It has been quite a year for photography in the UK. Our two biggest cultural institutions have belatedly recognised the charms of this pertinent and democratic medium. In May, Tate Britain mounted its first exhibition dedicated to British photography (How We Are), a venture that proved hugely popular. Not to be outdone, BBC4 broadcast The Genius of Photography, a series that updated the history of photography, an idea not attempted on British television for more than 25 years. Now that everybody in the country can be a photographer, thanks to mobile phones, the appetite for intelligent debate on this art form has never been greater. What better way to feed it than by enjoying some of 750 books distributed on the subject in Britain this year? These are my favourites.

First up is The Genius of Photography (Quadrille £25), which was written by Gerry Badger to accompany the BBC series. This is an excellent primer and leads us through the complexities of understanding what makes a great image and how the medium’s role in society has evolved as technology has changed. Photography is both simple and complicated. Badger’s book lays out the debates in a clear, authoritative way.

Photography publishing is much enriched in the UK by a handful of small independent photography publishers, including Chris Boot and Dewi Lewis, who have had a particularly good year. I’m a Real Photographer by Keith Arnatt (Chris Boot £25) showcases the work of a conceptual artist, highly respected in the 1960s and 1970s, who changed direction to work in obscurity as a photographer. David Hurn, a colleague at Newport art school, encouraged him to look at the work of Walker Evans and August Sander. Bitten by the photography bug, Arnatt spent the next 20 years examining in cool detail aspects of life to be found near his south Wales home. Documenting landfill sites, the local pet shop and even the notes his wife left him on his return home, this book demonstrates well how everyday details can be so engaging, given the right treatment.

The Mother of All Journeys by Dinu Li (Dewi Lewis £25) charmingly examines the memories of the photographer’s mother and her journey from rural China to Manchester, with an intervening 20 or so years in Hong Kong. The book combines her old family snapshots with contemporary images taken by Li in all three locations. It delicately displays the poignancy of the family photograph, illustrating the gap between memory and present-day reality. We also learn much about the issues and difficulties surrounding immigration. With respect and sensitivity, photography can become a valuable form of therapy.

Related Internet Links

• Purchase books from Sunday Times Books First

Glittering literary prizes 2007

From hidden secrets to sizzling suspense, Peter Kemp kicks off the Christmas books selection by revealing the fiction that gripped him

• Celebrity festive favourites

• The Times Christmas choice: fiction

BACKGROUND

• The Sunday Times best books of 2007: biographies

• The Sunday Times best books of 2007: trees

• The Sunday Times best art books

• The Sunday Times best books of 2007: music

BACKGROUND

• The Sunday Times best books of 2007: sport

• The Sunday Times best books 2007: gardening

• Sunday Times best food books 2007

Related Links

• Photography book of the year: Hackney Flowers

There have been a few books this year featuring North Korea, that fascinating Stalinist theme park. The best was Charlie Crane’s Welcome to Pyongyang (Chris Boot £20). Working with tour guide Nick Bonner, who managed to get the blessing of the authorities, Crane was able to take formal-looking portraits of a huge range of people, from a petrol attendant to a table-tennis player. The guides who helped Bonner and Crane were then invited to write the captions for the photographs, all composed in true propaganda style. This combination gives the book its edge.

A China Chronicle by Zeng Li (MCCM £63) is an amazing documentation of contemporary China. Li says on the cover: “My wish is to construct a museum of images of today’s history.” He achieves this with considerable style, using a large-format camera. We see a warts-and-all China that would not go down at all well with the country’s tourist board: factories, blocks of flats, shabby hutongs, polluted rivers. Li’s attention to detail makes these features fascinating. If you want to see what China really looks like now, this is the book to get.

