
Focus
The Secret, Sexy, Sometimes Sordid World of Fashion Photographers
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $17.19
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Kirby Heyborne
-
By:
-
Michael Gross
About this listen
Before Instagram was an art form, fashion photographers were pop culture royalty. From the postwar covers of Vogue until the triumph of the digital image, the fashion photographer sold not only clothes but ideals of beauty and fantasies of perfect lives. Even when they succumbed to temptation and excess, the very few photographers who rose to the top were artists above all.
In his follow-up to the New York Times best-selling Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women, Michael Gross probes the lives, hang-ups, and artistic triumphs of more than a dozen of fashion photography's greatest visionaries: Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Melvin Sokolsky, Bert Stern, David Bailey, Bill King, Gilles Bensimon, Bruce Weber, Steven Meisel, Corinne Day, Bob and Terry Richardson, and more. From Avedon's haute couture fantasies and telling portraits to Weber's sensual, intimate, and heroic slices of life, and from Bob Richardson's provocations to his son Terry's transgressions, Gross takes listeners behind the scenes and reveals the revolutionary creative processes and fraught private passions of these visionary magicians.
©2016 Idee Fixe Ltd. (P)2016 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
-
Avedon
- Something Personal
- By: Norma Stevens, Steven M. L. Aronson
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 22 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An intimate biography of Richard Avedon, the legendary fashion and portrait photographer who “helped define America’s image of style, beauty and culture” (The New York Times) by his longtime collaborator and business partner Norma Stevens and award-winning author Steven M. L. Aronson.
-
-
fantastic and love this narrator
- By Melis S. on 01-16-18
By: Norma Stevens, and others
-
What Becomes a Legend Most
- A Biography of Richard Avedon
- By: Philip Gefter
- Narrated by: Jane Oppenheimer
- Length: 22 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his acclaimed portraits, Richard Avedon captured the iconic figures of the twentieth century in his starkly bold, intimately minimal, and forensic visual style. What Becomes a Legend Most is the first definitive biography of this luminary—an intensely driven man who endured personal and professional prejudice, struggled with deep insecurities, and mounted an existential lifelong battle to be recognized as an artist. Philip Gefter builds on archival research and exclusive interviews with those closest to Avedon to chronicle his story.
-
-
Poor pronunciation :(
- By Barbara Shaterian on 01-18-21
By: Philip Gefter
-
Anna
- The Biography
- By: Amy Odell
- Narrated by: Imogen Church
- Length: 15 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a child, Anna Wintour was a tomboy with no apparent interest in clothing but, seduced by the miniskirts and bob haircuts of swinging 1960s London, she grew into a fashion-obsessed teenager. Her father, an influential newspaper editor, loomed large in her life, and once he decided she should become editor-in-chief of Vogue, she never looked back.
-
-
WONDERFUL, SPLENDID, I LOVED IT!!
- By Liz Jardine on 05-13-22
By: Amy Odell
-
Oscar Wars
- A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears
- By: Michael Schulman
- Narrated by: Charlie Thurston
- Length: 21 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Oscar Wars, Michael Schulman chronicles the remarkable, sprawling history of the Academy Awards and the personal dramas—some iconic, others never-before-revealed—that have played out on the stage and off camera. Unlike other books on the subject, each chapter takes a deep dive into a particular year, conflict, or even category that tells a larger story of cultural change, from Louis B. Mayer to Moonlight. Schulman examines how the red carpet runs through contested turf, and the victors aren't always as clear as the names drawn from envelopes.
-
-
Fascinating and FUN
- By Peter Riley on 06-11-23
By: Michael Schulman
-
My Life in Focus
- A Photographer's Journey with Elizabeth Taylor and the Hollywood Jet Set
- By: Gianni Bozzacchi, Joey Tayler
- Narrated by: James Killavey
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Gianni Bozzacchi accepted an assignment as a photographer on the set of The Comedians (1967), he didn't know that his life was about to change forever. His ability to capture the beauty of candid moments drew the attention of the film's star, Elizabeth Taylor, and prompted her to hire him as her personal photographer.
