"The camera is essentially a license to explore."--Jerry Uelsmann

"The history of photography has had very few individuals who have transfigured the art for each of their particular generations, but for our present era it is hard to name one whose career and prominence can rival that of Jerry Uelsmann."--Roy L. Flukinger

"Uelsmann is one of photography’s greatest and most generous creative spirits, dazzling us with visions at once completely novel and deeply, universally true."-- Keith F. Davis


Armed with a scanner and a laptop, many artists create composite photographic images in just a few hours using Adobe Photoshop®. But the acknowledged pioneer and master innovator of photomontage is Jerry Uelsmann.

For more than fifty years, Uelsmann has relied exclusively on analog tools, crafting images by integrating multiple negatives and processing effects. His explorations of "the alchemy of the darkroom" have resulted in a unique, transformational style that continues to influence, inspire, and fascinate artists, photographers, and museum audiences across the world.

Uelsmann's work defies easy interpretation even as it engages the imagination. This retrospective features the largest number of Uelsmann images ever collected in a single volume, and some never-before reproduced. Drawn from his entire career, they show both the evolution of his technique and the solidity of his vision. An accompanying essay by Carol McCusker, curator of photography at the Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, provides historical and biographical context and discusses Uelsmann’s formative experiences and his coming of age as a photographer.

Jerry Uelsmann is an award-winning photographer whose work has appeared in numerous books, including Uelsmann: Process and Perception, Jerry Uelsmann: Photo Synthesis, and Uelsmann/Yosemite.

Sample Chapter(s):

Slideshow - Samples

“Uelsmann is a photographer of a very different stripe, creating composite photographs that are richly rewarding, telling a story, often with a strong, mystifying narrative.”
--Houston Press

“Uelsmann has consistently managed to keep his surreality on a high plane, doing more with his conceptions than produce cheap wonder.”
--E-Photo Newsletter

the largest number of Uelsmann images ever collected in a single volume. Drawn from his entire career, they show both the evolution of his technique and the solidity of his vision.
--Music Universe