hannah Altman (Saint Lucy Books)
Chosen by 21 VSCO’s editorial team, 59 Photobook Journal.
2 With Love. From an Invader – Yan Wang Preston (The Eriskay Connection)Chosen by 46 Ola Søndenå, 68 Tung.
🎅
Don’t forget to study the > List of Lists, which links to the original lists and motivations of the List-makers. Some of them carry great books you’ve never heard of. For example, Christer Ek’s list (3) and John Sypal's (36) expose hidden gems.
Look for it in the ‘chapter’ after this one. But first, I introduce the makers.
> the List-makers
The List of Lists and List-makers are updated as soon as I receive or find a new year-end list. If you have seen or made a list that’s not here yet, please DM me on Substack, Instagram, Facebook, or email me at viorys at gmail. I’m counting on your cooperation, dear photobook community!
Updated 6 Feb, 00:02 (UTC+1)
Suzanne Révy is a writer, educator and photographer with an MFA from the New Hampshire Institute of Art. She previously worked as a photography editor. Her photographs have been exhibited at museums and galleries throughout New England and in New York.
Elin Spring is the founder and editor of What Will You Remember? She is a contributing writer for other magazines and has provided essays for various exhibition catalogues. She judges photography competitions and exhibitions.Clément Chéroux is a French photography historian and the chief curator of Photography at MoMA. He has held senior curatorial positions at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
Christer Ek is a photographer, educator and photobook collector. He just started a new job as the director of a photography institute in France.
Tim Clark is editor-in-chief at 1000 Words. He is the artistic director of Fotografia Europea in Reggio Emilia with Walter Guadagnini and Luce Lebart. Clark teaches at Falmouth University.
Thomas King is an editorial Assistant at 1000 Words and is undertaking an MA in Literary Studies (Critical Theory) at Goldsmiths, University of London.
Robin Titchener has been collecting photo books (monographs as they were then) for the last thirty years, based purely on his taste and instinct.
Claire Valentine McCartney is the culture editor at W Magazine. She was an editor at Nylon and Paper and wrote for York Magazine’s The Cut, Vulture, and the Brooklyn Paper.
Gabriela Cendoya is a Spanish photobook collector and a photobook blogger. This year, she sold over 3000 books to Museo San Telmo in San Sebastian, which have been on display and at the centre of activities in the museum for several years. In the meantime, Cendoya is still expanding on her collection at home.
Carly Tagen-Dye assists with planning and coordination of book coverage and People. She writes for both the printed magazine and digital platforms.
Mark Moorman is kunstredacteur van de Volkskrant. Hij schrijft vooral over series, films, fotografie en populaire cultuur.
Merel Bem is schrijver en kunstjournalist. Voor de Volkskrant schrijft ze over fotografie en beeldvorming.
Arno Haijtema is sinds 1984 redacteur van de Volkskrant. Hij schrijft zo’n 25 jaar over fotografie en is daarnaast tv-recensent.Ruby Rees-Sheridan is an assistant curator, Photography, National Portrait Gallery
Noelle Théard is a photo editor at The New Yorker. Before: program officer at Magnum Foundation, lecturer in the African Diaspora and Art History programs at Florida International University and contract photographer for the Miami Herald.
Alasdair Foster is the publisher of Talking Pictures.
Andreas Müller-Pohle is an artist and publisher, European Photography
Aya Musa is a curator at Foam.
Hideko Kataoka is the photo editor at Newsweek Japan and founder and director at Miiraii Creative.
Ihiro Hayami is the founder of T3 Photo Festival Tokyo.
Irina Chmyreva, PhD, is the art director of the PhotoVisa International Festival of Photography.
Erin Hoyt Harris is executive director of Filter Photo.
Liz Sales is an art writer and educator.
Manila Camarini – senior picture editor (D la Repubblica)
Martin Parr, the photographer loved by everyone, who always had time for others. He created over 100 books and has been incredibly important for our beloved photobook land.
Rachel Barker is co-founder and director of publishing house Stanley/Barker.
Dewi Lewis is the owner of Dewi Lewis Publishing.
Paul Schiek is the founder and creative director of TBW Books.
Roman Härer is the creative director at plainpicture.
Roy Kahmann is the director of Hungry Eye Group
Tom Gitterman runs the Gitterman Gallery.
Xavier Canonne is the director of the Le Musée de la Photographie.
Raquel Villar Pérez is editorial manager of WOPHA and curator at Cómo ser Fotógrafa.
Arianna Rinaldo is an art director, educator and curator at PhEST.
Mary Virginia Swanson is an author, educator and advisor.
Sara Urbaez is a photo editor.
Todd Hido is a photographer.
Claartje van Dijk is senior curator of FOAM.
Rebecca Norris Webb is a photographer and poet.
Francesca Marani is the senior photo editor at Vogue Italia.
Simon Bainbridge is the editor at the British Journal of Photography.
Elena Boille is deputy editor at Internazionale.
Enrico Stefanelli is the founder and artistic director of Photolux Festival.
Kristen Gresh is the senior curator of photographs at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Gulnara Lyabib Samoilova is the founder of Women Street Photographers.
