A beautifully produced, encyclopedic photo-book on the history of twentieth century photography. Almost 300 of the century's most influential and relevant photographers are featured in alphabetical order with examples of their work to go along with each biography. Some of those featured are Ansel Adams, Richard Avedon, Cecil Beaton, Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Lucien Clergue, Harold Edgerton, Alfred Eisenstadt, Peter H. Furst, Phillippe Halsman, Heinz Held, Fritz Henle, David Octavius Hill, Horst P. Horst, Walde Huth, Alfred Cheney Johnston, Yousuf Karsh, Dorothea Lange, Angus McBean, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Helmut Newton, Irving Penn, Man Ray, Bettina Rheims, August Sander, Karl Hugo Schmolz, Edward Streichen, Alfred Stieglitz, Edward Weston, and of course, many, many others.

20th Century Photography is a scholarly masterpiece and is a superb representation of the Museum Ludwig Cologne which reputedly has over 9,000 photographs in it collection. It features many nudes and figure studies as well as many other genres of photography. It is an excellent collection and a very worthwhile addition to one's personal library.