Famous Photographers

Shelby Lee Adams: He took very a interesting approach of capturin a person's personality on a portrait. His choice of preference for black and white photographs gives a subtle tone while freezing time. Pictures are very realistic without forced poses or experiences.

Diane Arbus: She based her work on taking pictures of ordinary individuals and of those considered as odd or freakish. Her subjects appear to be her primary focus while the background was not as emphasized. She portrays the true identity of each person in her pictures rather than a quick snapshot of what the public sees at a quick glance. She tends to make the odd individuals more interesting and appealing to see.

Robert Adams: His photography is of landscapes. He uses a lot of trees in his photos. There is a lot of appeal to the trees with the different shades that cause contrast with the rest of the landscape. Pictures taken with plenty of light to capture shadows.

Ansel Adams: Photos of beautiful landscapes and architectural views. He captures different textures in his trees and mountainside landscapes. The reflections on water capture identical mrror image of landscape and is caught with all details. Lighting was low enough to avoid any glares.

Robert Mapplethorpe: Very bold provocative pictures of individuals in the nude. Has a very sensual and simplistic way of portraying his floral pictures. His pictures of individuals are very symbolic with the ability to tell a story. Photos are very sharp with perfect contrast and well focused.

Edward Weston: Unique style of making normal objects look distinctive compared tot he ordinary view of others. Focuses on curves and lines of subjects. He uses nude models, shells, peppers, and landscapes.

Joel Peter Witkins: His photographs were made to imitate the work of famous paintings. He uses subjects such as hermaphrodites, amputees, and people with physical handicaps. His photographs are very bold and give powerful messages.

Richard Avedon: He shows a preference for portraits. His subjects seem to be themselves in photos. They give more of an intimate feel giving an introduction as to who they really are and represent. He used light backgrounds to emphasize all focus on subjects.

Bruce Davidson: He took pictures of people in poor areas of New York. His subjects show a lot of emotion. He captures the essence of the moment.

Josef Sudek: He uses light in the background of the subjects he uses for his work. He shows a lot of contrast with the right lighting. Tend to favor trees as his subjects for his photos.

Harry Callahan: His photos of his wife are very intimate. Everything else seems to be insignificant when she is the main subject matter. He does also take picture of landscapes which again show intimacy, perhaps his favorite areas to visit.

Manuel Alvarez Bravo: The subject matter of his photographs show a deep love for his culture. They bring reality to the everyday scenes of his time. His pictures are very realistic.

Andre Kertesz: He had a unique approach of expressing the nude body. He seemed to distort it, perhaps to still keep the identity private. He took pictures at different angles to show depth of field of different subjects such as inner city views, landscapes, and ordinary objects.

Alfred Stieglitz: He took many portraits exposing the characteristics of the individuals. His night scenes of the city buildings capture enough light to see the surrounding objects such as clotheslines and trees. His pictures of nude female bodies exclude their identities by not capturing their heads.

Immogen Cunningham. Her botanical pictures are very attractive. They are very detailed, capturing textures, details, and shadows. They have contrasting backgrounds to capture subjects.

Irving Penn: Took portraits with gray backgrounds to capture the subject with all details and clarity. His portraits make subjects give bold statements with symbolism of their cultures. The contrast against the background allow you to emphasize all attention to subjects.

Sebastiao Salgado: Capture different cultures around the world. The scenes are very bold and some tend to be very graphic. His subjects are very well focused with perfect lighting and contrast.

Paul Strand: Took sharp photographs of subjects anywhere from portraits, cityscapes, landscapes, to symbolic items. He shows a lot of clarity when capturing his subjects.

Nicholas Nixon: His photos are of ordinary individuals that give a sympathetic view for the elderly and gives comparison pictures of his wife and sisters as they age each year. His pictures givve a more intimate feel with the use of black and white prints. They give more vulnerability to his subjects allowing them to reveal their true identities.

Lee Friedlander: Displays photos of modernism. He takes random pictures of scenes from his car. Captures views of individuals in city scenes. Has a series of pictures, such as streetsigns, city scapes, and portraits.

-Marina Tejada