Start Here

Quick start to the Masters of Photography

If you’re new to the masters of photography, start with the articles below:

Introduction to the Masters of Photography

Dear friend,

You’ve probably had this situation — when you’re at some fancy art show, and you hear another photographer “name drop” other famous photographers.

You nod your head in agreement, but you have no idea who these master photographers are.

Consider this guide as a way to de-mystify and de-elitize the masters of photography.

I never went to art school, or photo school. I had to self-teach myself all the masters of photography. And now that I know them, I want this guide to help you (assuming you don’t know any of the masters of photography).

This page is currently a work in progress. I will continue to make edits to this page, as there are a lot of masters to cover.

Let’s get started:

Chapter 1: “Old school” photographers

“He without a past has no future.”

To start off, let us start off chronologically.

I know a lot of these “old school” photographers might seem a bit boring. However, the reason their work still has lasted, because it is classic. They have paved the way for all of us in photography. They experimented with the medium of photography, and pushed it forward. They made photography an acceptable art form. We have a great deal of debt to pay them.

This period of time is roughly the 1920’s:

1. Andre Kertesz

I’d recommend first starting to learn about Andre Kertesz, who was one of the first photographers who inspired Henri Cartier-Bresson (essentially the “godfather” of street photography). Andre Kertesz harnessed the classic form of geometry to photography, and was prolific all the way until his death.

2. Henri Cartier-Bresson

Of course, you need to study the work of Henri Cartier-Bresson, who first took 35mm photography to the next level. He innovated the concept of the “decisive moment“, and saw photography as an “instant sketchbook.”

Henri Cartier-Bresson is a great starting point if you love black and white photography, geometry, and composition. Further resources on Henri Cartier-Bresson here:

3. Alfred Stieglitz

Alfred Stieglitz was a photographer, who first pushed photography to be taken acceptably as “art.” Photography wouldn’t be where it is today without him.

Chapter 2: “New school” photographers

I consider this “new school” of photographers the next wave of photographers who innovated in photography, from around the 1950’s onwards to the 1980’s:

4. Garry Winogrand

Garry Winogrand was probably one of the most prolific street photographers to have ever lived. He shot because he loved it, and he was one of the innovators of the 28mm lens, getting close to his subjects, and creating “edgy”, dynamic, and off-kilter compositions. Not all his photos are pretty, but his work ethic, distaste for the art world, and his down-to-earth humor makes him a master to study.

5. William Klein

William Klein is one of the most badass street photographers in history. He said what was on his mind, and said it the way he wanted. He was a “director on the streets” — he would often interact with his subjects, engage them, and this puts his soul in his photos.

Klein also was innovative with fashion photography, film, and inspired many other photographers, including the highly influential Japanese street photographer Daido Moriyama. In turn, Daido Moriyama inspired other master photographers such as Anders Petersen, and Jacob Aue Sobol.

Klein innovated using blur in his photos, high-contrast and grain, and multi-layered photos.

6. Diane Arbus

Diane Arbus is famous for photographing people on the fringes of society. Many of her portraits are a bit unsettling to look at, yet they show deep humanity and empathy. If you love shooting portraits, definitely check out Diane Arbus.

7. Lee Friedlander

Lee Friedlander is a funny photographer with a great wry sense of humor. He innovated in urban landscapes, creating complex scenes (without overlapping figures). Not only that, but his self-portraits have great humor and are quite introspective.

All the masters of street photography

If you’re ready to get your hands wet, see all the lessons from the masters of street photography below:

100 Lessons From the Masters of Street Photography

The Masters

Here is a full list of the masters:

To learn more, see Street Photography 101 >

FREE TURBO THOUGHTS

ERIC KIM NEWSLETTER >

LEARN FROM THE MASTERS OF ART

CRYPTO THOUGHTS

Crypto >

PHOTO THOUGHTS

Who is ERIC KIM?

My Interest in Street Photography, Philosophy and Entrepreneurship

SOCIETY

WEALTH

HEALTH

PHOTOGRAPHY

PHILOSOPHY

Portfolio

SUITS

Download PDF >

ONLY IN AMERICA

Download PDF >

CINDY PROJECT

BOOKS

Buy books, not gear:

PHOTOGRAPHY PDF BOOKS

EBOOKS

FREE EBOOKS

See all downloads >

Photo Book Reviews »

Below are my favorite photo books:

75+ inspirational photography books »

Buy books, not gear.