Yuri Yamada is a curator at the TOP Museum.
Sacha Lecca is a deputy photo editor at Rolling Stone.
Andreas Trampe is co-founder of Hamburg Portfolio Review.
Ângela Berlinde is a photography curator.
Chris Pichler is the founder and publisher of Nazraeli Press.
Clare Grafik is the head of exhibitions at The Photographers’ Gallery.
Azu Nwagbogu is the director of AAF/LagosPhoto Festival.
Richard Renaldi is a photographer.
Brian Clamp is the director of CLAMP gallery in Manhattan.
Daniel Boetker-Smith is the director of the Centre for Contemporary Photography, Australia.
Mark Sealy is the director of Autograph.
Sam Barzilay is the creative director and co-founder of Photoville.
Monique Deschaines is the director/owner of Euqinom Gallery
Narda van ‘t Veer is the founder of The Ravestijn Gallery.
Sophie Wright is a writer.
Giuseppe Oliverio is the founder and artistic director of PhMuseum.
Alexa Becker is a publishing consultant and photography coach.
Joel Meyerowitz is a photographer.
Steven Evans is the executive director of FotoFest.
Chloe Coleman is the senior photo editor, Opinions at The Washington Post.
Ron Haviv is co-founder of The VII Foundation.
Magali Duzant is an artist and writer.
Yumi Goto is a publisher, curator, author, and director of Reminders Photography Stronghold
Donny Bajohr is the associate photography editor at the Smithsonian
Jeff Campagna is a photo editor at Smithsonian magazine
Quentin Nardi is a visual storyteller, photo editor and director.
Rianne van Dijck is the editor of Photography for NRC.
Giuseppe Oliverio, see 10 (and 42).
Erik Kessels is an artist, designer, curator, and PhMuseum Curae Head professor.
Rosa Lacavalla is a photographer, visual artist, and PhMuseum community manager and education coordinator.
Danaé Panchaud is a curator, museologist, lecturer, and the director of Centre de la photographie Genève, as well as a juror for the PhMuseum 2024 Women Photographer Grant.
Camilla Marrese is a graphic designer, photographer, and visual editor for PhMuseum.
Krzysztof Candrowicz is a curator, artistic director, and researcher, as well as a PhMuseum 2025 Photography Grant partner.
Lucia De Stefani is a writer, editor, and editorial contributor of PhMuseum.
Nicolas Janowski is a lens-based artist, curator, and mentor for PhMuseum.
Karolina Kluza is a Cultural Studies researcher and PhMuseum intern.
Colin Pantall is a senior lecturer in Photography at the University of South Wales. He writes for PhMuseum, BJP and other publications. His book, All Quiet on the Home Front, was published in 2017.
Tim Carpenter is a photographer, writer, educator, and author of photobooks. Recently, Little completed a trilogy rooted in the sensibility and approach to the practice of ‘camera’, as painted in his essay To Photograph Is To Learn How To Die.
George Slade is a writer, curator, historian, and consultant on artistic and photographic matters.
Blind Magazine is a bilingual online magazine, published in French and English, that publishes daily photography news from around the world.
William Myers is a photographer who writes on photography for the Wall Street Journal.
Guillaume Delacroix, Ronan Deshaies, Gaspard Dhellemmes, Clement Ghys, Claire Guillot and Emmanuelle Lequeux are editors of the French newspaper Le Monde’s department ‘M Le magazine du Monde’.
Mireia Alises, photographer, was the head of the Historical Photographic Archive at the Institut d’Estudis Fotogràfics de Catalunya (IEFC) and is the founder and coordinator of Photo Art Books. She curates the photobook section at the Revela’t International Analog Photography Festival.
Raymond Hagewoud is a photographer from the Netherlands. He mainly focuses on landscape and nature.
VSCO is a member-based, community-driven platform that equips photographers with tools, community, and exposure for their creative and professional endeavours. The editorial team compiled its list.
Colin Pantall, see 13.
Gabriela Cendoya, see 7
Molly Roberts is a photographer, curator, educator and visual editor. She is co-director of WPOW (Women Photojournalists of Washington) and a former photography editor at National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, Washington Post Magazine, and other outlets.
Kate Schultze is a photographic artist exploring the everydayness of European identity, in class, cultural transition and memory. She is the author of ‘mind the gap, luv.’ She has exhibited internationally and works at Bildband Berlin.
Ruben Lundgren is the senior curator of the Nederlands Fotomuseum. A curator and photographer with broad international experience, ranging from photojournalist at de Volkskrant to co-author of The Chinese Photobook.
Alex Prior is a photobook collector. He’s known as photobook_reviewer on Instagram.
Joe Dilworth is a photographer and author of the new Everything, All At Once Forever, published by Kominek. He’s also the boss at Bildband Berlin.
Elena Boille is the deputy director of Intenazionale, responsible for the photography department. She graduated in art history and is one of the founders of the weekly.
Giovanna D’Ascenzi has been a photo editor for Internazionale since 2007.
Rosy Santella is a photo editor and has been working at Internazionale since 2010.
Maysa Moroni, photo editor, has been working at Internazionale since 2008
Rosy Santella is a photo editor and has been working at Internazionale since 2010. She writes on the Flash blog.