Paul Graham, a British documentary photographer now living in America, has produced A Shimmer of Possibility (Steidl Verlag £130). It is acually 12 books, which vary in length from a single photo to 60 images taken at one intersection. All the images depict a slightly downbeat view of America and, tantalisingly, very little appears to be happening. Some of the books weave two or three narratives together and the accumulated effect becomes filmic. As always, Graham is keen to discover new ways of presenting photographs, and this is a bold and successful attempt to rewrite the rules of documentary.

One of Britain’s best-known photo-journalists is Don McCullin, who has recently published In England (Cape £35). In this volume, he combines iconic early images with shooting from 2006. Intriguingly, many of the new photographs could have been taken 30 years ago, as McCullin’s sooty, black-and-white grainy images of people at either end of the wealth spectrum offer an almost cartoon-like rendition of the English. The most difficult thing for any photographer to achieve is a personal vision, and McCullin scores well on this front. It is a pleasure to see 40 years of shooting in England in one volume.

An American Index of The Hidden and Unfamiliar by Taryn Simon (Steidl Verlag £40) does what it says on the cover. Simon has managed to get into many secret places in America, taken rather beautiful photographs and then gives ample explanations and descriptions of what is going on. Sites include the missile-control centre on the USS Nevada and the death-row cage at Mansfield correction institution. This is a curious collection, offering glimpses of locations that we would only ever see in person if we were in big trouble.

Another unfamiliar subject crops up in Nein, Onkel (No, Uncle) edited by Timothy Prus and Ed Jones (Archive Press £38). This mischievous book shows what can best be described as fun-loving Nazis. The archive has amassed an outstanding collection of war imagery and has specialised in locating snapshots taken by soldiers of all loyalties. This compilation shows Nazis having parties, dressing up, messing about and generally not behaving in the manner one normally associates with them. These images lead us to question the assumptions we have about evil.

Alec Soth is a renowned documentary photographer who has recently branched out into fashion. In his Fashion Magazine (Magnum Photos £13.95), Soth explores the world of French high fashion, and photographs the gentle folk of Minnesota dressed in the latest creations. The juxtaposition is a delight. Perhaps the wittiest contribution is entitled Pack-shots. Soth acquired various top-brand bags, accessories and even a crystal glass. He planted these in the landscape and photographed them, inviting the viewer to engage in a Where’s Wally game of trying to locate the objects. These are perhaps the most oblique advertisements you will ever encounter, but rarely, as you try and work out what it’s for, would an advert hold your attention for so long. The whole package is a wonderful exploration of the fashion industry and all the pretence that surrounds it.

For my final choice, I must declare an interest. Magnum, Magnum (Thames and Hudson £95) is a huge tome celebrating the 60th anniversary of the cooperative of which I am a member. The book weighs in at 6.5kg, which works out at £14.62 a kilo: about the same price as cod. What gives this volume its edge is that the photographers have chosen to select the work of other Magnum members and the result is a fresh, insightful and original commentary. This echoes the principle that new members are voted on by secret ballot. The photographers have written introductions to their choices and, although generally they are better photographers than writers, you do get a sense of the camaraderie and respect that keep Magnum together.

BESTSELLERS

1 Digital Photographer’s Handbook by Tom Ang
(Dorling Kindersley) 9,700

2 Burlesque and the Art of the Teeseby Dita Von Teese
(HarperEntertainment 7,330)

3 How We Are: Photographing Britainby Val Williams, Susan Bright and Martin Parr
(Tate) 6,490

4 Coast from the Air by Neil Oliver
(BBC) 4,825

5 How to Photograph Absolutely Everything by Tom Ang
(Dorling Kindersley) 4,560

All bestseller lists prepared by The Bookseller using data supplied by and copyright to Nielsen BookScan taken from the TCM 02/01/07-17/11/07

Available at Sunday Times Books First prices (including p&p) on 0870 165 8585

Times Recommends

• Superfreakonomics by Steven D Levitt and Stephen J Dubner
• The Times picks the 50 best paperbacks of 2009
• Vincent van Gogh’s letters show the soul of the artist