For those of us accustomed to being surrounded by photographs, it is hard to imagine what a sensation they caused when they were introduced in 1839. For the first time people could have exact likenesses of themselves to give to friends and loved ones. People could also see what the celebrities of their day really looked like, individuals they had previously only read about.
As more efficient types of cameras were invented, photographers began to use them for purposes other than making portraits. Some took striking pictures of the landscape surrounding them and of places around the world that few people would ever have the chance to visit. Others captured images of important events as they were happening, changing forever the way the world received its news. Still other photographers took pictures whose sole purpose was to convey beauty, photographs that would earn their place in museums and galleries alongside paintings as true works of art. In modern times, such innovations as easy-to-use disposable cameras and instant and digital photography have combined to make taking pictures the most popular hobby the world has ever known.
The camera has never been more important or far-reaching than when it has been in the hands of photographers who have dedicated themselves to bringing about change. From photography’s earliest days, there have been cameramen and camerawomen who have been driven to, as photographer Lewis Hine so aptly put it, “show the things that need to be appreciated; show the things that need to be changed.”
That is what this book is all about. In it you will meet men and women who, often against great odds, brought about needed change. You will, for example, encounter Mathew Brady, America’s first prominent photographer, whose pictures dramatically changed the nation’s attitude about war. You will meet Lewis Hine, who spent years of his life taking pictures of the millions of young children working from dawn to dusk in factories, canneries, and mines, pictures so powerful that they were instrumental in the abolishment of child labor. And you will be introduced to Frances Benjamin Johnston, whose photographs of African Americans in the post–Civil War years gave the world a portrayal of these people far different from any that had ever before been presented.
These are but three of the talented and dedicated people you will meet. All were highly skilled. Many of their pictures stand on their own as photographic masterpieces. But their true legacy is the way they brought about needed changes in attitudes and conditions, and in doing so helped make America, and the world in general, a better place in which to live. There can be no greater contribution.
—Martin W. Sandler
COTUIT, MASSACHUSETTS