-
-
Rags to Riches and Life with the stars
- By cindilla on 04-03-17
By: Gianni Bozzacchi, and others
-
Vivienne Westwood
- By: Vivienne Westwood, Ian Kelly
- Narrated by: Paula Wilcox
- Length: 13 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vivienne Westwood is one of the icons of our age. Fashion designer, activist, cocreator of punk, global brand, and grandmother--a true living legend. Her career has successfully spanned five decades, and her work has influenced millions of people across the world. For the first and only time, Vivienne Westwood has written a personal memoir, collaborating with award-winning biographer Ian Kelly, to describe the events, people, and ideas that have shaped her extraordinary life.
-
-
Mother of Punk
- By Rafael Castillo on 07-28-16
By: Vivienne Westwood, and others
-
Avedon
- Something Personal
- By: Norma Stevens, Steven M. L. Aronson
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 22 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An intimate biography of Richard Avedon, the legendary fashion and portrait photographer who “helped define America’s image of style, beauty and culture” (The New York Times) by his longtime collaborator and business partner Norma Stevens and award-winning author Steven M. L. Aronson.
-
-
fantastic and love this narrator
- By Melis S. on 01-16-18
By: Norma Stevens, and others
-
What Becomes a Legend Most
- A Biography of Richard Avedon
- By: Philip Gefter
- Narrated by: Jane Oppenheimer
- Length: 22 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his acclaimed portraits, Richard Avedon captured the iconic figures of the twentieth century in his starkly bold, intimately minimal, and forensic visual style. What Becomes a Legend Most is the first definitive biography of this luminary—an intensely driven man who endured personal and professional prejudice, struggled with deep insecurities, and mounted an existential lifelong battle to be recognized as an artist. Philip Gefter builds on archival research and exclusive interviews with those closest to Avedon to chronicle his story.
-
-
Poor pronunciation :(
- By Barbara Shaterian on 01-18-21
By: Philip Gefter
-
Anna
- The Biography
- By: Amy Odell
- Narrated by: Imogen Church
- Length: 15 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a child, Anna Wintour was a tomboy with no apparent interest in clothing but, seduced by the miniskirts and bob haircuts of swinging 1960s London, she grew into a fashion-obsessed teenager. Her father, an influential newspaper editor, loomed large in her life, and once he decided she should become editor-in-chief of Vogue, she never looked back.
-
-
WONDERFUL, SPLENDID, I LOVED IT!!
- By Liz Jardine on 05-13-22
By: Amy Odell
-
Oscar Wars
- A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears
- By: Michael Schulman
- Narrated by: Charlie Thurston
- Length: 21 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Oscar Wars, Michael Schulman chronicles the remarkable, sprawling history of the Academy Awards and the personal dramas—some iconic, others never-before-revealed—that have played out on the stage and off camera. Unlike other books on the subject, each chapter takes a deep dive into a particular year, conflict, or even category that tells a larger story of cultural change, from Louis B. Mayer to Moonlight. Schulman examines how the red carpet runs through contested turf, and the victors aren't always as clear as the names drawn from envelopes.
-
-
Fascinating and FUN
- By Peter Riley on 06-11-23
By: Michael Schulman
-
My Life in Focus
- A Photographer's Journey with Elizabeth Taylor and the Hollywood Jet Set
- By: Gianni Bozzacchi, Joey Tayler
- Narrated by: James Killavey
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Gianni Bozzacchi accepted an assignment as a photographer on the set of The Comedians (1967), he didn't know that his life was about to change forever. His ability to capture the beauty of candid moments drew the attention of the film's star, Elizabeth Taylor, and prompted her to hire him as her personal photographer.
-
-
Rags to Riches and Life with the stars
- By cindilla on 04-03-17
By: Gianni Bozzacchi, and others
-
Vivienne Westwood
- By: Vivienne Westwood, Ian Kelly
- Narrated by: Paula Wilcox
- Length: 13 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vivienne Westwood is one of the icons of our age. Fashion designer, activist, cocreator of punk, global brand, and grandmother--a true living legend. Her career has successfully spanned five decades, and her work has influenced millions of people across the world. For the first and only time, Vivienne Westwood has written a personal memoir, collaborating with award-winning biographer Ian Kelly, to describe the events, people, and ideas that have shaped her extraordinary life.
-
-
Mother of Punk
- By Rafael Castillo on 07-28-16
By: Vivienne Westwood, and others
-
Right Place, Right Time
- The Life of a Rock & Roll Photographer
- By: Bob Gruen
- Narrated by: Bob Gruen
- Length: 8 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bob Gruen is one of the most well-known and connected photographers in rock and roll. For almost 50 years, he has documented the music scene in pictures that have captured the world's attention. Right Place, Right Time is Gruen's first written account of his winding, adventure-filled journey.
