Books
“The beauty to which Plowden’s eye is often witness, and to which his art pledges its allegiance, gives a measure of the indignation aroused by scenes of beauty profaned and civility eclipsed. Taken individually, one at a time, Plowden’s pictures refresh the eye; they instruct, they remind, they warn, they engage us in dialogue about the state of our world. Cumulatively, they provide a memorable legacy of American imprints in their own right.”
—By Alan Trachtenberg (from the Introduction of Imprints)
David Plowden is author of more than twenty photography books. Among many of Plowden's books currently in print are those shown below, other titles, although out of print, are widely offered through a variety of venues and can be found through a simple web search (see links below).
Requiem for Steam: The Railroad Photographs of David Plowden, W.W. Norton & Company, 2010
Stunning images by a master photographer documenting the last of the steam locomotives. 140 tritone photographs.
David Plowden's Iowa, Humainties Iowa, 2012; Introduction by Rima Girnius
David Plowden’s Iowa contains over 70 pages of photographs, along with an introductory essay by Rima Girnius, PhD, that interprets Plowden’s Iowa photos and places them firmly within the context of his illustrious career.
David Plowden: Vanishing Point: Fifty Years of Photographs, W.W. Norton & Company, 2007; Introduction by Steve Edwards
This volume is both a tribute to and a celebration of the photographer who, more than anyone else, has given us a visual record of our mark on the land over the last half-century.
A Handful of Dust: Disappearing America, W.W. Norton & Company, 2006
An elegy for our changing landscape by the noted photographer David Plowden. The America of these photographs is reminiscent of an era that no longer exists.
Bridges: The Spans of North America,
W.W. Norton & Company, 2002
This book explores how, when, where, and by whom the most important North American bridges were built. Over 185 of Plowden's photographs of the scientific and aesthetic qualities of each bridge.
David Plowden: The American Barn, W.W. Norton & Company, 2003
As a photographer, David Plowden has admired and photographed barns. Recently, as they began to disappearance, he made it his mission to document them, before they were lost. 130 duotone photographs
Imprints: A Retrospective, Bulfinch Press, 1997; Introduction by Alan Trachtenberg
This book looks back over Plowden's career. The 170 dramatic black-and-white photographs presented here brilliantly record the struggle between civilization and nature, old and new.
End of an Era: The Last of the Great Lakes Steamboats, W.W. Norton & Company, 1992
They mark our age
as a race of men;
earth shall not see
such ships as these again.
—John Masefield
Plowden's photographs capture the last of the Great Lakes steamboats.
All material on this website copyright © 1955-2013 by David Plowden – All rights reserved.
For a complete bibliography click below to download a pdf file or view by clicking the "Bibliography Page" button.
For a list of books by David Plowden offered through Amazon click the button below.