Mélissa Jollivet is a photo editor and has been working at Internazionale since 2000. She has a degree in literature.
Peter Dench is a photographer, writer, curator and presenter based in London. He is one of the co-curators of Photo North and has been exhibited dozens of times. He has published several books. He wrote a list for Amateur Photographer.
Focus Magazine is one of the oldest still-existing photography magazines worldwide. For 111 years, it has been a breeding ground for talent like Erwin Olaf, Carl De Keyzer, Inez van Lamsweerde and Rineke.
Youvalle Levy, born in Tel Aviv in 1991, is an artist, photographer, and founder of Replika Publishing. She also works at Bildband Berlin. She studied photography at BTK Berlin and architecture at Universität der Künste.
Jonah Goldman Kay is a writer and editor based in New Orleans.
Karen Gu writes for The Believer, The Margins, and McSweeney's Quarterly. She is a Kundiman Fellow and a 2018 Jack Jones Retreat Yi Dae Up Fellow.
Zach Ritter is a writer based in NYC. His writing has appeared in the Brooklyn Rail and Hyperallergic.
Quinn Schoen is a curator, writer, and PhD candidate in art history at the Graduate Center, CUNY. He is currently the archivist and researcher at the Mel Bochner Estate and a program associate at the A&L Berg Foundation.
Jennie Waldow is a PhD candidate in Art History at Stanford University, where she studies postwar American art with a focus on 1960s and 1970s Conceptualism.
Elizabeth Wiet is a writer, editor, and curator based in New York City.
Re’al Christian is a writer, editor, and art historian based in Queens, NY.
Megan N. Liberty is the art books editor at the Brooklyn Rail with an interest in text and image, artists’ books and ephemera, and archive curatorial practices.
Fisheye is a bimonthly magazine dedicated to global photography news from an economic, aesthetic, cultural, technical, and sociological perspective.
Chloe, Albert, Tom, Martin, Rawanne, Lydia, Lucie, Dilly, Nick: the staff of The Photographers’ Gallery.
John Sypal is a tall man in Japan. He is a member of Totem Pole Photo Gallery and shares photos of photo culture and cameras at Tokyo Camera Style.
Gerry Brakus is the Creative Editor of the New Statesman. She has overseen covers, photography and illustration from Westminster to Washington.
Kalel Koven is a documentary photographer and artistic director.
Valentine Zeler is a documentary photographer.
Misha Kominek owns a photography gallery, a photobookstore, and a photobook publishing house, all called Kominek. He also works as a photographer, photo editor, editor, graphic designer and lecturer.
Martin Amis is the director of Photobookstore.co.uk and a photographer. This month, he released his latest photobook, Reverie.
Moira Gonzalez writes for Wonderland and other fashion magazines. She has a bachelor’s degree in Creative Direction and Fashion Styling, as well as a master’s Degree in Fashion Journalism.
Giuseppe Oliverio, see 10 (and 13).
Alec Soth is an American Magnum Photographer who has had various books of his work published by major publishers as well as self-published through his own Little Brown Mushroom.
Wim van Sinderen is a Dutch retired journalist and curator who has worked as curator at Kunsthal in Rotterdam and curator at the Fotomuseum Den Haag.
Daniel Agee is a photographer, marketeer, producer and an independent publisher of photo books at Good Fight.
Ola Søndenå works at the Department of Special Collections at the University of Bergen Library; privately, he collects photobooks.
Ed Templeton’s work reflects human behaviour with emphasis on youth subcultures, religious affiliations, and suburban conventions. He’s the author of over 30 books and many zines. His work is in permanent worldwide collections.
Sema D’Acosta is an independent curator and art critic, specialising in 21st-century photography.
Nicolás Combarro is a photographer.
Tania Franco Klein is a photographer.
Laura González Palacios is the director of Chiquita Room, a contemporary art centre that operates as a gallery, artist residency and a publisher of artist books.
Paul Graham is a photographer.
Jaime Narváez is a graphic designer.
Vitor Nieves is the artistic director of Conjuntos da Imagem.
Mariela Sancari is a photographer.
Sonia Voss is an independent curator.
Nadine Wietlisbach is the director of Fotomuseum Winterthur.
Stephen Goldblatt runs a successful advertisement business in Mille Valley, which leaves him time to hunt for photobooks. His Instagram account is called Photobookfinds.
NARRATIVA is a Lisbon-based centre that shares and promotes photography as a form of expression and communication. It organises projects, publications, exhibitions, masterclasses, and offers a library and an award.
Blake Andrews is a photographer and writer based in Eugene, Oregon. He reviewed 117 photobooks on Instagram (and even more in total). This year Eyeshot published his monograph, Asa Nisa Masa.
Brad Zellar is an American author, journalist, and cultural historian whose work often explores the overlooked. He has worked extensively with photographers such as Alec Soth, Jason Vaughn and Raymond Meeks on projects that combine images and text.
Viktor Váradi is a photographer and educator with a Master's degree in Photography from the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design in Budapest.
Untitled | Ukrainian photography is an online gallery that showcases all important aspects of Ukrainian photography, including events, photobook reviews, and interviews with photographers about their projects.
