Magnum Photos
Encyclopedia
Magnum Photos is an international photographic
cooperative
owned by its photographer-members, with offices located in New York
, Paris
, London
and Tokyo
. According to co-founder Henri Cartier-Bresson
, "Magnum is a community of thought, a shared human quality, a curiosity about what is going on in the world, a respect for what is going on and a desire to transcribe it visually."
, David "Chim" Seymour
, Henri Cartier-Bresson
, George Rodger
and William Vandivert were the founding members (Vice Presidents) of Magnum in 1947, having responded with various degrees of enthusiasm to an idea of Capa's. Seymour, Cartier-Bresson and Rodger were all absent from the meeting at which it was founded. (In response to a letter telling him that he was now a member, Rodger wrote back from Cyprus to say that Magnum seemed a good idea but that "It all sounded too halcyon to be true" when Capa had told him of it and that "I rather dismissed the whole thing from my mind".) Rita Vandivert was the first President. (Magnum's own short history of itself deletes the Vandiverts from the record.) Rodger would cover Africa and the Middle East, Cartier-Bresson would cover the area east of that, Seymour and Vandivert would cover Europe and the United States respectively, and Capa would be free to go anywhere.
Magnum is one of the first photographic cooperatives, owned and administered entirely by members. The staff serve a support role for the photographers who retain all copyrights to their own work.
The Magnum cooperative has included photojournalists
from across the world and has covered many historical events of the 20th century. The cooperative's archive includes photographs depicting family
life, drugs
, religion
, war
, poverty
, famine
, crime
, government
and celebrities
. Magnum In Motion
is the multimedia offshoot of Magnum Photos, based in New York City.
After two years of Nominee membership, photographers then present another portfolio if they wish to apply for 'Associate Membership'. If successful, the photographer then becomes bound by all the rules of the agency, and enjoys all the facilities of its offices and worldwide representation. The only difference between an Associate Member and a full Member is that an Associate Member is not a Director of the Company and does not have voting rights in its corporate decision making. Finally, after another two years, an Associate member wishing to apply for full membership presents a further portfolio of work for consideration by the members. Once elected as a full member, this effectively confers membership of Magnum for life or for as long as the photographer chooses. No member photographer of Magnum has ever been asked to leave.
's venture capital firm MSD Capital, L.P. had acquired a collection of nearly 200,000 original press prints of images taken by Magnum photographers (including, among other photographs, Afghan Girl) and had formed partnership with the Harry Ransom Center at The University of Texas at Austin to preserve, catalog, and make available to the general public. The cost of the purchase was not disclosed; however, the collection was reportedly insured for more than $100 million. A Preliminary Inventory is available for researchers who wish to use the collection.
to crowdsource the tagging of their digital archive of Magnum. The project allows volunteers to get early access to the (untagged) photo archive of Magnum Photos, and provide descriptive tags to the images.
A notable accomplishment of this effort was the discovery of a set of "lost" photos in the Magnum archive, from the shooting of the movie American Graffiti
, achieved through a combination of human tagging and machine intelligence: The crowdsourced easily identified the individuals in the photos (e.g., George Lucas
, Ron Howard
, Richard Dreyfuss
, and Mackenzie Phillips
, shown in separate photos from one shooting), but then the underlying machine process connected these together to see what is common among them. The film American Graffiti was one of the suggestions. Tagasauris found nearly two dozen previously 'lost' photos taken on the film’s set that were available (but not discoverable) in the Magnum archive. "Computers couldn’t ID humans in the photo but humans couldn’t know the context."
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
cooperative
Cooperative
A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
owned by its photographer-members, with offices located in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. According to co-founder Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson was a French photographer considered to be the father of modern photojournalism. He was an early adopter of 35 mm format, and the master of candid photography...
, "Magnum is a community of thought, a shared human quality, a curiosity about what is going on in the world, a respect for what is going on and a desire to transcribe it visually."
