Dorothea Lange

Dorothea Lange was an American documentary photographer and photojournalist. She began her career photographing portraits of San Francisco high society but turned her camera on the common man during the Great Depression, documenting the plight of the migrant farmers looking for work in California. 

Web site:  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothea_Lange   

 

Vivian Maier

Vivian Dorothy Maier was an American street photographer whose work was discovered and recognized after her death. She worked for about 40 years as a nanny, mostly in Chicago’s North Shore, while pursuing photography.

Web site: www.vivianmaier.com

 

Annie Leibovitz

Annie Leibovitz is best known for her portrait work, specifically of celebrities. She is the first woman to have a feature exhibition at Washington’s National Portrait Gallery.

Web site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annie_Leibovitz 

 

Ming Smith

Ming Smith is a street photographer who captured moments in black and white. She is the first Black woman photographer to be featured in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art.

Web site: mingsmithstudio.com

 

Anne Geddes

Australian-born Anne Geddes has risen to global prominence with her pictures of children and babies. In 2017 Anne was inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame.

Website: www.annegeddes.com

 

Margaret Bourke-White

Margaret Bourke-White is a true pioneer: she is known for being the first American female war correspondent. She was also the first woman allowed to work in combat zones, during World War II. 

Web site: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Bourke-White

 

Kunie Sugiura

Kunie Sugiura was born in Nagoya, Japan, in 1942. She graduated from School of The Art Institute of Chicago, and now lives and works in New York.

Web site: www.kuniesugiura.com

 

Diane Arbus

Diane Arbus is an American photographer whose subjects are often inclusive of under-represented groups, such as carnival performers. 

Web site: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diane_Arbus

 

Eve Arnold

Eve Arnold became interested in photography while working in a Kodak photo-finishing plant. She went on to be the first women to join the Magnum Photos Agency, a high-profile photographic cooperative.

Web site: www.evearnold.com

 

Cindy Sherman

Cindy Sherman played a lot of characters in her career of eclectic self-portraits. She shot these portraits alone in her studio, taking on the roles of model, designer, stylist, and art director.

Web site: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cindy_Sherman

 

Florestine Perrault Collins

African American photographer Florestine Perrault Collins took photographs of African American subjects, representing them with sophistication instead of stereotypes. 

Web site: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florestine_Perrault_Collins

 

Imogen Cunningham

A member of the significant Group f/64, Imogen Cunningham concentrated on sharp-focus photography and is well known for her work with botanicals. She founded the California Horticulture Society, where scientists used her photographs in their studies. 

Web site: www.imogencunningham.com

 

Christina Broom

Scottish photographer Christina Broom is known for being the UK’s first female press photographer. She took photographs in the early decades of the twentieth century.

Web site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christina_Broom

 

Helen Levitt

American photographer Helen Levitt was known for her street photography taken in New York City.

Web site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Levitt 

 

Sally Mann

Sally Mann is an American photographer known for her large format black-and-white photographs.

Web site: www.sallymann.com

 

Lee Miller

Lee Miller was a fashion model in the 1920s, and then became a fashion and fine-art photographer. She was also a war correspondent for Vogue during World War II.

Web site: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Miller

 

Carrie Mae Weems

Carrie Mae Weems is a distinguished artist well known for photography, film, and video. Her work focuses on issues facing African Americans, including racism, politics, and identity.

Web site: carriemaeweems.net

 

Martha Holmes

Martha Homes worked for Life magazine as a staff photographer. 

Web site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha_Holmes_(photographer)

 

Frances Benjamin Johnston

Frances Benjamin Johnston was best known for her portrait photography featuring many well-known people including Mark Twain and President Teddy Roosevelt. Along with her career as a portrait photographer, she was passionate about encouraging other women to pursue photography, leading her to publish a photography journal for women in 1897. 

Web site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Benjamin_Johnston

 

Jill Greenberg

Jill Greenberg’s photography has been most publicly viewed on the covers of magazines through her portraits of famous people. Her eye-catching portraits are one of a kind in their stylized, painting-like appearance. 