Aline Smithson is an interdisciplinary artist, editor, filmmaker, and educator based in Los Angeles. She is the Lenscratch founder.
The following persons are all editors for Lenscratch:Sara Bennett, a 2024 Guggenheim fellow, is a former public defender who primarily photographs women with life sentences to draw attention to the problems of mass incarceration. Her work has been widely exhibited.
Michael Honegger is a visual artist who explores self-portraiture, memory, and family, as well as the ironies of American culture through an expatriate’s eye. Blow Up Press published his book The Need to Know.
Montserrat Andrée Carty (Jusseaume) is a writer and photographer who has worked in various areas of the art world.
Elizabeth Stone is a Montana-based visual artist who explores themes of memory and time, deeply rooted in the ambiguity of photography. Stone’s work has been exhibited and is held in collections of several museums.
Laila Nahar is a lens-based artist in California. Her handmade artist books are in permanent collections of several US university libraries. She recently retired from the high-tech industry after 24 years to be a full-time photobook maker.
Epiphany Knedler is an interdisciplinary artist and educator, serving as an assistant professor of art and art history and as the coordinator of the art department in Aberdeen. She co-curates for the collective Midwest Nice Art.
Linda Alterwitz is an interdisciplinary artist with a focus on photography. Her practice envisions the unseen rhythms of the human body and our relationship to the natural world, emphasising choice, trust, and collective experience.
Douglas Breault is an interdisciplinary artist who overlaps elements of photography, painting, sculpture, and video. His work has been collected, published, and exhibited nationally and internationally.
Karen Bullock creates documentary-style photographs of the American South, with a focus on expressions of faith, ideas of home, and the enduring spirit of nature. Her work was featured in over 30 exhibitions.
Deanna Dikeman received an Aaron Siskind Foundation Fellowship in 1996 and the United States Artists Booth Fellowship in 2008. She is a 2023 Guggenheim Fellow. Her book Leaving and Waving won the 2021 Prix Nadar and was a finalist for the 2021 Paris Photo/Aperture Foundation First PhotoBook Award.Regina Anzenberger is an artist, curator, and founder of the Anzenberger Agency, Gallery, and bookshop in Vienna, Austria.
Ted, aka sixteensecondshappy, shares his extensive collection of photobooks and thoughts on photography on his Instagram accounts.
Julia Borrisova employs a greater variety of photographic techniques and styles. Her interest is in the conceptual side of the work. Living in St. Petersburg, she focused her artistic expression through photo book projects.
Paul Anderson, Brian Arnold, Melanie Chapman, Gerhard Clausing, Lee Halvorsen, Steve Harp, Hans Hickerson, Brian O’Neill, Matt Schneider, Douglas Stockdale, and Rudy Vega: the all-volunteer editorial team of Photobook Journal
Christophe Périgois is a photobook lover who shares his readings on social media.
Sugar Paper is a cultural space dedicated to contemporary photography and photographic books, based in Modena.
Rachele Pari is the Art editor for BMB Live Studio Magazine, which brings a ‘pop perspective’ on contemporary culture.
Camille Bois-Martin is a contributor at GESTE/S Magazine, with experience from previous roles at Numéro Magazine, Beaux Arts & Cie, Toute La Culture, and Flammarion. She holds a Master’s degree in Cultural Journalism in Arts and Media.
Nathan Merchadier has recently graduated with a Master’s degree in Cultural Journalism. He writes about music, film, and fashion for Numéro magazine. Occasionally, he also photographs the personalities he meets during interviews.
Matthieu Jacquet is the deputy editor-in-chief and section editor at Numéro Magazine.
Oliver Burgold is a photo enthusiast, avid photobook collector and deconstructor/resampler of art.
Cas Bochner is a photographer, artist or “guy with a camera”, a photobook lover in the Rhineland, Germany, when not on the road.
Sébastien Cuvelier is a Belgian photographer with a Master’s degree who has published four monographs. His work was in several solo and group exhibitions.
He is a member of .tiff and Futures, supported by FOMU Antwerp.Clerk B 👓 is responsible for the Moom Bookshop inventory.
Tung is a store attendant at the Moom Bookshop, specialised in hunting down missing parcels worldwide.
Shop assistant M 🕊️ works at the Moom Bookshop.
Store attendant CA 💆🏻♂️ is responsible for Moom’s web development. He likes to program while listening to black metal
Editor Z works at the Moom Bookshop.
Staff Member T‘s primary job is caring for the plants at the Moom Bookshop, and her side job is making the other bookstore staff’s products look prettier.
Thomas Gust is a photographer, lecturer, curator, bookseller and bookmaker. He founded Buchkunst Berlin with Ana Druga, after Bildband Berlin with Joe Dilworth.
Ana Druga is a graphic designer and co-founder of Buchkunst Berlin, working on concepts, development and design for contemporary photobooks and other printed media.
Mark Power is a British member of Magnum Photos and professor of photography in the Faculty of Arts and Architecture at the University of Brighton. He has been a lover of photobooks for longer than he cares to remember.
Brian Arnold (see 59) is a writer, photographer, educator, and language translator based in Ithaca, NY. His photographs are included in several important museum and library collections. He has received important grants and residencies.