Founding of agency
The photographers Robert CapaRobert Capa
Robert Capa was a Hungarian combat photographer and photojournalist who covered five different wars: the Spanish Civil War, the Second Sino-Japanese War, World War II across Europe, the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, and the First Indochina War...
, David "Chim" Seymour
David Seymour
Chim was the pseudonym of David Seymour , a Polish photographer and photojournalist. Born Dawid Szymin in Warsaw to Polish Jewish parents, he became interested in photography while studying in Paris...
, Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson was a French photographer considered to be the father of modern photojournalism. He was an early adopter of 35 mm format, and the master of candid photography...
, George Rodger
George Rodger
George Rodger was a British photojournalist noted for his work in Africa and for taking the first photographs of the death camps at Bergen-Belsen at the end of the Second World War....
and William Vandivert were the founding members (Vice Presidents) of Magnum in 1947, having responded with various degrees of enthusiasm to an idea of Capa's. Seymour, Cartier-Bresson and Rodger were all absent from the meeting at which it was founded. (In response to a letter telling him that he was now a member, Rodger wrote back from Cyprus to say that Magnum seemed a good idea but that "It all sounded too halcyon to be true" when Capa had told him of it and that "I rather dismissed the whole thing from my mind".) Rita Vandivert was the first President. (Magnum's own short history of itself deletes the Vandiverts from the record.) Rodger would cover Africa and the Middle East, Cartier-Bresson would cover the area east of that, Seymour and Vandivert would cover Europe and the United States respectively, and Capa would be free to go anywhere.
Magnum is one of the first photographic cooperatives, owned and administered entirely by members. The staff serve a support role for the photographers who retain all copyrights to their own work.
The Magnum cooperative has included photojournalists
Photojournalism
Photojournalism is a particular form of journalism that creates images in order to tell a news story. It is now usually understood to refer only to still images, but in some cases the term also refers to video used in broadcast journalism...
from across the world and has covered many historical events of the 20th century. The cooperative's archive includes photographs depicting family
Family
In human context, a family is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity, affinity, or co-residence. In most societies it is the principal institution for the socialization of children...
life, drugs
Psychoactive drug
A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, or psychotropic is a chemical substance that crosses the blood–brain barrier and acts primarily upon the central nervous system where it affects brain function, resulting in changes in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, and behavior...
, religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
, poverty
Poverty
Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
, famine
Famine
A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including crop failure, overpopulation, or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompanied or followed by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality. Every continent in the world has...
, crime
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
, government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
and celebrities
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
. Magnum In Motion
Magnum In Motion
Magnum In Motion is a multimedia offshoot of Magnum Photos, based in New York City. In Motion assembles interactive photo essays, podcasts and other formats for digital media, that draw upon the archives of Magnum photographers. The essays reflect themes of Magnum's photography: war, poverty, human...
is the multimedia offshoot of Magnum Photos, based in New York City.
Election of new members
Magnum's photographers meet once a year, during the last weekend in June, in New York, Paris or London, to discuss Magnum's affairs. One day at this meeting is set aside for considering and voting on potential new members' portfolios. Successful applicants are invited to become a 'Nominee Member' of Magnum, a category of membership that presents an opportunity for Magnum and the individual to get to know each other, but where there are no binding commitments on either side.After two years of Nominee membership, photographers then present another portfolio if they wish to apply for 'Associate Membership'. If successful, the photographer then becomes bound by all the rules of the agency, and enjoys all the facilities of its offices and worldwide representation. The only difference between an Associate Member and a full Member is that an Associate Member is not a Director of the Company and does not have voting rights in its corporate decision making. Finally, after another two years, an Associate member wishing to apply for full membership presents a further portfolio of work for consideration by the members. Once elected as a full member, this effectively confers membership of Magnum for life or for as long as the photographer chooses. No member photographer of Magnum has ever been asked to leave.
