Pretty standard list of very famous people:
Lee Friedlander (is this really only the third mention of him?) - nobody makes me question reality like Friedlander. The master of using space, scale, depth and dimension, and all on the fly. A genius in the art of 3D to 2D conversion. To me, he is the King of modern photography.
Ernst Haas (second mention?) - perhaps my favorite for capturing pure found beauty and transforming it into photographic beauty - an absolute master of form, composition, and 3D to 2D, in black and white or in color. Excellent photographic philosopher/writer as well
Robert Capa - for just being there and getting the shot no matter what
Garry Winogrand - for showing what compulsivity in photography can show us that cannot otherwise be shown
William Albert Allard - for the access he is somehow allowed everywhere he goes
To me, these five above are the "masters" as far as what I look up to and how I want to shoot. However, I am also a big fan of:
August Sander - large project-oriented documentary work in which the work is allowed to guide the photographer just as much as the photographer guides the work
Stephen Shore - raw America, both highly technical and not
Robert Frank - same as above
Robert Mapplethorpe - Shows that anything can be made to look beautiful. No other studio/still life shooter has ever really interested me. He makes subject matter secondary; The photograph is art and object in and of itself.
Ansel Adams - the perfect blend of art and documentary, and the best photographic teacher/writer I have ever read.
David Hume Kennerly and Nicky Ut for their overall careers, not for any one outstanding series of images. These guys have shot everything under the sun for over 40 years, and are still working today.
Currently, I am inspired by anyone putting their life on the line to show us the news. Even more kudos to those who are doing it free of embedment.
and more
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2F/2F
Last edited by 2F/2F; 06-29-2008 at 11:38 AM.
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