Michael Ackerman’s work is in the permanent collection of important Museums. His book End Time City won the Prix Nadar in 1999. This year, Blow UP Press published Ackerman’s Homesick, New York. He moved back there this year.
Mike Brodie quit photography after his first highly acclaimed book, but he’s back with books and zines. His work is in collections worldwide, including the MoMa, the Martin Parr Foundation, and the Berkeley Museum of Art.
Tim Carpenter, see 14.
Andrea Copetti runs the Tipi Photo Bookshop and is deeply involved with his artists and clients. One resulting initiative is the Tipi Photobook Workshop, a platform that offers solutions and coaching on specific projects through targeted workshops.
Keith Cullen is the founder of Setanta Books, both a publisher and a photobookseller in the UK.
Kenneth Dickerman is an award-winning photo editor for the Washington Post who previously worked at TIME. He was a freelance photographer covering everything from the White House to the war in Afghanistan.
Jason Eskenazi is a photographer and author based in New York. He is the author of several photobooks you want to read. He co-founded the Dog Food zine and his own publishing house, Red Hook Editions.
Gianluca Gamberini is one of the creative minds behind L’Artiere, an independent publishing house based in Bologna, Italy. Gianluca has a business background and a passion for high-quality fine art photography books.
Gianmarco Gamberini is the other one. With a background in production, Gianmarco brings technical expertise and an eye for design to make each L’Artiere publication a beautifully crafted art object.
Matthew Genitempo received many grants and awards, his work was featured in many exhibitions, and he has made three photobooks that were counted among the very best of their year, according to the meta-lists.
Pia Guilmoth is a visual artist working primarily with photography. Her work explores themes of identity, nature, intimacy, and transformation.
Gregory Harris is the High Museum of Art’s Donald and Marilyn Keough Family Curator of Photography. He is a specialist in contemporary photography with a particular interest in documentary practice.
Henry O. Head‘s photographic journey began informally, shaped by years spent hitchhiking across the US, Australia, and New Zealand, capturing and sharing his experiences. His approach combines outward exploration and internal reflection.
Todd Hido, see 10.
Jake Knapp is a documentary photographer based in Seattle, Washington. He made an impressive photobook debut with Trump, Colorado, in 2024.
Misha Kominek, see 39.
Jesse Lenz was a co-founder and publisher of The Collective Quarterly and The Coyote Journal. He founded the monthly book club The Charcoal Book Club, its publishing arm Charcoal Press, and the Chico Hot Springs Portfolio Review.
João Linneu is a Brazilian-born designer, photographer and book publisher, who is currently based in Reykjavík, Iceland. He is the co-founder of Void, an independent publishing house dedicated to photography books and education.
Christopher McCall is the founding director of Pier 24 Photography in San Francisco, one of the largest exhibition spaces devoted to photography. In 2002, McCall received an MFA in photography, after which he taught for seven years.
Andrea Modica is an American photographer and professor of photography at Drexel University. She is known for portraits, her platinum printing, and the use of an 8"x10" large-format camera. Modica is the author of many monographs.
Ahndraya Parlato has a BA from Bard College and an MFA from California College of the Arts. She was awarded multiple grants and residencies and has published three photobooks; Time To Kill is forthcoming from Mack Books.
Kristine Potter is an artist whose work explores masculine archetypes, the American landscape, and the cultural tendency to mythologise the past. Her first monograph, Manifest, was published by TBW Books in 2018.
Mark Power, see 74.
Bryan Schutmaat is a photographer whose work has been widely exhibited and published. He has won numerous awards, and his prints are held in important collections. He co-founded the imprint, Trespasser. His books lead the meta-lists.
Ben Smith is a London-based writer, photographer and the creator and host of a weekly photography podcast, A Small Voice: Conversations with photographers and filmmakers.
Sage Sohier has received fellowships from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, No Strings Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, and the Massachusetts Artists Foundation. She has published nine monographs.
Mark Steinmetz makes photographs “of ordinary people in the ordinary landscapes they inhabit”. He filled more than twenty acclaimed books with that. His work is held in many leading museum collections.
Miwa Susuda is a writer, publisher of Session Press, and, for over ten years, the manager of Dashwood Books, New York.
Ed Templeton, see 47.
Noelle Théard, see 10.
Nick Waplington’s many books and zines have been both self-published and published through big publishing houses. His work is shown solo and held in important US museums, as well as at the Venice Biennale.
Terri Weifenbach has authored over twenty books. She has exhibited in the US, Europe, Japan, and Korea and received the Guggenheim Fellowship in 2015.
Clint Woodside is a photographer born in Buffalo, NY, who has published over ten books and exhibited widely. He also runs Deadbeat Club, a publisher and distributor of small books by photographers.
Brad Zellar, see 52
Viory Schellekens is a photographer with a background in journalism. She’s a photobook collector, and this photobook meta-list is her community work, aka labour of love.
QT Luong is a photographer based in San Jose, California.
Staff Member C joined the Moom Bookshop physical store during its preparation phase; he’s practically a moon-bound spirit. C is also the editor of the b-side account @moom.bookshop.
