I can't front, Camera Lucida is one of the most frustrating books I've ever read. I understand most of Barthes' points, such as how he notices minute details in photos that are meant to emphasize something on a much large scale. For example, in a photo by Lewis Hine of two retarded children in an institution (1924), rather than focus on the children's disfigurements, he focuses on the boy's huge Danton collar and the girl's finger bondage. This much I can understand, but why must he explain everything in such an excruciating manner?! Maybe I'm just an impatient reader. I prefer Harry Potter and Dan Brown =p Also, it doesn't help that there are about a dozen words every few pages that I have to look up, in addition to all the Latin he uses. I loved Latin in high school, but Barthes' talk of his studium and punctum gets on my nerves. I'd much rather talk about photography at the ICP. Well, I suppose that's it for me bashing this book. It is much more interesting to think about after it is illuminated during a class discussion.