STILL: The Art of Noticing

This book exceeded my expectations on so many levels. Not only is it beautifully photographed, it speaks to the rewards of noticing, family involvement, instilling an appreciation for nature, and committing to something each and every day. I have been following Mary Jo on Instagram for years, finding her posts a quiet place to pause online. When I learned that the book was available, I ordered mine right away and am sharing its life lessons with others. A wonderful gift for parents and nature lovers everywhere.

Beautiful book, very well done. Makes you appreciate and notice every photo.

This beautiful book of well reproduced photography will have you looking at the things around you with new appreciation. I am a book visual person and this is one of my favorite recent purchases!

Beautiful work. Beautiful book. Fascinating to see the patterns in Mother Nature.

A wonderful book full of amazing photographic art and inspirational words. This is far more than a “coffee table book”. It’s also a great read.

Spectacular feast for the eyes and the should. Marveled at each of Mary Jo's photos and enjoyed her occasional explanations and stories. This book is displayed prominently in our home in the woods - we don't have many extra things out, but we made an exception for this beautiful, thoughtful book. I gifted it to a friend as well.

As soon as I removed the large, heavy book from the shipping carton and felt the embossed cover, I knew it was going to be pure pleasure to read and absorb. I have been following the author's Instagram feed for many years, after reading about her daily "still" practice on a Stanford Facebook post. The still images that she captures and posts daily are always perfect and unique. After doing this for 10 years, you'd think she would run out of ideas, but apparently not. The essays that describe how she began the process years ago, and how much joy she receives from it, are as beautifully written as the photography. This is a book that I will open up over and over, just for the sheer beauty of looking at simple, natural images.

I just discovered Mary Jo Hoffman's photography on Instagram, and when I saw that she had a book out, I immediately ordered it. When the book arrived, my first impressions were that the book is beautiful: It is beautifully designed, beautifully printed, and as beautiful as books often used to be. It's the kind of book you handle carefully simply because it is so nice. And then there is Ms. Hoffman's writing and her photography. I bought the book to be inspired, and it delivers in spades. I've long loved macro photography which means that I tend to notice the small things in nature and in life. Ms. Hoffman notices them too, and then she creates entire new works of art using them. Her photography is impeccable, but her sense of design is such that you can close the book and walk off still thinking about the compositions you just saw. And, you walk off wondering how much beauty you fail to "notice" every day. For me, this book is the boost I've needed after a terribly difficult year last year. I'm sending a big thank you to Ms. Hoffman. Keep Noticing.