> the List of Lists
Updated 6 Feb, 00:02 (UTC+1)
The List of Lists and List-makers will be updated as soon as I receive or find a new year-end list. If a list is missing, please let me know. You can contact me on Substack, Instagram, Facebook or at viorys@gmail. Let’s rock this party together!
Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy
Our Favorite Photo Books of 2025, What Will You RememberClément Chéroux
Some of the 2025 PhotoBooks that stayed in my mind a bit longer than an Instagram post, InstagramChrister Ek
Avent photobook calendar 2025Tim Clark and Thomas King
Top 10 (+1) Photobooks of 2025, 1000 WordsRobin Titchener
Photobooks of 2025 - A personal selection, Robin Titchener, Art Photobook ReviewsClaire Valentine McCartney
The Best Coffee Table Books of 2025, W Magazine
Gabriela Cendoya,
Una lista demasiado larga, un año más, Gabriela’s Substack, part I
Carly Tagen-Dye
The Best Celebrity Photo Books of 2025: Dolly Parton, Rocky Horror, SNL and More, People
Mark Moorman, Merel Bem and Arno Haijtema
De beste Nederlandse fotoboeken van 2025, de Volkskrant
Ruby Rees-Sheridan, Noelle Théard, Alasdair Foster, Andreas Müller-Pohle, Aya Musa, Hideko Kataoka, Ihiro Hayami, Irina Chmyreva, Erin Hoyt Harris, Liz Sales, Manila Camarini, Martin Parr, Rachel Barker, Dewi Lewis, Paul Schiek, Roman Härer, Roy Kahmann, Tom Gitterman, Xavier Canonne, Raquel Villar Pérez, Arianna Rinaldo, Mary Virginia Swanson, Sara Urbaez, Todd Hido, Claartje van Dijk, Rebecca Norris Webb, Francesca Marani, Simon Bainbridge, Elena Boille, Enrico Stefanelli, Kristen Gresh, Gulnara Lyabib Samoilova, Yuri Yamada, Sacha Lecca, Andreas Trampe, Ângela Berlinde, Chris Pichler, Clare Grafik, Azu Nwagbogu, Richard Renaldi, Brian Clamp, Daniel Boetker-Smith, Mark Sealy, Sam Barzilay, Monique Deschaines, Narda van ‘t Veer, Sophie Wright, Giuseppe Oliverio, Alexa Becker, Joel Meyerowitz, Steven Evans, Chloe Coleman, Ron Haviv, Magali Duzant, Yumi Goto.
Favourite Photobooks 2025 — The Big List, LenscultureDonny Bajohr, Jeff Campagna and Quentin Nardi
The Ten Best Photography Books of 2025, Smithsonian Magazine
Rianne van Dijck
Wat zijn de mooiste fotoboeken van 2025?, NRCGiuseppe Oliverio, Erik Kessels, Rosa Lacavalla, Danaé Panchaud, Camilla Marrese, Krzysztof Candrowicz, Lucia De Stefani, Nicolas Janowski, Karolina Kluza, Colin Pantall.
PhMuseum Loved Photobooks 2025, PhMuseum website
Tim Carpenter
Three books that have been in constant rotation in 2025, InstagramGeorge Slade
Top Notch, in the subscriber chat
Blind Magazine
Our Selection of Photobooks to Gift This Christmas, a selection of the finest photobooks published in 2025, Blind Magazine
William Myers
Photography Books of 2025: Putting Faces to Names, The Wall Street Journal
Guillaume Delacroix, Ronan Deshaies, Gaspard Dhellemmes, Clement Ghys, Claire Guillot and Emmanuelle Lequeux
Mireia Alises
15 fotolibros recomendados del 2025, Photo Art BooksRaymond Hagewoud, aka Hedgeforest
My favorite photobooks from 2025, Instagram
editorial team of VSCO
Colin Pantall
Some of my favourite books for 2025, on Facebookand on Instagram
Gabriela Cendoya, Part II
There’s always more…
Pequeño anexo a la larga lista de fotolibros, Gabriela’s Substack, part IMolly Roberts
Molly’s Top 10 Photo Books of 2025, 10fps podcast
Kate Schultze
My top 5, Instagram Bildband Berlin
Ruben Lundgren
Personal pile of ten great photobooks published in 2025 by Dutch makers, Instagram
and on FacebookAlex Prior
Joe Dilworth
Staff’s Favourite Photobooks of 2025 Day II: Joe’s List, BildBand Berlin Instagram
Elena Boille, Giovanna D'Ascenzi, Maysa Moroni, Rosy Santella, Mélissa Jollivet and Maysa Moroni
I libri di fotografia del 2025, Internazionale
Peter Dench
The best photo books of 2025, Amateur Photographer
Editorial team Focus Magazine
Youvalle Levy
Our staff’s favourite photobooks of 2025: Youvalle’s picks, Bildband Berlin
Jonah Goldman Kay, Karen Gu, Zach Ritter, Quinn Schoen, Jennie Waldow, Elizabeth Wiet, Re’al Christian, Megan N. Liberty
I selected the photobooks and artist’s books in which photography plays a narrating role, which were all but one. Correct me if I’m wrong.