By: Bob Gruen
-
Secret City
- The Hidden History of Gay Washington
- By: James Kirchick
- Narrated by: Ron Butler
- Length: 26 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For decades, the specter of homosexuality haunted Washington. The mere suggestion that a person might be gay destroyed reputations, ended careers, and ruined lives. At the height of the Cold War, fear of homosexuality became intertwined with the growing threat of international communism, leading to a purge of gay men and lesbians from the federal government. In the fevered atmosphere of political Washington, the secret “too loathsome to mention” held enormous, terrifying power.
-
-
Exhausting snd enraging and disappointing
- By Frequent shopper! on 07-16-22
By: James Kirchick
-
The Secret Lives of Color
- By: Kassia St. Clair
- Narrated by: Kassia St. Clair
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Secret Lives of Color tells the unusual stories of 75 fascinating shades, dyes, and hues. From blonde to ginger, the brown that changed the way battles were fought to the white that protected against the plague, Picasso’s blue period to the charcoal on the cave walls at Lascaux, acid yellow to kelly green, and from scarlet women to imperial purple, these surprising stories run like a bright thread throughout history. In this book, Kassia St. Clair has turned her lifelong obsession with colors and where they come from into a unique study of human civilization.
-
-
More about pigments than social history
- By Jason Toon on 12-13-20
By: Kassia St. Clair
-
Deluxe
- How Luxury Lost Its Luster
- By: Dana Thomas
- Narrated by: Dana Thomas
- Length: 13 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Once luxury was available only to the rarefied and aristocratic world of old money and royalty. It offered a history of tradition, superior quality, and a pampered buying experience. Today, however, luxury is simply a product packaged and sold by multibillion-dollar global corporations focused on growth, visibility, brand awareness, advertising, and, above all, profits. Award-winning journalist Dana Thomas digs deep into the dark side of the luxury industry to uncover all the secrets that Prada, Gucci, and Burberry don’t want us to know.
-
-
Great books, terrible narration
- By andrewlb on 06-09-21
By: Dana Thomas
-
Diane Arbus
- Portrait of a Photographer
- By: Arthur Lubow
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 17 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Diane Arbus brings to life the full story of one of the greatest American artists of the 20th century, a visionary who revolutionized photography and altered the course of contemporary art with her striking, now iconic images. Arbus comes startlingly to life here, a strong-minded child of unnerving originality who grew into a formidable artist. Arresting, unsettling, and poignant, her photographs stick in our minds. Why did these people fascinate her? And what was it about her that captivated them?
-
-
Not Enough About Her Photography
- By al on 11-15-16
By: Arthur Lubow
-
Hollywood Ending
- Harvey Weinstein and the Culture of Silence
- By: Ken Auletta
- Narrated by: Jonathan Coleman
- Length: 19 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Twenty years ago, Ken Auletta wrote an iconic New Yorker profile of the Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was then at the height of his powers. The profile made waves for exposing how volatile, even violent, Weinstein was to his employees and collaborators. But there was a much darker story that was just out of reach: rumors had long swirled that Weinstein was a sexual predator. Auletta confronted Weinstein, who denied the claims. Since no one was willing to go on the record, Auletta and the magazine concluded they couldn’t close the case.
-
-
Compelling but too long, with some strange errors
- By bugsmeany on 11-16-22
By: Ken Auletta
-
Hollywood: The Oral History
- By: Jeanine Basinger, Sam Wasson
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon, Marni Penning
- Length: 28 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the archives of the American Film Institute comes a unique picture of what it was like to work in Hollywood from its beginnings to its present day. Gleaned from nearly three thousand interviews, involving four hundred voices from the industry, Hollywood: The Oral History, lets a listener “listen in” on candid remarks from the biggest names in front of the camera—Bette Davis, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Harold Lloyd—to the biggest behind it—Frank Capra, Steven Spielberg, Alfred Hitchcock, Jordan Peele, as well as the lesser known individuals that shaped what was heard and seen on screen.
-
-
Picky, Picky!
