Women Photographers

Anna-Lou Leibovitz is an American portrait photographer whose career is defined by intimate photographs of celebrities, as exemplified by her famous portrait of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, hours before the English musician’s murder. The Rolling Stone magazine provided the platform for her photographic talent during the early years of her career. She was involved in a controversy over an apparent topless photo of Miley Cyrus.

Best known for his black and white photographs, Robert Mapplethorpe chose homoerotic themes to express himself. His male nudes reflected the gay BDSM subculture of New York. His works also included flowers, still lifes, and portraits of celebrities. The gay photographer-artist eventually died of aids.

Vivian Maier was an American street photographer whose works received critical acclaim after her death. Maier's photographs were unpublished during her lifetime. However, her works went viral on the internet when it was published on Flickr five months after her death. Vivian Maier's life and work have inspired documentary films like Finding Vivian Maier.

As a child actor, Jena Malone delivered a Saturn Award-winning performance in Contact. She later starred in Donnie Darko, Sucker Punch, Into the Wild. and The Hunger Games franchise. She also sings as part of Jena Malone and the Blood Stains and is a talented photographer who has held exhibitions.

Linda Fiorentino is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Bridget Gregory in the 1994 neo-noir erotic thriller film The Last Seduction, for which she received a BAFTA Award nomination and won a couple of prestigious awards, including the New York Film Critics Circle Award.

Helena Christensen is a Danish photographer and supermodel. A former beauty queen, clothing designer, and Victoria's Secret Angel, Christensen has been featured on cover pages of magazines, such as Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. Well-known for her philanthropic activities, Christensen has participated in campaigns to raise awareness about climate change. She has also launched fundraising campaigns to fight against breast cancer.

Cynthia Daniel is a photographer and former actress. The twin sister of Brittany Daniel, Cynthia followed in the footsteps of her sister to become an actress. However, she retired from acting in 1997 and chose to become a photographer, even as her twin sister Brittany Daniel continued to pursue acting.

Gina Lollobrigida is an Italian actress and photojournalist counted amongst the highest-profile European actresses of the 1950s and 1960s. Considered a  sex symbol in her youth, she had a successful career both in the film and TV industries. She later built a second career as a photojournalist. She is a recipient of the NIAF Lifetime Achievement Award.  

Berry Berenson was an American actress, photographer, and model. Apart from appearing on films alongside actors like Jeff Bridges and Anthony Perkins, Berenson also contributed as a photographer; her works were featured in popular magazines like Newsweek, Glamour, Vogue, and Life. Berry Berenson died aboard American Airlines Flight 11 during the September 11 attacks. 

Born to a Japanese mother and an American father, journalist Ann Curry is best known for her extensive war reporting and has covered disturbances from areas such as Syria and Afghanistan. The Emmy Award-winning journalist has had a long stint on NBC. She also supports cancer research.

Born to a French mother and a Croatian father, Dora Maar spent her childhood in Argentina and later studied art in Paris. The renowned surrealist artist and photographer later gained fame as Pablo Picasso’s lover and muse, and was featured in his paintings such as Weeping Woman.

Mary McCartney is a British photographer best known as the daughter of Linda and Paul McCartney. McCartney is credited with capturing portraits of popular personalities like Jude Law, Ralph Fiennes, and Sam Taylor-Wood. Apart from being a photographer, Mary McCartney is also an animal rights activist. She is a Global Ambassador for initiatives like Green Monday and Meat Free Monday.

Gerda Taro was a German Jewish war photographer who was active during the Spanish Civil War. As a young woman, she became interested in Leftist politics. She then became involved with photographer Robert Capa and began her own career in photojournalism. She died in 1937 while covering the frontline during the Spanish Civil War.  

Minnie Weisz is an English visual artist and photographer. Weisz specializes in a technique called camera obscura which she uses to turn rooms into cameras. Minnie Weisz is also known as the younger sister of Academy Award-winning actress Rachel Weisz.

Agnes Varda was a Belgian-born French film director, screenwriter, and artist. She was a key figure in the development of the French New Wave film movement of the 1950s and 1960s. She often made films addressing women’s issues and other social justice problems. She was honored with an Academy Honorary Award. She was married to director Jacques Demy. 

Tasya van Ree is a popular American painter and photographer, known for her keen interests in visual presentation and mixed media. Also known for her distinctive sense of fashion, Tasya believes that people become what they wear. An openly gay celebrity, she serves as an inspiration to the LGBTQ community. She has dated personalities like Amber Heard and Caroline Vreeland.

Mary Elizabeth Gore, better known as Tipper Gore, was married to former American president Al Gore. She had a major role in establishing the Parents Music Resource Center, which made CDs carry parental advisory stickers, to prevent their children from listening to music laced with profanity.

Born into luxury, comedian Francesca Hilton was the only child of Hilton founder Conrad Hilton and Hollywood star Zsa Zsa Gabor. It was later revealed that Francesca was born out of marital rape, and her parents divorced before her birth. Hilton left her a scanty fortune, and she died in poverty.

Sally Mann is an American photographer whose works prompted Time magazine to name her America's Best Photographer in the year 2001. She is best known for releasing photography books such as At Twelve: Portraits of Young Women, Still Time, and Immediate Family. Her photographs are displayed in popular art museums like Metropolitan Museum of Art and National Gallery of Art.

Julia Margaret Cameron was a British photographer best remembered for her close-up portraits of popular Victorian men. Widely regarded as one of the 19th century's most important portraitists, Cameron is credited with capturing the beauty and innocence of children, women, and men. Julia Margaret Cameron is also credited with popularizing the close-ups in photography.

Astrid Kirchherr was a German photographer and artist who was famous for the photographs she took of the original band members of the Beatles. She wanted to study fashion designing as a young woman but shifted to photography at the recommendation of a teacher. She later became acquainted with the Beatles and took several iconic photographs of them. 

Claude Cahun was a French sculptor, surrealist photographer, and writer. He is best remembered for his work as a self-portraitist and writer. Apart from his primary career, Claude Cahun also played a major role in the Second World War, serving as a propagandist and resistance worker.

German photographer Gisela Getty is known as an icon of the ’68 movement. She; her boyfriend, J. Paul Getty III; and her sister, Jutta, had once shared a bed, as a "threesome." She made headlines when she got married to Paul after he was released following a scandalous abduction.

Amanda de Cadenet is an English author, photographer, and media personality. As a photographer, De Cadenet has worked for popular magazines like Harper’s Bazaar, Jane, and Spin. Amanda de Cadenet has also appeared in a couple of films like Grace of My Heart and The Rachel Papers.

Canadian-American actor Barbara Parkins was a 60s’ icon and is best remembered as Betty Anderson from the series Peyton Place and Anne Welles from the film Valley of the Dolls. The Emmy-nominated actor is now a wildlife activist and a photographer. She has also appeared in Playboy magazine.

Scarlet Page is a British photographer best known as the daughter of popular musician and multi-instrumentalist Jimmy Page. Over the years, Scarlet Page has worked for popular publications like Raw Magazine. She has also been involved in projects with celebrities and bands like Robbie Williams, The Rolling Stones, The Black Crowes, and Linkin Park. 

Suze Randall is an English photographer, model, and pornographer. Randall worked as a staff photographer for Hustler and Playboy, becoming the first woman staff photographer for both the publications. In 1980, she directed a pornographic film titled Kiss and Tell, becoming one of the earliest woman porn film directors. Suze Randall has also modeled for magazines like Hustler and Playboy.