The Best Art Books of 2025, The Brooklyn Rail
Fisheye editors
3 livres à offrir à Noël : réel, fiction et mode, Fisheye Magazine4 livres à offrir à Noël : partons en vadrouille, Fisheye Magazine
Chloe, Albert, Tom, Martin, Rawanne, Lydia, Lucie, Dilly, Nick
The Photographers’ Gallery staff picks, InstagramJohn Sypal
My Favorite Photobooks 2025, Photo & Culture Tokyo
Gerry Brakus
Photo books of the year 2025, The New Statesman
Kalel Koven & Valentine Zeler
XMAS 2025 – Photo Books Selection, In Frame
Misha Kominek
Some of my favorite books of the year, Instagram
Martin Amis
Photobooks of 2025: Part I, Photobookstore
Photobooks of 2025: Part II, Photobookstore
Moira Gonzalez
The Fashion Books, Photobooks & Zines Everyone Wants This Year, Wonderland.
Giuseppe Oliverio
Una guida ai 12 fotolibri di nicchia da regalare a Natale, per chi sotto l’albero desidera trovare una piccola opera d’arte, Vogue ItaliaAlec Soth
Picking Favorites: On Martin Parr and my favorite photobook of 2025, YouTube
Wim van Sinderen
Some fascinating, perfectly curated photo books that were released this year, on Instagram
Daniel Agee
Top 10 Photo Books of 2025 – Daniel’s List, 10FPSOla Søndenå
My annual photobook list, 2025 edition, on Facebookand on Instagram
Ed Templeton
I secretly liked my year end homework assignment and kinda missed doing it this year, so I have self-assigned myself the task. On Instagram
Sema D’Acosta, Nicolás Combarro, Tania Franco Klein, Laura González Palacios, Paul Graham, Jaime Narváez, Vitor Nieves, Mariela Sancari, Sonia Voss, Nadine Wietlisbach
Stephen Goldblatt
Here’s my list. On Instagram
NARRATIVA
NARRATIVA | Livros do ano | 2025. On Instagram
Blake Andrews
Long Tail Photobooks of 2025. On InstagramBrad Zellar
2025 photobooks I’ve spent the most time with this year. On Instagram.
Viktor Váradi
My favourite photobooks of 2025. On InstagramUntitled | Ukrainian photography
10 українських фотокниг 2025 року / 10 Ukrainian photo books of 2025, Untitled | Ukrainian photography
Aline Smithson, Sara Bennett, Michael Honegger, Montserrat Andrée Carty, Elizabeth Stone, Laila Nahar, Epiphany Knedler, Linda Alterwitz, Douglas Breault, Karen Bullock, Deanna Dikeman
The 2025 Lenscratch Staff Favorite Things, Lenscratch
(not just photobooks, but enough to be included)Regina Anzenberger
Favorite photobooks of the year 2025. On Facebook
Ted, aka sixteensecondshappy,
Some favorites from 2025, story on InstagramJulia Borrisova
Любимые книги года / My favourite books of 2025. On Boosty
Four books published in 2025 that I consider my favourites. On Instagram
Paul Anderson, Brian Arnold, Melanie Chapman, Gerhard Clausing, Lee Halvorsen, Steve Harp, Hans Hickerson, Brian O’Neill, Matt Schneider, Douglas Stockdale, and Rudy Vega
Interesting Photobooks of 2025, The Photobook Journal
Christophe Périgois
My 25 favorite Photobooks in 2025. On Instagram.My 25 favorite Photobooks in 2025. On Facebook.
Sugar Paper
Best of 2025 — Top 5 Photobooks dell’anno. On Instagram
Rachele Pari
Il 2025 in sette libri di fotografia: Alcune pubblicazioni dell’anno passato da non perdere, BMB Live StudioCamille Bois-Martin, Nathan Merchadier and Matthieu Jacquet.
7 livres de photographie pour s’évader pendant les fêtes, Numéro
Oliver Burgold
Six Books from 2025, which are amongst the best of the year. On Instagram
Cas Bochner
Photobooks of 2025. On InstagramSébastien Cuvelier
Favorite photobooks of 2025. On Instagram
Clerk b 👓
⊹ moom bookshop 店員推薦五本2025年出版的藝術書籍 ⊹ On InstagramTung
⊹ moom bookshop 店員推薦五本2025年出版的藝術書籍 ⊹ On InstagramShop assistant m 🕊️
以下是店員 m 的選書 🕊️. Moom on Instagramstore attendant CA 💆🏻♂️
以下是店員 CA 的選書 💆🏻♂️. Moom on Instagram
Editor Z
以下是店員 Z 的選書 👩🏻🌾. Moom on InstagramStaff Member T
Thomas Gust and Ana Druga
A selection of photobooks that particularly impressed us. On Instagram and on FacebookMark Power
My own top twelve book purchases from 2025. On Instagram
Brian Arnold
My favorites from 2025. On Instagram
Michael Ackerman, Mike Brodie, Tim Carpenter, Andrea Copetti, Keith Cullen, Kenneth Dickerman, Jason Eskenazi, Gianluca Gamberini, Gianmarco Gamberini, Matthew Genitempo, Pia Paulina Guilmoth, Gregory Harris, Henry O. Head, Todd Hido, Jake Knapp, Misha Kominek, Jesse Lenz, João Linneu, Christopher McCall, Andrea Modica, Andraya Parlato, Kristine Potter, Mark Power, Bryan Schutmaat, Ben Smith, Sage Sohier, Mark Steinmetz, Miwa Susuda, Ed Templeton, Noelle Théard, Nick Waplington, Terri Weifenbach, Clint Woodside, Brad Zellar.
