Greatest photographers of all time

Hi everyone. I'm new to the board and hope there isn't a thread for this already! Anyway can I pose the question who are the best of the best? I have done a survey of photographers for a few years now and the artists I keep coming back to are Cartier-Bresson, Walker Evans and Robert Franks. Personally I find Evan's images the most captivating and moving but I think Cartier-Bresson was technically superior. Anyway on balance for me I rate Walker Evans no 1. over to you guys! Tim

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Since time has not yet ended, I can't say whom was the best of all time.

How-ever, I will nominate Matthew Brady for the photographer with the biggest set on the planet!

I'd like to nominate local, Kansas photographer, Gordon Parks. Parks was born in 1912, in Fort Scott, KS and died in 2006. Parks was not only a photog, but he was also a musician, poet, journalist, novelist, film director and activist. He was a true Renaissance man, indeed.

There are just to many from to many different eras from to many genres of photography to say who was the best...

WW2 era - Joe Rosenthal The flag over Mt. Suribachi. At the start of the battle there were 22K Japanese soldiers...at the end there were about 200. The Americans lost even more...

Note HCB is indeed great...Dessau and the Gestapo Informant being exposed is crazy drama because it is real!

Vietnam - Nick Ut Photo of Phan Thi Kim Phuc. Pulitzer prize winner better known as the napalm girl. A picture of war that is like a hammer on your soul. After he made it he put away the camera and did not leave the girl's side until they were wheeling her into the operating room.

Eddie Adams and the summary execution snap...

Nickolas Muray made some fantastic images of Marilyn Monroe that are just dripping of 50's golden age America...

I could go on and on and on...funny how photography really hasn't been around very long at all in the grand scheme of things...

And let's not forget the women! How about Julia Margaret Cameron and her way ahead of time portrait sensibilities...check out the shot of A. Tennyson...just incredible. One of Gordon Parks contempories and loosely connected to him through Ron Stryker was Dorothea Lange...a migrant mother and her children in California likely from dust bowl days Oklahoma...an extremely powerful modern day madonna and child...

Originally Posted by Eye-level

There are just to many from to many different eras from to many genres of photography to say who was the best...

WW2 era - Joe Rosenthal The flag over Mt. Suribachi. At the start of the battle there were 22K Japanese soldiers...at the end there were about 200. The Americans lost even more...

Note HCB is indeed great...Dessau and the Gestapo Informant being exposed is crazy drama because it is real!

Vietnam - Nick Ut Photo of Phan Thi Kim Phuc. Pulitzer prize winner better known as the napalm girl. A picture of war that is like a hammer on your soul. After he made it he put away the camera and did not leave the girl's side until they were wheeling her into the operating room.

Eddie Adams and the summary execution snap...

Nickolas Muray made some fantastic images of Marilyn Monroe that are just dripping of 50's golden age America...

I could go on and on and on...funny how photography really hasn't been around very long at all in the grand scheme of things...

The camera may not be around as long as lethal weapons, prayers or even prostitutes, but its effect on mankind has been just as powerful as those mentioned and has created a whole new genre of art & its interpretation since forever.!!!
Now to answer your question, I only know that my name will never, ever be anyway near that list.!!!!

Originally Posted by jcottone45

Now to answer your question, I only know that my name will never, ever be anyway near that list.!!!!

Oh you never know what you might get to see and snap Joe...I understand what you mean though and I am with you on that...

If my name shows up I'd be the first to yell Fraud!!

Ok I know it's friday & I used to celebrate that fact,but senility got the better of here as I can't remember for the life of me Why!!! Oh yea I remember now see ya gotta run whilst I still remember!!!!

Group f/64 -

• Ansel Adams
• Imogen Cunningham
• John Paul Edwards
• Sonya Noskowiak
• Henry Swift
• Willard Van Dyke
• Edward Weston

I thought Walker Evans might have had more fans on the site? Those images of the Alabama farmer's house - Allie May against the clapper board building or the child's grave? I still can't get past the tombstone looming over the industrial town either. I keep going back to his stuff and just marvelling at the sense of drama and mystery his images had.