This was a great year for photography books. I purchased more photography books this year than any year since I started in photography. The quality of books from the smaller presses is unbelievable. These are my favorite books that have a bias toward street photography but some are not strictly street photography books. At the end is my book of the year. It is a reprint from the 1980's and just might be my favorite photography book of all time.
Susan Bernstine Absence of Being
This book was published in 2016 but was not widely available until this year. Fantastic Art photography. She makes her own cameras.
Henri Cartier-Bresson Interviews
Thoughts on photography by the master of street photography.
Teju Cole Blind Spot
Possibly the most popular writing about photography this year.
Alec Soth Sleeping by the Mississippi
A reprint but one the best books of the last 20 years.
Nancy Rexroth Iowa
Holga photos taken in Iowa and throughout the midwest. It's great that this work is back in print.
Ernst Haas Color Correction
Fantastic color work from the golden age of Leica photography.
Provoke Between Performance and Photography
Provoke
Japanese street photography from the 1960's.
Jack Spencer This Land
Street and scenic views of America.
FAN HO Hong Kong Yesterday
Incredible Photography. If you are a street photographer this is the kind of work to aspire to.
Gene Smith's Sink
The story of a photographers photographer.
Masahisa Fukase Ravens
This is my vote for the best photography book of 2017. First printed in the late 1980's it has been reprinted but always sells out quickly. Grab this while it is available. It is a book of mostly bird photos but that description is misleading. There is so much emotion in this book. Sadness, Solitude, Loneliness. Your images should strive to connect with the viewer, this book does it masterly. A classic collection of images, maybe the best of the last 50 years.