Planet Fungi: A Photographer’s Foray by Catherine Marciniak, Stephen Axford and Tom May
Published by CABI ( Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International ) 2025. ISBN 9781486318186 ( hbk ) 300 plus pages and 200 often page filling photos.
Review by Andy Woodall
Initially, I was a little unsure who had actually written the book, so I think it is worth starting with a little clarification. Although there are three authors on the cover the main author is Catherine Marciniak, a journalist, but also partner and co-worker with Stephen Axford who is the photographer. Anything said or written by Stephen appears in quotation marks. Doctor Tom May is a mycologist from Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria in Australia. He appears to be more like a ghost writer ensuring everything is scientifically accurate and adding up to date information. The combination works well, as it is essentially a book of superb photographs with succinct text, but has gravitas.
Most people would probably just dip into the book to enjoy the pictures at random. Taking my review of it seriously, I sat down and read it from cover to cover. I would recommend that approach if you do get hold of a copy, as there is also a story telling element to it. It is Stephen ’ s journeys, literally and figuratively on his way from software engineer to becoming an avid mycophile trekking into re mote areas. The bulk of the photographs were taken in Australasia, South Amer ica and Asia. Some fungi have a nearly world-wide distribution but the majority will be species unfamiliar to the British mycologist, even those who are fairly well travelled. I see this as a plus. It is like looking through a fantasy science fiction book.
As many photographs were taken on expeditions to thinly populated areas some are honestly described as just unidentified species, identified to genus or a cf note after the name i.e. ‘ compare with ’ … far better than spoiling a brilliant picture with a misidentification.
The photographs are of a very high standard, as you would expect. Many have been taken using photo stacking where layer upon layer of photographs create an image with a great depth of field. It also gives sharper images in low light which is often needed where fungi lurk. I love the macrophotography where the substrate and habitat are shown in the same shot, all in detail.
There are also richly illustrated chapters on lichens as well as bioluminescence and bio-fluorescence (pet interests of mine ). The book finishes on new discoveries, conservation, ecology and the importance of fungi in fighting climate change.
This book is a celebration of fungi but is much more than a ‘ nice picture book ’ . I can thoroughly recommend it and do take the trouble to actually read it!
