Synopses & Reviews
Startlingly beautiful in its content and powerfully eloquent in its message, Witness captures 100 species of North American animals and plants on the brink of extinction in a series of stunning color and duotone portraits. By photographing each imperiled creature against a stark black or white backdrop, photographers Susan Middleton and David Liittschwager visually remove the habitat that would ensure its survival and bring the plight of the individual species -- whether a majestic Florida panther or a delicate Tennessee purple coneflower -- closer to home. A bibliography and an index, a resource giude to additional information sources, an eloquent introduction by E. O. Wilson, and an essay on the Endangered Species Act complete this formidable volume, making it not only an elegant and moving documentary, but a valuable tool in the fight for the preservation of diminishing habitats and the species that depend on them.
Review
This eloquent and stirring book of photographs is an oasis for anyone who cares deeply about nature. The animals leap out of their two-dimensional frames; they are radiant with life. Diane Ackerman
About the Author
David Liittschwager has worked with Richard Avedon and Mary Ellen Mark and collaborated on the Endangered Species Project. They are the authors of Here Today: Portraits of Our Vanishing Species (Chronicle Books, 1991).
Susan Middleton is chair of the photography department at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. Her work has appeared in many publications, including Audubon, Natural History, and Smithsonian.