1. W. Eugene Smith
W. Eugene Smith, a photojournalist who was uncompromising in his work, had amazing collections and many notable photographs. If you have time to check out the various phases of his work, you should. He inspired me to pursue photojournalism for awhile. He is known for his brutal photographs of WWII. There are too many favorites from him, but the one I will share is "The Walk to Paradise Garden".
Ruth Bernhard ended up coming to New York from Germany and worked for a magazine, doing commercial and catalog photography. (For awhile, I thought I would like to pursue studio lighting or commercial photography. Beginning to see a pattern?). She didn't like it, though, and so spent time manipulating light and shadows in her apartment instead. Her story is very interesting as well, so read about her too! If you can get your hands on it, The Eternal Body: A Collection of Fifty Nudes, is a great book.
3. Annie Leibovitz
Annie Leibovitz is a portrait photographer, whose portfolio contains many celebrities. I like her style and unique eye. She is definitely not a typical portrait photographer and I love her quirkiness. She shoots for Rolling Stone and was also the photographer that shot John Lennon's last portrait with Yoko Ono, five hours before he was killed. Check out her portraits. She also shoots for Vogue and Vanity Fair, and I'm sure you would recognize a lot of her work. The one I chose to share is of Keith Haring.
4. Irving Penn
Irving Penn is another portrait photographer, as well as fashion photographer, but from a slightly older period. His work also includes still life photography. The book I have of Irving Penn's work, Irving Penn Portraits, is a great introduction to his photography, but there is so much more. He photographed Truman Capote two different times and both portraits I have tried to mimic in my own projects. I'm sharing the earlier of the two... I just love the tone in his work.
I blindly love Detroit and Urban Decay, so its no wonder I love Andrew Moore's book, Detroit Disassembled. Check it out if you love either of those things too!
Okay, so I thought of another while I was writing this post, plus I feel like I cheated you with my short blurb on #5, so here is a bonus!
6. Spencer Tunick
Spencer Tunick does human installations and is widely known for his organizations of large-scale nude photo shoots. I highly recommend watching Naked States, as well as the sequel, Naked World. You have to watch these documentaries. You just have to. In the very least, you will feel completely comfortable with the human body by the movie's end.
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