The Photographer as Autobiographer

To me, that s what makes autobiographies by photographers interesting: not their faith in photography but their suspicion of it, and the transfer of their suspicion of photography s representation onto autobiography s representation. (Charles Reeve, Biography, Vol. 46 (2), 2023)

This book s exploration of how literary life writing and artistically composed, strategically positioned images combine to intensify the representation and impact of photographers life stories is a timely intervention into this captivating hybrid genre, and a valuable contribution to life writing studies . Schmitt s wide-ranging, interdisciplinary insights, which collectively initiate critical discussions on the diversity and complexity of interchanges among memoirist, text, visual image, and reader, constitute a firm platform for more specialised analyses of creatively illustrated life narratives. (Merril Howie, Life Writing, June 19, 2023)