History of Photographers 19 & 20

Eliot Erwitt

Eliot Erwitt is a Parisian photographer known for his satirical situations in everyday situations which he captured in his photos. His family moved to the United States where he first started to become interested in photography. He studied photography at Los Angeles City College and he finished his education in 1950. He shot photographs all around the world becoming a 'free lance' photographer. He also is known for creating an alter ego that is a pretentious french man named André S. Solidor.

I like this photograph because the mirror image is so clear and the background is faded out and yet still beautiful. I like how Erwitt captured the happiness on the woman's face in the mirror and that he was skilled enough to do this. It's a very nice picture because you can picture the woman in the car facing the ocean even though this is not shown in the photo. I also find this photo very romantic, which makes it enjoyable as well. 

I find this photo very ironic and uplifting. It's funny how the seemingly normal couple are walking their tiny dog, until you get a closer glimpse at one of their legs. This photo implies a lot. The photo shows a dog's legs next to a person's leg, but which is the real dog: the man or the woman? One would figure it would be the woman walking such a small dog, but the boots suggest it could be a man as well. So who is the dog? That's what Erwitt wants you to think about. 

Marilyn Monroe. I can bet you've heard of her even if you aren't a fan of hers. Marilyn was a very complicated individual, much more than what she revealed to the public. I believe some of the madness in her mind was captured in this photo taken by Elliott Erwitt. From far away she looks just like Marilyn, an actress doing a pose like any other photo. But if you look closer into her eyes, there is something else there. Something that is very far from the happiness a great actress should have. Erwitt may have used humor in some of his other photos but he reveals a deeper meaning in all his photographs no matter what form of production he uses. 

 Dorathea Lange

Dorathea Lange was one of the most inspirational photographers of all time because of her skills when taking documentary style photos during the era of the Great Depression. She first learned the art of photography at Columbia University in New York. Lange also worked for the RA and the FSA. Her most famous photo is titled "Migrant Mother" and has been featured on many things related to the Great Depression and is still admired today. Lange died of esophageal cancer when she was 70 years old. When she entered the later years of her life she suffered a lot of health problems because of her suffering from Polio as a child. 

I'm sure you've seen this photo before whether in History class or everyday life. This is Lange's most famous photograph "Migrant Mother" taken during the Great Depression. The first time I saw this picture I had no idea who took it. I like this photo very much because it reflects the pain that not only a mother faces in a depression but the children as well. The hopeless look on her face reaches out to you and I love that Lange was able to capture this emotion. 

This photo is the definition of a documentary photograph. It is taken merely to see and know how things were during the Great Depression. This photo makes me sad, to see the conditions that people had to live in. Over all this photo is a great photo, it's clear and to the point. It shows the housing conditions and how many people live there. I don't think documentary photography is my favorite type of photography because to me it lacks substance. I wish there was more emotion instead of stone cold facts. 

This photo says a lot. It's ironic and sad that the kids are doing such a childlike pose when they look so angry and sad. These children probably had to learn to grow up at a very young age because of their situation of having to grow up during the Great Depression. This photo gives the impression that a lot of children didn't have time just to be kids, they had to take responsibility that most kids don't have to. I like the use of grey tones in this picture, while there are some dark grey colors there is never the harshness of black that some black and white photos have. This gives the photo a dreary, dirty quality that goes along great with the theme of the Great Depression.