Providing a different perspective on many of the old stories in the history of photography, Mary Warner Marien shows how the medium developed in various historical, economic, political and cultural settings worldwide and discusses the many uses to which photography has been put - from art to vernacular, documentary to photojournalism, and science to advertising. Marien explores ideas generated by and about photography in each period, and examines photography's key role in contemporary art, including the increasing use of digital photography. The book contains images by photographers such as Alfred Stieglitz, Edward Steichen, August Sander and Margaret Bourke-White - as well as many unusual and seldom-seen pictures.