Cecil Beaton (1904 -1980)

Beaton was most famous for his fashion photography and he worked for Vogue magazine until the mid 1950s. In 1937 he was appointed court photographer to the Royal Family. 

Brandt spent his life trying to convince everyone that he was an English born gentleman, however he was born in Hamburg Germany in 1904 to an English father and German mother. He was largely self taught in photography however from 1929 to 1930 he had an apprenticeship with Man Ray in Paris. In 1934 he moved permanently to London. In 1937 Brandt made a tour of the poor mining and industrial areas of the north east of England. His camera captured the grim atmosphere, he did not produce a documentary but a personal record mixing truth and artistic creativity. Bill Brandt is arguably Britain’s greatest 20th Century photographer. -

Brassai was a painter, writer, sculptor and film maker but is best remembered for his photography of night scenes from Paris in the early 1930s.

Cartier-Bresson is inevitably associated with his notion of the "decisive moment" capturing the precise moment of interest in each of his well balanced images of people and events that surround him. During the 1930's he regularly supplied picture stories to the leading illustrated periodicals of Europe. Henri Cartier-Bresson was a founder member of Magnum. -

Capa became a war photographer in order to express his loathing of war. He covered the Spanish Civil War in 1936. During World War II he produced dramatic, slightly blurred, D-Day photographs. However only a few of these compelling photographs survived a darkroom accident. Robert Capa was a founder member of Magnum, he was killed in Vietnam in 1954. 

Eisenstaedt came to the United States in 1935 and became a member of the team preparing the publication of a new magazine called "Life". What helped him, and other European photographers on that magazine to assert their own style was the rise of the London "Picture Post" in 1938. 

Evans originally wanted to become a writer, but after discovering his passion for photography he went on to become one of America's best documentary photographers. In 1935 Evans joined the Farm Security Administration (FSA) recording the poverty of America's rural population. The Great Depression, starting with the Wall Street crash in 1929, coupled with the Dust Bowl disaster in Oklahoma, made it a period of extreme hardship. 

In 1913 Kertész acquired his first camera, in 1922 he received an honorary diploma from the Hungarian Association of Photography. In 1937, after moving to New York, he began to work with Vogue and other magazines. During his working career Kertész produced images that are now amongst the most famous photographs of the 20th Century. 

In April 1935 President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Resettlement Administration, later to be renamed the Farm Security Administration (FSA). Dorothea Lange was one of the best FSA photographers. She toured the South where she found the most impoverished and desperate victims of the depression, the Blacks. -

Weegee was a local news reporter, recording petty crime, traffic accidents, murders, fires and social events. None of his pictures show any great event yet each of them cast a sharp light on humanity. 

Weston's images are dominated by simple abstract shapes that show absolute sharp definition. He never enlarged or retouched his pictures. In 1932 he formed the f/64 group.

Ansel Adams (1902 - 1984)

Through his photographic skills Adams expressed his admiration for the American landscape. Introduced to photography by Paul Strand he became a member of the f/64 group and published many photographic books about America’s National Parks. In 1941 he created his "Zone System" for determining exposure and development times.

In the late 1920s Halsman established himself as a portrait and fashion photographer. In 1940 he emigrated to the United States of America and went on to work for Life magazine. Halsman had 101 Life magazine covers to his credit, being most famous for his "Jump" photographs. Much of Halsman work is surreal often reflecting the ideas of his friend Salvador Dali. Halsman jointly worked with Dali on many projects. 
Yvonne Halsman, Philippe's wife, was born in France and assisted her husband throughout his career. 

Hardman was born in 1898 in Leopardstown in County Dublin, Ireland. He received his initial instructions in photography from his father. In 1922, after leaving the Indian Army, he set up a portrait studio in Liverpool. Over 100,000  negatives which he generated during his 45 year career are now preserved in the town's Central library. 

Hardy, a self taught English photographer, joined the Picture Post magazine in 1940. During World War II he served with the Army Photographic Unit. After the war he became Picture Post's chief photographer until it closed in 1957. 

Horst became a fashion photographer for Vogue magazine in 1931 and during his long working career he perfected the art of fashion photography. His close attention to detail, geometric arrangements and lighting produced beautiful images. 

Karsh is a man with the special talent to infuse his pictures with the personal attributes and public role of his subjects. The turning point in his career came in 1941 when he took the now historic portrait of Winston Churchill. 

In the early 1940's Alfred Stieglitz provided Newman with professional stimulation and in 1946 he received his first commission from "Life". He used a stand camera because it gave him time to think, he based his vision on the relationship between man and his environment. He produced a wonderful portrait of Igor Stravinski in 1946. 

Nurnberg was brought up in Berlin and moved to England in 1933 however with the declaration of war he became an enemy alien and had his cameras confiscated. They were returned to him in 1940. After the war Nurnberg saw the coming changes in manufacturing and became an outstanding industrial photographer, his style taking into consideration the design and function of his subjects. Nurnberg received an OBE for his contribution to industrial photography and photographic education. 

After studying design Penn worked as a graphic artist at the Philadelphia School of Industrial Art. In 1943 he produced his first cover for Vogue magazine. Penn always produced his photographs in the controlled conditions of the studio. 

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Alphabetical Index of Photographers