- By Patrick on 12-22-22
By: Jeanine Basinger, and others
-
Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli
- The Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather
- By: Mark Seal
- Narrated by: Phil Thron
- Length: 15 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The story of how The Godfather was made is as dramatic, operatic, and entertaining as the film itself. Over the years, many versions of various aspects of the movie’s fiery creation have been told - sometimes conflicting, but always compelling. Mark Seal sifts through the evidence, has extensive new conversations with director Francis Ford Coppola and several heretofore silent sources, and complements them with colorful interviews with key players including actors Al Pacino, James Caan, Talia Shire, and others.
-
-
A great book that draws from many, many sources
- By DARBY KERN on 04-11-22
By: Mark Seal
-
Alexander McQueen: Blood Beneath the Skin
- By: Andrew Wilson
- Narrated by: Piers Hampton
- Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
McQueen had risen from humble beginnings as the youngest child of an East London taxi driver to scale the heights of fame, fortune and glamour. He designed clothes for the world's most beautiful women, including Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell. In business he created a multimillion-pound luxury brand that became a favourite with both celebrities and royalty, most famously the Duchess of Cambridge, who wore a McQueen dress on her wedding day. But behind the confident facade and bad-boy image lay a sensitive soul who struggled to survive in the ruthless world of fashion.
-
-
Earnest and Voyeuristic
- By anna on 01-21-21
By: Andrew Wilson
-
Sticky Fingers
- The Life and Times of Jann Wenner and Rolling Stone Magazine
- By: Joe Hagan
- Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris
- Length: 18 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Lennon. Dylan. Jagger. Belushi. Leibovitz. The story of Jann Wenner, Rolling Stone's founder, editor, and publisher, is an insider's trip through the backstages of storied concert venues, rock-star hotel rooms, and the political ups and downs of the latter half of the 20th century, right up through the digital age: connecting the counterculture of Haight Ashbury to the "straight world".
-
-
Hatchet Job
- By SC on 11-12-17
By: Joe Hagan
-
The Kingdom of Prep
- The Inside Story of the Rise and (Near) Fall of J.Crew
- By: Maggie Bullock
- Narrated by: Cheryl Smith
- Length: 13 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Once upon a time, a no-frills J.Crew rollneck sweater held an almost mystical power—or at least it felt that way. The story of J.Crew is the story of the original “lifestyle brand,” whose evolution charts a sea change in the way we dress, the way we shop, and who we aspire to be over the past four decades—all told through iconic clothes and the most riveting characters imaginable.
-
-
FANtastic Read!
- By Hello World on 08-16-23
By: Maggie Bullock
-
The Spider
- Inside the Criminal Web of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell
- By: Barry Levine
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff, Barry Levine
- Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Who was Jeffrey Epstein? A Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist unearths never-before-reported details in the most comprehensive account yet of the disgraced financier’s life, death, and criminal web, including the role of Ghislaine Maxwell.
-
-
Author is Obsessed with Trump
- By Brandon Castel on 12-22-20
By: Barry Levine
What listeners say about Focus
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Stephen D.
- 10-04-23
Good story focus and loved through line
If you care about models and designers who prey on them - this is a book for you. I thought that this listen would be more about deals and creation aspect of the fashion imagery , but most of it was chock full of “salacious” events between models and the photographer.
I did love the imagery and made me look up plenty of images on Pinterest or google things.
Otherwise, I couldn’t wait for this book to be over.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- C Larkin
- 01-12-17
Absolutely superb
Where does Focus rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
This is one of the best non-fiction books I've heard in recent memory.
What does Kirby Heyborne bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
There is no disconnect between the reading and the book itself, I often felt as if the author were speaking to me.
Any additional comments?
If you are interested in fashion photography or the history of fashion, this book is peerless. Like taking a grad school course from the best kind of professor. Brilliantly designed, researched, written and framed. I finished and immediately listened to it twice more. Inspiring, educational, fascinating on a human level as well as on a historical level. So many stories here, and the author has tied them together in such a perfectly choreographed manner. If this falls anywhere in your area of interest, I highly recommend.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- MaybeAlfie
- 03-12-23
Have The Physical Copy Ready
You’ll wish you had a visual aid for all the photos that are referenced throughout the book. Great story and structure, but the amount of interview dialogue can quickly become confusing.
The narrator is soft and gentle, but doesn’t change their dynamics often and they do mispronounce words and names here and there, which can pull you out of the moment.
Overall, a great use of a credit.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!