Lewis+Hine+-+Nicole+Sroka

Lewis Hine was not only an American photographer, but also a sociologist who took photos to demonstrate the changing of child laws in the United States. Hine was born in Oshkosh before going to three different colleges to study sociology. He taught an Ethical Culture School in New York that would travel to Ellis Island to take photographs of immigrants. After taking all of these pictures with the children, he realized that his calling was photography.

In 1908, Hine became the photographer for the National Child Labor Committee, also known as NCLC. In order to end child labor, Hine documented child labor in the American industry. During World War 1, he worked in Europe and photographed the American Red Cross relief work. Hine is known for a serious of portraits that showcased how much humans have contributed to modern industry. Not only did Hine photograph that, but he also documented the construction of The Empire State Building. Again during the Great Depression, he worked for the American Red Cross and drought relief in the South. Later in his life, he was a chief photographer for the Works Progress Administration and studied the changes in industry, as well as, how that effected employment. Through his photos, he was able to educate the world.   He has five thousand photographs all of his child labor photos, Red Cross pictures, work portraits, and WPA images are held in the Library of Congress.

His photos are able to show so much work by showing so little. He was also very talented when it came to conveying emotion. I'm hoping that I can try to imitate his photos in a way where I can show beautiful, emotional simplicity.