THE 101 MOST FAMOUS AND RECOGNIZED PHOTOGRAPHERS - CULTURE VOCABULARY

The famous photographers can provoke ideas, feelings and emotions when words just would not be enough. Today I bring you a list of the most important and recognized artists in the world in the field of photography, both contemporary and deceased.

The history of the portrait began in ancient times, with the discovery of the principle of "camera obscura" and the observation of how some substances are altered with exposure to light. In the mid-1820s the first successful attempts at photography were documented.

The earliest microfilm devices required several days of exposure, resulting in highly unrefined results. With the advancement of science and the discovery of new chemical substances and compounds, the technique was perfected and more modern and inexpensive devices began to become available.

The first commercial digital cameras were introduced to the market in the 1990s, revolutionizing photography. Traditional chemical photographic development processes were gradually being forgotten and the practical advantages of new digital technology improved the quality of images.

List of the 104 most famous photographers in history and today

1- Ansel Adams (1902 - 1984)

American photographer, famous for his black and white photographs of nature. He developed the method of "the zone", combining exposure and contrast.

2- Richard Avedon (1923 - 2004)

Born in the United States, he is considered one of the most influential photographers of the 20th century. Helped define the American image, style and culture for the past 50 years.

3- Annie Leibovitz (1949-)

American portraitist, famous for having made the last portrait of John Lennon a few hours before his death. She was the chief cinematographer for Rolling Stone magazine and helped define much of the magazine's legendary image.

4- Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908 - 2004)

French photographer, acclaimed and internationally recognized. He pioneered photojournalism and the genre known as "street photography." He was nicknamed the "master of everyday photography."

5- Diane Arbus (1923 - 1971)

A New York-born photographer, she was characterized by her controversial photographs of unusual people, such as circuses, dwarfs, Siamese twins, and people with mental or physical problems.

6- Robert Capa (1913 - 1954)

This Hungarian photographer was a war photojournalist who covered the Spanish Civil War, World War II, the First Indo-China War, and the Arab-Israeli War in 1948.

7- Dorothea Lange (1895 - 1965)

Photographer born in San Francisco, California. Her photographs from the era of depression are famous, such as "Migrant Mother". She portrayed the terrible effects of the financial crisis on American families.

8- Helmut Newton (1920 - 2004)

Born in Germany, this photographer's style has been imitated by many. His work in the field of fashion photography includes his permanent status on the covers of Vogue magazine.

9- Edward Weston (1886 - 1958)

American photographer, known for being one of the most innovative and influential photographers of his generation. He captured with his lens everything from landscapes to portraits, through nudes and still life. His focus was on the American West.

10- David LaChapelle (1963-)

Born in the United States, LaChapelle is known for his surreal pop kitsch style. His work is a tribute to art history and generally carries a social message. He was hired in his youth by Andy Warhol at Interview magazine.

11- Yousuf Karsh (1908 - 2002)

13- Steve McCurry (1950-)

An American photographer, he has developed in the fields of photojournalism and publishing. His 1984 "Afghan Girl" photograph, which originally appeared in National Geographic magazine, is his best known work.

14- Alfred Stieglitz (1864 - 1946)

One of the pioneering photographers, Stieglitz was technically skilled using natural elements to complete his prints.

15- Brassaï (1899 - 1984)

Photographer was born in Transylvania, present-day Romania. The game and duality between light and shadow are evident in his work. He captured the mystique of Paris and his work was compiled into the volume Paris de Nuit.

16- David Bailey (1938-)

English fashion photographer, started in the 1960s working for Vogue magazine. His work was captured in the BBC documentary Swinging London.

17- Sebastiao Salgado (1944-)

A Brazilian artist, his work in black and white social reporting focused on social injustice and ecological disasters.

18- Elliott Erwitt (1928)

A French-born photographer, he observed everyday life with humor. Its juxtaposition of form and images of dogs shows that art is where it can be found.

20- Walker Evans (1903 - 1975)

A photographer of American origin, he was a chronicler of the American way of life, from an anonymous observer point of view. He created order and beauty through composition where there was none before.

21- Paul Strand (1890 - 1976)

An American-born artist, not only was he a pioneer in photography, he transitioned from still images to moving images throughout his career.

22- Robert Frank (1924)

Swiss photographer, one of the true innovators in the transition between photography and film. Famous for the publication of his book The Americans.