Photographic collection
In February 2010, Magnum announced that Michael DellMichael Dell
Michael Saul Dell is an American business magnate and the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Dell Inc. He is the 44th richest person in the world, with a net worth of US$14.6 billion in 2011, based primarily on the 243.35 million shares of Dell stock worth $3.5 billion that he owns,...
's venture capital firm MSD Capital, L.P. had acquired a collection of nearly 200,000 original press prints of images taken by Magnum photographers (including, among other photographs, Afghan Girl) and had formed partnership with the Harry Ransom Center at The University of Texas at Austin to preserve, catalog, and make available to the general public. The cost of the purchase was not disclosed; however, the collection was reportedly insured for more than $100 million. A Preliminary Inventory is available for researchers who wish to use the collection.
Crowdsourcing tagging
Magnum is working with TagasaurisTagasauris
Tagasauris is a technology startup company that was founded in December 2010. Tagasauris provides media annotation services and uses a combination of crowdsourcing and machine intelligence to identify key tags and characteristics of the media object that is being annotated.Tagasauris is providing...
to crowdsource the tagging of their digital archive of Magnum. The project allows volunteers to get early access to the (untagged) photo archive of Magnum Photos, and provide descriptive tags to the images.
A notable accomplishment of this effort was the discovery of a set of "lost" photos in the Magnum archive, from the shooting of the movie American Graffiti
American Graffiti
American Graffiti is a 1973 coming of age film co-written/directed by George Lucas starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Charles Martin Smith, Cindy Williams, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips and Harrison Ford...
, achieved through a combination of human tagging and machine intelligence: The crowdsourced easily identified the individuals in the photos (e.g., George Lucas
George Lucas
George Walton Lucas, Jr. is an American film producer, screenwriter, and director, and entrepreneur. He is the founder, chairman and chief executive of Lucasfilm. He is best known as the creator of the space opera franchise Star Wars and the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones...
, Ron Howard
Ron Howard
Ronald William "Ron" Howard is an American actor, director, and producer. He came to prominence as a child actor, playing Opie Taylor in the sitcom The Andy Griffith Show for eight years, and later the teenaged Richie Cunningham in the sitcom Happy Days for six years...
, Richard Dreyfuss
Richard Dreyfuss
Richard Stephen Dreyfuss is an American actor best known for starring in a number of film, television, and theater roles since the late 1960s, including the films American Graffiti, Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Goodbye Girl, Whose Life Is It Anyway?, Stakeout, Always, What About...
, and Mackenzie Phillips
Mackenzie Phillips
Mackenzie Phillips is an American actress and singer best known for her roles in American Graffiti and as rebellious teenager Julie Cooper Horvath on the sitcom One Day at a Time...
, shown in separate photos from one shooting), but then the underlying machine process connected these together to see what is common among them. The film American Graffiti was one of the suggestions. Tagasauris found nearly two dozen previously 'lost' photos taken on the film’s set that were available (but not discoverable) in the Magnum archive. "Computers couldn’t ID humans in the photo but humans couldn’t know the context."