Web site: https://www.jillgreenberg.com/home 

 

Anna Atkins

Anna Atkins was among the first women to ever take photos. Her background in botany was what inspired her to capture images of plants through cyanotype prints. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Atkins 

 

Germaine Krull

Germaine Krull had been traveling the world since the time she was born and continued to do so throughout her life, allowing her to photograph scenes and experiences all over the world. Her photographic pursuits led her to photograph fashion models, street activity, and fellow artists. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germaine_Krull 

 

Dayanita Singh

Dayanita Singh’s photographs allowed others to catch a glimpse into the beauty of Indian culture and everyday life. She was known for inventing new and interactive ways to display her work, allowing viewers to be totally immersed in her art. 

Web Site: https://dayanitasingh.net 

 

Ilse Bing

Ilse Bing’s style was unlike others through its use of “avant-garde” photography. She is widely known for her fondness of a particular small camera, the Leica, that allowed its user to capture quickly fleeting objects of moments. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilse_Bing 

 

Mary Ellen Mark

Mary Ellen Mark worked hard to show both the lives of the successful and those who were struggling. She tried to show the true lives of those living all over the world. Her work depicted runaway kids, those living in poverty, and those protesting the Vietnam war. Mary Ellen’s work has been so impactful that she went on to have her work exhibited in many different places and even had a film made about her. 

Web Site: https://www.maryellenmark.com 

 

Francesca Woodman

Francesca Woodman was best known for her haunting, ghostlike self portraits. By manipulating light and exposure she was able to distort her surroundings and subjects. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francesca_Woodman 

 

Gertrude Käsebier

Gertrude Käsebier had loved the arts since a young age and grew to become very passionate about photography. Her photos are widely known for depicting motherhood and Native Americans. She did everything she could to inspire and encourage others, especially women, to pursue their passion of photography. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gertrude_Käsebier 

 

Dulce Pinzon

Dulce Pinzon used her photos to highlight “the invisible superheroes”, those who work so hard to provide for their families even through seemingly impossible work conditions. Her work can be found in exhibits world wide. 

Web Site: https://www.dulcepinzon.com 

 

Gerda Taro

Gerda Taro adopted the alias Gerta Pohorylle in order to escape the political prejudice against Jews. She is known for her work showing what it was truly like during wars: she was in on the action, often courageously riding with soldiers. 

Web Site: https://www.icp.org/browse/archive/constituents/gerda-taro?all/all/all/all/0 

 

Sarah Moon

Sarah Moon began her career as a model in France and England, before deciding to photograph the fashion industry herself. She worked with many major fashion labels and is known for her dreamy and whimsical style. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Moon 

 

Berenice Abbott

Along with being a photographer Berenice Abbott was also an inventor of photographic equipment. She is widely known for her work documenting the ever-changing city landscape. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berenice_Abbott 

 

Julia Margaret Cameron

Julia Margaret Cameron’s love for photography came later in life after her daughter gifted her a camera. During her career she photographed many famous figures along with her friends and family. Her soft and dramatic style was accentuated by her photos’ imperfections. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julia_Margaret_Cameron 

 

Gisele Freund

Gisele Freund was first known for documenting the rise of the Nazi party. After fleeing to France she continued her photographic career by taking portraits of artists and writers. She was the first woman in France to use color film and was beloved for her ability to charm and connect with her subjects. 

Web Site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gisèle_Freund 

 

Rinko Kawauchi

Rinko Kawauchi is known for her breathtaking photos that take ordinary, every-day scenes and show them in an otherworldly way. Her work is exhibited in museums worldwide along with being displayed in her photo books. 

Web Site: http://rinkokawauchi.com/en/ 

 

Coreen Simpson

Coreen Simpson’s photo career began as a photojournalist. Her career later evolved into combining her love of designing jewelry and her passion for photography through designing a jewelry line that she would then photograph in cameo portraits of Black women. 

Web Site: https://theblackcameocollection.com