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.

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 Maier's photographs were unpublished during her lifetime.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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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.

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. 

Born in Hungary, Sylvia Plachy fled to the US with her family after the Hungarian Revolution. Now a renowned photographer, she is mainly known for her stint with the US newsweekly The Village Voice. A Guggenheim fellow and a Lucie Award winner, she is also the mother of Oscar-winning actor Adrien Brody.

Iranian visual artist Shirin Neshat is known for her depiction of the dynamics that women share with Islamic cultural elements. Known for her multi-media productions such as Logic of the Birds, the UCB alumna who has worked in New York for a decade uses photography and films to express herself.

Pamella Bordes is an Indian former beauty queen and photographer. Before starting her career in photography, Bordes was a beauty pageant contestant. In 1982, she won the Miss India title and went on to represent India at the 1982 Miss Universe pageant. She then took to photography after studying in New York's International Center of Photography.

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.

Italian-American photographer Tina Modotti was the daughter of migrant laborers in Austria. She later worked in a textile factory in Italy, before moving to the U.S., where she acted in Italian theater. Initially excelling in still lifes and portraits, she later gained fame for her signature close-ups of Mexican workers.

Known for her creative photographs of babies, Anne Geddes has also contributed to many best-selling photobooks and calendars. A school drop-out, she initially worked in television and took up photography seriously at 25, becoming a full-fledged photographer at 30. She is also an ambassador of initiatives such as Shot at Life.