23- Garry Winogrand (1928 - 1984)

American photographer, pioneer of street or everyday photography. His technique of photographing without seeing through the camera lens became his hallmark and led him to achieve fluid and innovative compositions.

24- Eugene Smith (1918 - 1978)

American artist, intense and obsessed with his work. He contributed to the establishment of the photo story and the communicative power of black and white prints.

25- André Kertész (1894 - 1985)

Of Hungarian origin, Kertész brought a thoughtful look to street photography and showed how the portrait can be an extension of the report.

26- Man Ray (1890 - 1976)

This painter and photographer was a prominent representative of Surrealism. His muse was Lee Miller, however it was his experimentation with different techniques in the dark room that was his greatest influence. He created the "rayograms" and solarized images.

27- Martin Parr (1952)

This English photographer used intense color and raised the snapshot to the rank of art through his skill. He has been recognized as the master photographic chronicler of everyday life.

28- Steven Meisel (1954)

The favorite son of the world of American fashion and style, this photographer manages to reference history through photography and style.

29- Edward Steichen (1879 - 1973)

Born in Luxembourg, Steichen is a pioneer in photography and a highly sensitive artist. He helped found commercial photography during the 20th century.

30- Patrick Demarchelier (1943)

Just as Mario Testino brings glamor to the world of fashion, Demarchelier brings sophistication and understated glamor to all his images. He was born in France and continues to be active.

31- Mary Ellen Mark (1940 - 2015)

This North American photographer began her career photographing the streets where she grew up and eventually became one of the main exponents of photo reporting.

32- Brian Duffy (1933 - 2010)

Born in England, one of the members of the "Cockney Three" group, along with Bailey and Terry Donovan. He gave up photography to devote himself to restoring antique furniture, but his legacy remains.

33- Don McCullin (1935)

The images of war and suffering captured by this English photographer took an emotional toll on him, however they also helped influence momentous political decisions.

34- Robert Mapplethorpe (1946 - 1989)

This American photographer specialized in erotic images and male nudes, which in his time caused great controversy.

35- Gordon Parks (1912 - 2006)

African American photographer, musician and writer. He was a prominent representative of photojournalism, covering civil rights issues among the African American community.

36- Ernst Haas (1921 - 1986)

Austrian photographer, photojournalist and pioneer of color photography. He experienced the transition between photojournalism and fine art photography.

37- Terry Richardson (1965)

Born in the United States, his fashionable images and portraits challenged the limits of sexuality and challenged conservative taste with a stark aesthetic.

38- James Nachtwey (1948)

American photojournalist and reporter. He has been the recipient of two World Press Photo Awards. He was wounded during a grenade attack while covering in Baghdad. He has worked for Time magazine since 1984.

39- Jacques Henri Lartigue (1894 - 1986)

French amateur photographer who, at a very young age, began to capture images of everyday life among the French aristocracy. In time he became the leading social photographer of his era.

40- Peter Lindbergh (1944)

German artist who helped create the concept of supermodel with his fashionable images in Harper's Bazaar magazines and the Italian version of Vogue.

41- Imogen Cunningham (1883 - 1976)

American photographer, known for her work on botanical photography. Her images of plants are unmistakable, as are her landscapes and nudes.

42- August Sander (1876 - 1964)

German photographer, his ambition in using photography to document not only produced an incredible archive of portraits but also brought a scientific approach to the art of photography.

43- William Eggleston (1939)

The use of intense color, asymmetrical composition, and puzzling subjects gained prominence for this American photographer.

44- Anne Geddes (1956)

This Australian photographer gained worldwide recognition for her work around babies. She describes herself as a fanatic about babies. She published her best-selling book Down in the Garden.

45- Eliot Porter (1901 - 1990)

American photographer known primarily for his color photographs of nature scenes. He traveled around the world photographing settings and published several photography books

46- Jay Maisel (1931)

An acclaimed and multi-award-winning American-born photographer, he studied painting and graphic design at Yale. His most popular work is the portrait of Miles Davis that appears on the cover of his album Kind of Blue.

47- Bruce Weber (1946)

The influence of this North American photographer in the world of fashion and portraiture is such that the image of many brands is based on the image he created from his photographs.

48- Nick Knight (1958)

Born in England, this fashion photographer is one of the most influential and sought-after in his field. Your openness to new forms, techniques and processes keeps you at the forefront of your industry.