If you want a quality-education in street photography, I recommend either buying, borrowing, or browsing though some of the books below. Books that are bolded are some of my personal favorites.

Free Books by Eric Kim

If you love learning, read the books below:

Street Notes

Street Notes is a pocket-sized assignment journal to break outside of your comfort zone:

Buy (Amazon USA) >
Buy (in our Shop International) >

STREET HUNT: Street Notes Volume 2 Scavenger Hunt Edition

Photo Book Reviews

See all reviews >

Recommended photo books

Downloads

Mini Street Photography Starter Kit

If you’re starting in street photography, here is my free and open-source ‘MINI Street Photography Starter Kit’. For more inspiration and dopeness, see the full version: “Street Photography Starter Kit“.

FREE ERIC KIM EBOOKS

Dropbox Download >

CONTACT SHEETS by ERIC KIM

2GB (very big) Dropbox Download >

ERIC KIM PHOTOS

RAW photos

dropbox Raw files >

ERIC KIM LIGHTROOM PRESETS

Download ZIP:

.ZIP: ERIC KIM Lightroom Presets

PDF Visualizations

Made by ANNETTE KIM:

ERIC KIM x Annette Kim PDF Visualizations – HAPTICPRESS

Black and White Street Photography

See all pictures on Dropbox >

Contact Sheets by ERIC KIM

See directory on Dropbox >

EBOOKS

See all Ebooks on Dropbox >

PDF EBOOK: Street Photography Contact Sheets

Direct downloads:

Full: STREET PHOTOGRAPHY STARTER KIT >

Buy the full STREET PHOTOGRAPHY STARTER KIT >

Here are all of the free downloads available to you, with love:

Dear friend,

I want you to download me — download all these books, articles, and information for free– for you to remix it however you would like.

For you to use these images to illustrate blog posts. For you to look at these full-resolution images to analyze composition.

For you to use these free Lightroom presets to actually make your digital RAW photos look good.

For you to empower yourself. Because I think that information is power. Information is everything.

Information is money and control of the world (just consider that scene from the James Bond 007 Skyfall at the end of the film — the guy who controlled the information controlled the world).

With this information, you can learn how to conquer your fears, find more personal meaning in your photography and life, and seek to empower others through the art of photography.

BOOKS

Download all PDF books:

Eric Kim Books 2017 (PDF/129mb/.zip)

Photography Series PDF Books by Eric Kim

Individual PDF books:

Lightroom Presets

Download:

VISUALIZATIONS & RESOURCES by HAPTIC

FILM NOTES BLANK WORKSHEETS
All Visualizations by Annette Kim
- “How to Overcome Fears of Photographing Strangers“(11/2/2o17)
- “What to Look For When Shooting in the Streets” (11/8/2017)
- “What is the Best Camera for Street Photography?” (11/22/2017)
- “Travel Photography Tips” (12/10/2017)
- “Introduction to Composition in Photography” (12/18/2017) New!
- “Zen of Eric: On Life, Photography, Art, and Work” (12/29/2017) New!
- “New Year’s Photography Resolutions” (12/31/2017) New!
- “How to Monetize Your Photography” (1/23/2018) New!
- “10 Visual Challenges to Boost Your Creative Photography” (3/21/2018) New!
- “Smartphone Street Photography” (4/19/2018) New!
- “Eric Kim Lightroom Workflow” (5/12/2018) New!
- “10 Ways to Boost Your Creativity” (5/30/2018) New!

PHOTOS by ERIC KIM

Download:

Open-source

All the information on this site, including photos, images, videos, articles, books, or text is free and open source– meaning you can do whatever you want with it.

You can remix it, translate it, or sell it for a profit.

The reason why I am doing this is to help empower you with information. And I feel that freedom is information, and power.

Be strong,

Eric

Eric Kim Blog Offline

If you plan on going on a flight, or going somewhere without internet access (and still want access to this blog), you can download this entire blog (offline, without images) as a 1.4GB (yes, very big) direct download. All you need to do is extract this .ZIP file, and open up ‘index.html’ to access the entire site. Have fun 🙂