American Indians are said to have named the first photographers they encountered "the shadow catchers". This book presents a selection of the work of these photographers, ranging from the pioneering work of John Alvin Anderson, to the increasingly sophisticated and sympathetic work of the Pictorialists such as Edward S. Curtis. It also includes lesser-known photographers, such as Sumner W. Matteson, George Wharton James and the Gerhard sisters. The authors have included many previously unpublished images, while the text divides the history of attempts to document the American Indian into four sections, including the work of the early 19th-century artists and covers the evolution of different photographic styles. It also discusses the photographers" changing perceptions of their subjects.