Dorothea Lange

Dorothea Lange was a photographer most notable for her works during the depression era.  Her images are very powerful and show the plight of the American people.  Her most notable image from this period is titled "Migrant Mother" and is an image of a destitute woman with her children huddled near her.  While the story behind the photograph my be embellished the tone certainly wasn't.  The photograph is the most iconic image of the Great Depression.  (The woman featured in the photo was also very unhappy over its use).  Her other photographs through California's tent cities and Hoovervilles speak to you.  You can feel the anguish the subjects are feeling.  The children have dirty faces, the parents are overworked and underpaid and still cannot provide for their families.  It is SEEING John Steinbeck's Grapes Of Wrath in black and white for yourself.

Some pretty awesome facts about Lange- she co-founded Aperature magazine!  One of the TOP photography magazines.  She also was invited by Ansel Adams to be a faculty member of the California School of Fine Arts (two others on my list joined her there- Cunningham and White).

One of the most awesome things about her Great Depression era photographs is they were taken with a 4x5 Graflex camera VERY similar to the one by my logo that belonged to my Grandfather that my Grandma gave me for my 21st birthday!!

This is my imitation image.  The subject is my son James.  He is not actually dirty- this is a texture that was added in post processing.  I added film grain for an added touch.  Although this does not have the feel of photo journalism it still speaks to me much the same way Lange's images do.  I am very glad that it was not taken under the same circumstance.