Bookshelf: The top five books of one of our favourite photographers, Osma Harvilahti

It’s safe to say we’re pretty big fans of Osma’s photography. He’s been featured and commissioned in our two most recent publications, and we’ve wasted no time in putting his work on the site as often as we can. We know that Helsinki-based Osma likes to linger around middle-eastern markets and in Finnish woodland to capture his perfect shot, but which books inspired him to choose to do this as a career? No time to lose, let’s find out. Over to you, Osma.

Christian Patterson: Redheaded Peckerwood

Got my hands on this one last year and I’m really glad I did as the book is an experience in it’s physicality and demands the viewer to “feel” it.  A laptop or iPad really doesn’t do justice to this masterpiece. It’s basically a beautiful murder mystery that’s full of suggestions and small hints for the viewer to explore yet leaves a number of questions open which makes things even more interesting. Definitely one of the most beautiful photography books of the past few years.

Takashi Homma: Tokyo and my Daughter

My love for Asian metropoles seems to be ever growing but Tokyo is still probably the most beautiful and inspirational city I’ve had a chance to visit. This tiny book consists of subtle everyday moments featuring the photographers daughter and several beautifully composed cityscapes. The sensitive beauty of it makes me wanna cry and travel to Tokyo now.

Torbjørn Rødland: I WANT TO LIVE INNOCENT

To my surprise got this one from a discount basket for five pounds and this fact makes me want to feature this one over Vanilla Partner. I got some mad respect towards Rødland’s aesthetics, specially the scary and playful scenes he has created and documented at his hometown Stavanger. Gotta love the picture of a innocent bright blue eyed baby devouring a piece of a dead animal (pork chop).

Ansel Adams: Landscapes of the American West

In so many ways this is the grandest piece of the bookshelf. Beautifully captured landscapes by the American master. Zero unnecessary bullshit.

Luigi Ghirri: Kodachrome

I’m deeply impressed by Luigi Ghirri’s work and the way he saw the world. His contribution to worlds photography is remarkable and personally I’ve found myself appreciating his compositions and usage of colour over any other photographer alive or long gone.