Explore the works of photographers both famous and lesser-known, yet equally exceptional in the way they captured the spirit of their times.
“One can’t possess reality, one can possess (and be possessed by) images […] One can’t possess the present but one can possess the past,” writes American critic and intellectual Susan Sontag in her book On Photography. Earlier on she states: “To collect photographs is to collect the world.” These are some of the reasons why photographers have irrevocably shaped the way we interact with the world since their art form’s inception.
Photographs seal moments in a vacuum, preserving them as objects that can be reproduced, shared, and carried with us. To look at old photos is to catch a glimpse of a certain zeitgeist or milieu—a kind of time travel in itself. These seven photographers have done just that through their stunning works, capturing the spirit of their times and leaving a visual legacy that’s testament to the power of images.
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Man Ray
Emmanuel Radnitzky, who took on the name “Man Ray,” was a multi-hyphenated artist whose pioneering, avant-garde photography embodied the surrealist and dadaist movements of the 1920s and 1930s. As Christie’s writes, his works seamlessly walked the line “between abstraction and figuration,” presenting aesthetic sensibilities that echo even in today’s world of art, fashion, and pop culture.
Many will recognize his photographs of muse and model Kiki de Montparnasse, which feature bold forms and compositions, captivating outfits, and props that illustrate the trends of 1920s Paris. The photographer also developed his own camera-less technique, which yielded works he dubbed as “rayographs”—pieces he created by placing objects and materials on a sheet of photosensitive paper, then exposing it to light to create negative images.
Cecil Beaton
Cecil Beaton made a name for himself as a respected fashion photographer for glamorous socialites, royalty, and celebrities, capturing the glittering figures of the elite through his uniquely theatrical vision. He worked for Vogue in some of the world’s most chic, cosmopolitan cities, namely New York, Paris, and London, and during the 1930s, went on to shoot movie stars for Vanity Fair. He was also the lead costume designer for both the 1956 Broadway production and 1964 film adaptation of My Fair Lady.
But a lesser known fact is that Beaton served as “one of Britain’s hardest working war photographers” during World War II, as the Imperial War Museum writes. He was part of the rare few that not only captured life on the upper echelons, but also the everyday moments of a politically tumultuous period.
Gerda Taro
German photographer Gerda Taro recorded the chaos that came with the Spanish Civil War—she was also the first female photojournalist to die in the frontlines for her work, crushed by a tank as she photographed the battle of Brunete in July 1937.
She was only 26 years old during her untimely death, but by that time, she had amassed a collection of dramatic photographs that showcased the suffering that soldiers and civilians underwent, highlighting the human cost of war in intimate detail. While many mourned her and celebrated what she left behind, her work eventually fell into obscurity until it later resurfaced through a retrospective exhibition held by the International Center of Photography in New York.
Vivian Maier
Vivian Maier’s photography only came to public attention posthumously in 2007, when a massive collection of negatives she kept within a locker was found at a thrift auction house in Chicago. Prior to that, no one knew about the free-spirited woman who roamed every corner of New York City and Chicago—and she certainly didn’t know she’d become one of the country’s most compelling street photographers.
Her pictures captured 1950s to 1990s America, snapshots spread across roughly 100,000 negatives in a collection managed by John Maloof, who championed her work after it was discovered. Maier herself was not a professional photographer, taking up the hobby casually (and rather reclusively) while working as a caregiver and nanny for most of her life. Today, her photos are celebrated as exemplary pieces that captured the essence of 20th-century America, shared through various exhibitions, documentaries, and books.
Han Youngsoo
Han Youngsoo isn’t a household name outside of South Korea, though a 2017 article from The Guardian, and more recently a 2025 The New Yorker piece calling him “The Henri Cartier-Bresson of South Korea,” have brought his work closer to the global stage. Before South Korea became the modernized, cultural and economic behemoth it is today, it was a country torn by war—rapidly trying to develop into the powerful force it is today.
In the interim, a young photographer by the name of Han Youngsoo—fresh out of fighting in the Korean War—arrives to find an impoverished Seoul picking up the pieces left by conflict and transforming into an urbanized hub.
This development or modernization was at the forefront of his practice, which chronicled the pulse of the country’s capital from the 1950s to 1960s, before he moved into fashion photography in 1966. The International Center for Photography describes his work as “one of the richest and most humanly sympathetic visual records of those [post-war] years.”
Nakaji Yasui
Nakaji Yasui was one of Japan’s most well-respected photographers in the 20th century, most active between the 1920s to early 1940s. While Yasui was not a prolific photographer, having produced a small selection of works within his lifetime (he died at the age of 38 from kidney failure).
His pieces have captivated viewers through their dreamy, experimental flourishes, and the alluring play of light and shadow. A fair amount of Yasui’s oeuvre comprises portraits of people or snapshots of places during Japan’s inter-war years (including groups of what he describes as “Wandering Jews”), which give viewers a fascinating glimpse into the past.
Ricardo Ocreto Alvarado
A Filipino also makes it to this list of photographers: Ricardo Ocreto Alvarado, who captured the immigrant experience as a first generation Filipino-American in the 1940s and 1950s. Upon his passing in 1976, his daughter Janet Alvarado discovered a trove of 3,000 negatives and photographs: rare snapshots of immigrant life and the vibrant multi-cultural communities that resided in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Like many Filipinos who moved to the United States, Alvarado worked his way through life, assuming various jobs (including cook, dishwasher, janitor, and welder, among others) to make ends meet and support his growing family. He eventually saved up enough money to purchase a Graflex Speed Graphic camera—which was used by professional photographers—marking the start of his photography hobby.
Alvarado would develop high-quality and large-format prints within the darkroom of his apartment, his pieces capturing special moments and celebrations with friends from other ethnic communities. From weddings to farm workers posing by a tractor, Alvarado’s photographs are valuable historical documents that bore witness to the perseverance, joys, and ingenuity of the Philippine diaspora.
