Photographer Brooke DiDonato has images that have been seen in various advertising campaigns across the world. She’s a surreal photographer currently living in Texas who we’ve featured many times. Her work continues to mesmerize thousands of people with her work. And now, she’s decided to make a photo book. Coined Take a Picture, It Will Last Longer explores some of the work that she’s done over the years. Brooke’s work is often done without Photoshop and explores trauma, loss, grief, and feeling perplexed. If you’ve ever wanted an idea of what it’s like to create images at peak human weirdness without the inclusion of AI, this is probably the way to do it. And if you’ve ever felt like AI is just going to outdo and replace us as human photographers, Brooke’s work is the northern star in the sky that will give you hope.
All images in this article are used with permission from Brooke DiDonato. Please follow her on Instagram @brookedidonato and also check out her website. Most of all, get your copy of her book at this link.
Earlier this year, we called Brooke one of the women photographers should teach their kids about. She’s also an important LGBTQ photographer these days, though her work doesn’t explore this path of her identity much. Since we last featured Brooke, her work has evolved. It mixes in various parts of Texas as well as that of the homes around her. She’s spent lots of time in the desert as well as playing with various types of color patterns. Lots of the wallpapers in her images remind us of old houses you’d find from eras long gone now. The colors tend to pop while embracing a sedated pastel look with brighter-than-normal shadows.
In fact, Brooke’s work is surreal but never really feels dark. Instead, it embraces whimsey and chaos for what they are.
Brooke’s background takes root in photojournalistic soil. These roots are still with her today, but she’s obviously taken things in her own direction. Her photographs still tell stories, but they’re the ones that she’s trying to tell through metaphors, emotions, colors, fun, and so much more. “These images depict real narratives about vulnerability, instability and self-destruction fused with dream-like visual qualities,” she told the Phoblographer in 2014.
Recent years since the pandemic have shown Brooke embracing more nudity in her work to express things in a more vulnerable way. At the same time, it’s a unique form of nudity that you don’t really see anywhere else. It’s not the type of work that will get upvoted on Reddit because there’s a pretty woman barely wearing any clothing in the photographs. Instead, Brooke’s work soars effortlessly like a Condor above the pigeons and sparrows of the various sub-reddit forums. The same can be said for the work she showcases on Instagram and other social media platforms.
The new book has various editions, with a few of them being very limited options. If they haven’t all been taken at the time of this reporting, you can also get your hands on special prints or books with sleeves.
Brooke is looking to raise around $80,000 for this book. And we sincerely think you should get on it as soon as you can.