Highlights - 2025 Charcoal List, Charcoal book clubViory Schellekens
My favourite books of 2025. Viory’s Substack
QT Luong
Favorite photobooks of 2025. On InstagramStaff Member C
以下是店員 c 的選書 🚀, Moom
Could have been 80…I only found The chicest coffee-table books of the year by the Financial Times way after the Lunar New Year. Unfortunately, not included this year.
The rules
I try to create a fairly democratic meta-list by leaving the parameters of each list as the list-maker intended them. Every kind of photo(graphy) book is welcome here: artist book to coffee table book, books selected by experts and by photobook enthusiasts. Some people highlight one book, others twenty. Some nominate “best books”, while others choose “great books not mentioned by anyone yet”. All are interesting to someone looking for something new and exciting.
I also try to make the list as fair as possible. And a panel of photobook collectors agreed on the following rules:
1. You might share your favourites with more than one publication, but the same book will be counted only once per person. 2. Generally, I don’t include “Christmas gift guides” and nothing compiled before November of the previous year. “Best from the Arts and Design” and even “Best Art Books” don’t make the selection unless they contain a substantial amount of photobooks. 3. I don’t include the book you made yourself, a list of “all books I wrote about this year” or “all I bought this year”. 4. Historical lists (your all-time favourites) have to party elsewhere, but books from November 2024, and this year’s reprints will be included.
If you think something should change in the rules, please head to the subscriber chat and open a discussion!
I think of this Meta-list as a list by and for people who love and support the photobook. I think the books here have been carefully selected. I also believe the Meta-list can give an image of how the photobook world is developing. But don’t take it too seriously, especially this year with many expert voices missing. The compilation is unsuitable for real statistics because the individual lists are incomparable. They do show the most excellent photobooks and great discoveries for everyone’s taste. I hope you’ll find your darlings.Your 2025 photobooks, together with ours 🙌
(Don’t hesitate to DM me if you want to receive the full list.)Original announcement
Nov ‘25 – “Aren’t you glad you don’t have to make a year-end list this year?” Martin Amis asked me last year, after kindly informing me that he was taking a year off from throwing the Photobookstore year-end party. I wasn’t, because that year I would celebrate my 10th meta-list anniversary. As of writing, I’m still putting the candles on the cake, bringing the 10-year archive back alive on Substack.Of course, last year’s jubilee also prompted me to reflect, and I see that a lot has changed. Most importantly, ten years earlier, year-end lists would roll by while you and I were scrolling through Facebook; we were happy to make a list or at least share the ones that surfaced in our feed. Last year, I had to filter them out of Instagram within the small timeframe a “story” lasts there because people were no longer sharing them as posts.
My conversation this year was with Rixon Read. Due to staffing time constraints, photo-eye has decided to keep its “Favourite Books” feature in-house this year as it did in 2022. It means that around 45 to 90 luminaries will not be participating. Both last year and in 2022, I was still able to scramble 90+ year-end lists, but will it be worth all the effort again? By now, I think it’s clear that Photobookstore is not compiling the other big list either
I am choosing not to spend as much time on a meta-list as I did in previous years. Because of a waning enthusiasm (for lists or social media?). Because I’m not even sure there will be enough authoritative voices to bake a proper celebration cake. And obviously, because of the time involved, but also because I dread hours of watching genocide on Instagram, waiting for your year-end list to show up. Lastly, I want to be with my family. My dad is in the hospital, and we are worried (19/12 rehabilitating).
This is how my break will look: I’m not planning to let friends and fans of the meta-list down. But I will be more or less back to my “strategy” from the very first year. I’m going to wait, see, and enjoy what comes by. I will look for the other large lists and include them. And I appeal to you, to everyone who appreciates the meta-list: please send me the lists that come your way while you are doing your thing.
This list will have the same bells and whistles as the Meta-list on Substack. But it may not be substantial enough to be considered the same thing. I hope you are willing to provide input; therefore, I’m introducing this “Informal Photobook Community List”
I’m really counting on your support. Please let me know if you see or make a list.






































































































































































Not sure what "Top Notch" is, Viory. I know I used it to describe Justin D. Allen's three University of Minnesota 2025 MFA final project books, but the link from the List goes only to a registration page.