49- Julia Margaret Cameron (1815 - 1879)

One of the few pioneering photographers, born in England, she photographed her family with very little technical knowledge. She created beautiful sepia portraits that continue to inspire today's photographers.

50- Philippe Halsman (1906 - 1979)

American portrait photographer, born in Latvia. One of his best known photographs is the portrait of Albert Einstein while lamenting his collaboration in the construction of the atomic bomb. This author is also characterized by his collection of famous people jumping and performing pirouettes in the air.

51- Ellen von Unwerth (1954)

German model turned photographer, her work brought a new approach to fashion photography, in which female sexuality took a leading role.

52- Eddie Adams (1933 - 2004)

This American photographer and photojournalist was notorious for his portraits of celebrities and political figures as well as for his coverage of warfare for over 13 years. It won a Pulitzer Prize in 1969.

53- Mario Testino (1954)

Born in Peru, this photographer gained notoriety for his work in the world of fashion. His portrait of Princess Diana for Vanity Fair magazine was celebrated. Since then he has been the preferred photographer of the British royal family.

54- Andreas Gursky (1955)

German photographer, he uses a large format in his photographic work to capture landscape and architecture. His Rhein II photograph holds the record for being the most expensive in history, sold for $ 4.3 million in 2011.

55- Scott Kelby (1960)

As an author, this American photographer shares his knowledge on how to use the now famous Adobe Photoshop tool. His books and programs aimed at artists and design professionals are very successful.

56- Nigel Barker (1972)

After his appearance on the TV show America's Next Top Model, this English photographer managed to get his work placed in publications such as Cover, GQ, Town and Country and Seventeen.

57- Eadweard Muybridge (1830 - 1904)

Known for his photographs of the Yosemite Valley, this American pioneer began the study of moving images and projection. He developed what is known as animal locomotion and the zoopraxiscope.

58- Patrick Demachelier (1943)

French photographer, he moved from Paris to New York where he achieved a career in the world of fashion photography. His campaigns include brands such as Dior, Calvin Klein, and Chanel.

59- Cecil Beaton (1904 - 1980)

Born in England, this photographer is famous for having won the Academy Award for costume and set design. He was a war, fashion and portrait photographer.

60- Margaret Bourke-White (1904 - 1971)

One of the most famous documentary photographers, born in New York, is known to have been the first non-Soviet photographer to capture images of the Soviet Union.

61- Alfred Eisenstaedt (1898 - 1995)

A German Jewish photographer, he worked as a photographer in the Nazi regime before moving to the United States where he photographed politicians and celebrities. He is recognized for his photograph The Kiss, taken in New York's Times Square during the celebration of the end of the conflict between Japan and the United States in the mid-1950s.

62- Berenice Abbott (1898 - 1991)

This New York photographer took advantage of her environment, the urban architecture of New York, using the black and white format to highlight details that gave character to her photographic work.

63- Nick Ut (1951)

Vietnamese photographer, he worked for the Associated Press from the age of 16 in Hanoi, South Korea and Tokyo. He received the Pulitzer for his photograph of a naked girl fleeing a napalm barrage during the Vietnam War.

64- Edward Curtis (1868 - 1952)

American photographer, famous for his photographs of the American West and Native Americans that were the subject of many of his works.

65- Jerry Uelsmann (1934)

American photographer famous for his work in photomontage. His work managed to gather several "negatives" to form an unforgettable image.

66- Guy Bourdin (1928 - 1991)

No one has been so imitated in the world of fashion and art photography as Bourdin. Erotic, surreal and controversial artist.

67- Juergen Teller (1964)

This English photographer is considered the master of “anti photography”. His images were contrary to technique and caused an uproar in the traditional view of photography.

68- Cindy Sherman (1954)

American photographer, was the maximum representative of the self-portrait. She used herself as a model and managed to bring photography forward to be considered an art.

69- Paolo Roversi (1947)

Italian master of the 10 × 8 Polaroid format in the fashion photography industry. Its use of soft light and soft blur combined with rich, opaque colors is frequently imitated, but hardly equaled.

70- Herb Ritts (1952 - 2002)

The prince of 80s Californian glamor and celebrity. Her work inspired Madonna in her videos and filled magazines for more than a decade.

71- Ralph Gibson (1939)

This American photographer was a hero to photography students of the 70s, for his graphic images that were frequently imitated.

72- Stephen Shore (1947)

This American's work is a visual record of the endless American road trip. Her images seem easy to imitate, so more than one has tried.

