Proof

Proof book cover

The Beatles racing across Candlestick Park at the end of their final public performance; Johnny Cash pausing to give the camera a middle finger salute before playing for inmates in San Quentin; a weary Janis Joplin backstage, keeping a whiskey bottle company. Jim Marshall captured each of these iconic images with his camera. But what of the other shots taken during these legendary moments? For the first time, Marshall shares his contact sheets from the sittings, concerts, and sessions that surround his most famous pictures. Over sixty proof sheets are featured in their entirety, along with the final chosen hero shot on the facing page. This book sheds new light on Marshall’s talents for revealing on film the essence of his subjects, from celebrated musicians, actors, writers, and performers, to everyday people from San Francisco to rural Appalachia. A rare glimpse into a great photographer’s creative process, Proof provides a behind-the-scenes look at the making of some of the most preeminent images of our time.

Photographs by Jim Marshall, text by Joel Selvin.
Chronicle Books 2004
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