World Press Photo 1997

Every year since 1955 an international jury has met in Holland under the auspices of the World Press Photo Foundation to choose the world's finest press photographs. Universally recognized as the definitive competition for photographic reporting, it has been described by Michael Rand - for many years Art Director of "The Sunday Times Magazine" - as" "the" international photographic contest." Publishing the results of the fortieth annual World Press Photo Contest, this outstanding book contains the best photographs of 1996. Selected from the work of over 3,500 photographers, these 200 images embrace every part of the world and every aspect of human existence - from war and famine to sport and science. Diverse, moving, sometimes harrowing, they reaffirm the photographic medium's power as a reflection of our time.