73- Chuck Close (1940)

An American photographer, his large images influenced the creation of large exhibitions.

74- Weegee (1899 - 1968)

This Austrian photographer had a police radio in his car, so he arrived at crime scenes in time to create striking red note images.

75- Joel-Peter Witkin (1939)

The master of the macabre, this American photographer created striking and indelible still lifes.

76- Erwin Blumenfeld (1897 - 1969)

This German's work in fashion and beauty photography focused on techniques such as solarization, screen printing, and the elaborate configuration of shadows and angles.

77- Anton Corbijn (1955)

Born in Holland, the images of the Joy Division and U2 groups that he took have influenced the approach of rock photographers for more than 20 years.

78- Duane Michals (1932)

American photographer whose use of text and collage in his images brought an intellectual dimension to photography.

79- George Hurrell (1904 - 1992)

Undoubtedly, this North American photographer was the absolute master of the portrait of Hollywood superstars. The lighting and composition of his works was perfect.

80- Mert & Marcus (1971)

French and Turkish duet, their London based studio specializes in digital photography and its relation to post-production. They revolutionized the fashion industry.

81- Eric Boman (1938)

This American photographer shot the first two covers of Roxy Music and encapsulates his glamorous lifestyle in his shots for Vogue.

82- Tim Walker (1970)

In recent years, this English photographer has achieved success with his innovative style used in editorial content and commercial projects.

83- Norman Parkinson (1913 - 1990)

A gentleman of English photography, he endowed the subjects he portrayed in his masterpieces with elegance.

84- Snowdon (1930)

An English photographer, he created portraits and reports for The Sunday Times. He has been one of the most influential photographers in the UK.

85- Horst P. Horst (1906 - 1999)

The approach to the nude and the portrait of this German was of great influence. His images offer great poetic beauty and sensuality.

88- Philip Jones Griffiths (1936 - 2008)

The stark and horrifying images of the Vietnam War that this Englishman took have been inspiring to his successors.

89- Jeanloup Sieff (1933 - 2000)

French photographer, he perfected his single source lighting technique on gray and white backgrounds.

90- Bob Carlos Clarke (1950 - 2006)

Born in England, Clarke created erotic icons in black and white, influencing photographic eroticism.

91- Mick Rock (1949)

A rock music photographer, this Englishman photographed Bowie, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop among many other musical artists.

92- David Loftus (1963)

This English photographer specialized in food photography, taking real ingredients in favor of honesty in the shots.

93- Simon Norfolk (1963)

A self-described landscaper, this Englishman used large format cameras in war zones and combat zones.

94- Araki (1940)

The controversial images of tied women by this Japanese author have caused an impact and a cult for his work.

95- Leni Riefenstahl (1902 - 2003)

Controversial German photographer, his images of the Nazi Olympics of 1936 are famous for going down in history.

96- Roger Fenton (1819 - 1869)

The images created by this Briton during the Crimean War brought him to the forefront of the trend in photojournalism.

97- George Hoyningen-Huene (1900 - 1968)

From an aristocratic background in his native Russia, he became a fashion photographer for Vogue and Harper Bazaar in the United States.

98- Sarah Moon (1940)

His personal fashion and image have influenced photographers who have seen his work and marveled at his use of color. She was born in London.

99- Frank Horvatltalian (1928)

He shares a studio in New York with William Klein and created several of the most iconic fashion images during the 50s and 60s.

100- Alexander Rodchenko (1891 - 1956)

One of the founders of Russian Constructivism. His images influenced the posters of the time.

101- Angus McBean (1904 - 1990)

English surrealist photographer turned the portrayal of actors into his personal domain. His portraits of actresses like Audrey Hepburn stand out.

102- Deborah Turbeville (1938)

The work in photography of interior spaces and fashion of this North American popularized the use of grain in the creation of atmospheres.

103- Harry Peccinotti (1938)

Legendary art director of Nova magazine, this English photographer used graphic forms to define the photograph.

104- Pierre et Gilles (1950, 1953)

The work of this French duo, even before the invention of Photoshop, took photomontage and retouching to new levels of perfection.

References

Famous photographers. Extracted from famous-photographers.com.
History of Photography. Extracted from en.wikipedia.org.
Famous photographers. Extracted from improvephotography.com.

THE 101 MOST FAMOUS AND RECOGNIZED PHOTOGRAPHERS - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2024