500 superb images represent the world's best photographers and encompass every sort of photography in this eye-catching and engrossing book.

Pictures of famous events such as the Royal Wedding and the first landing on the moon are here, next to familiar shots by masters of photography such as Bill Brandt, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Cecil Beaton and Robert Doisneau.

There is fashion, sport, natural history, reportage and society portraiture, as well as social documentary and art. The 500 photographers featured range from William Henry Fox Talbot and Julia Margaret Cameron to Larry Clarke and Herb Rittz, from Robert Capa and Josef Koudelka to Nan Goldin and Pierre et Gilles.

Arranged alphabetically by photographer, each full-page image is accompanied by an illuminating text which gives a useful insight into the work and its creator, as well as extensive cross-references to others working in the same field or the same style.

Glossaries of technical terms and movements and a directory of museums and galleries are included to provide a fully comprehensive and self-contained volume.