Sand and Fog: Adventures in Southern Africa

Award-winning wildlife photographer Brandenburg ( To the Top of the World: Adventures with Arctic Wolves ) has a unique ability to capture the essence of a subject on film. Here he has assembled a breathtaking collection of images of life--both human and animal--in the desert realms of Namibia. His clear, tautly composed photos vividly depict a wide range of subjects, from the sinuous lines of shifting sand dunes to the results of a day's digging at a diamond mine, from the carefree splashing of seals in the coastal waves to a mass baptism by a Herero priest. But while the images speak directly and elegantly, Brandenburg's text is an unfocused combination of his musings on the elusive nature of the perfect photo, discussions of his professional career and florid descriptions of his wanderings, all of which ultimately detract from the power of the photograph. All ages. (Apr.)