Eadweard Muybridge
'Man Punch'
This photograph depicts Ben Bailey a mixed race male, Muybridge's only non-white model. This was the first photograph in which Muybridge used an anthropometric grid and he never photographed the human figure without one since. The grids were said to be used in 19th century ethnographic photography to study non-western bodies, showing the physical differences to signify lack of civilisation to westerns.
Henri Cartier-Bresson
'Pavement school, Jaipur'
This photograph focuses on a teacher instructing his students on the pavement of a street in Jaipur, India. This photograph is a perfect of example of Cartier-Bresson's devotion to representing human dignity and kind-heartedness. Cartier-Bresson often worked as an anonymous observer amongst the crowd only to be identified by his simple 35mm camera.
William Klein
This may be on of Klein's most visually 'striking' pieces of work by what is depicted in the photograph. Here is what seems to be a normal New York street child who happens to own a gun. This picture really stunned me, not only because there is a child holding a gun, but by the brutality and emotion he is showing in the photograph; he seems to be holding the gun with absolute purpose and meaning. Although the moment looks pretty raw and gritty, the photograph was actually taken due to something Klein had said to the child which was "look tough" to which the child responded by turning around and pointing the gun straight at him. Giving off this immense brutality.
Alexander Rodchenko
Girl with a Leica, 1934
Rodchenko did more than take pictures, he wrote long and detailed manifestos to go alongside almost all of his photographs. He tediously promoted the concept of Russian Constructivisim to the rest of the world. I choose to look at this amazing photograph of a young woman sitting. Although the concept of the image is very basic, the way in which Rodchenko managed to capture the shadows which fall perfectly on her body is astonishing.
