Three Photography Books Explore Time, Youth, and Coming of Age

Three photography books published by University of Texas Press and Simon & Schuster explore themes of time, youth, and coming of age. Matt Lankes: Photographs (March 2026, University of Texas Press) celebrates the late Austin photographer Matt Lankes (1969–2025) with over 150 images, including portraits of musicians Miranda Lambert, Lyle Lovett, Willie Nelson, Bob Schneider, and actors Matthew McConaughey, Glen Powell, Catalina Sandino, Luke Wilson. The book features an essay by photographer Michael O'Brien titled Matt Lankes: A Photographic Life and a foreword by actor Ellar Coltrane, who starred in Richard Linklater's Boyhood (2014). Lankes also photographed the film's production, resulting in the companion book Boyhood: Twelve Years on Film (November 2014, University of Texas Press), which presents yearly portraits of cast and crew taken with a 4x5 camera. Beth Garrabrant's Things Shouldn't Be So Hard (November 2024, Simon & Schuster) captures youth over two decades, including prom, sporting events, and after-school jobs. Garrabrant has shot for Disney's Cruella and created album covers for Taylor Swift's Speak Now (Taylor's Version), 1989 (Taylor's Version), Midnights, folklore, evermore, and The Tortured Poets Department.