Member list
| Name | Nationality | Status | Active years | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abbas Abbas (photographer) Abbas Attar is an Iranian photographer known for his photojournalism in Biafra, Vietnam and South Africa in the 1970s, and for his extensive essays on religions in later years... |
 Iran |
Active (full Member) | 1981– | Member from 1985 |
| Christopher Anderson |  United States |
Active (full Member) | 2005– | Nominee from 2005; Full Member from 2010 |
| Ansel Adams Ansel Adams Ansel Easton Adams was an American photographer and environmentalist, best known for his black-and-white photographs of the American West, especially in Yosemite National Park.... |
United States |
Deceased | Nonmember correspondent 1956– | |
| Eve Arnold Eve Arnold Eve Arnold, FRPS is an American photojournalist. She joined Magnum Photos agency in 1951, and became a full member in 1957.... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1951– | Associate Member from 1951; Member from 1957 /> First Female Member |
| Olivia Arthur |  United Kingdom |
Active (Nominee) | 2008– | Nominee from 2008 |
| Micha Bar-Am Micha Bar-Am Micha Bar-Am is a renowned Israeli journalistic photographer. His most prominent pictures are from when he covered the Six Day War. His pictures are not so much of direct combat, but more of wartime life.... |
 Israel |
Active (Correspondent) | 1968– | Correspondent from 1968 |
| Bruno Barbey Bruno Barbey Bruno Barbey is a Moroccan-born French photographer . Throughout his four-decade career he has traveled across five continents, photographing many wars.-Photography career:... |
 Morocco |
Active (full Member) | 1964– | Member from 1968. |
| Jonas Bendiksen |  Norway |
Active (full Member) | 2004– | Nominee from 2004; Member from 2008 |
| Ian Berry Ian Berry -Photography career:Berry moved to South Africa in 1952, where he soon taught himself photography. He worked under the tutelage of Roger Madden, a South African photographer who had been an assistant to Ansel Adams. After some time as an amateur photographer, Berry began photographing communities... |
United Kingdom |
Active | 1967– | |
| Werner Bischof Werner Bischof Werner Bischof was a Swiss photographer and photojournalist.-Early life:Bischof was born in Zürich, Switzerland. When he was six years old, the family moved to Waldshut, Germany, where he subsequently went to school... |
 Switzerland |
Deceased | 1949–1954 | Member from 1949 |
| Brian Brake Brian Brake Brian Brake was one of New Zealand's most internationally successful photographers.Born in Wellington, New Zealand, John Brian Brake was the adopted son of John Samuel Brake and his wife Jennie Brake... |
 New Zealand |
Withdrawn | 1957–1966 | now deceased |
| René Burri René Burri René Burri is a Swiss photographer known for his photos of major political, historical and cultural events and key figures of the second half of the 20th century. Burri worked for Magnum Photos and has been photographing political, military and artistic figures and scenes since 1946... |
Switzerland |
Active (full Member) | 1955– | Associate Member from 1955; Member from 1959 |
| Cornell Capa Cornell Capa Cornell Capa was a Hungarian American photographer, member of Magnum Photos, and photo curator, and the younger brother of photo-journalist and war photographer Robert Capa. Graduating from Imre Madách Gymnasium in Budapest, he initially intended to study medicine, but instead joined his brother... |
Deceased | 1954–2008 | Member from 1954; Brother of Robert | |
| Robert Capa Robert Capa Robert Capa was a Hungarian combat photographer and photojournalist who covered five different wars: the Spanish Civil War, the Second Sino-Japanese War, World War II across Europe, the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, and the First Indochina War... |
 Hungary |
Deceased | 1947–1954 | Founding member |
| Henri Cartier-Bresson Henri Cartier-Bresson Henri Cartier-Bresson was a French photographer considered to be the father of modern photojournalism. He was an early adopter of 35 mm format, and the master of candid photography... |
 Early Modern France |
Deceased | 1947–2004 | Founding member; Contributor from 1966 |
| Chien-Chi Chang Chien-Chi Chang Chien-Chi Chang is a Taiwanese photographer and member of the Magnum Photos agency.-Life:Born to working-class parents in central Taiwan in 1961, he earned his BA from Soochow University in 1984 and an MS from Indiana University in 1990. He has worked for The Seattle Times and The Baltimore Sun... |
 Republic of China |
Active (full Member) | 1995– | Member from 2001 |
| Antoine D'Agata Antoine D'Agata Antoine D'Agata is a French photographer born in Marseille in 1961. He left France in 1983 to start a series of travels. He studied photography at the International Center of Photography of New York in 1990, under the tutelage of Larry Clark and Nan Goldin.... |
Early Modern France |
Active (full Member) | 2004– | Nominee from 2004; Member from 2008. |
| Bruce Davidson Bruce Davidson (photographer) Bruce Davidson is an American photographer. He has been a member of Magnum agency since 1958. His photographs, notably those taken in Harlem, New York City, have been widely exhibited and published in a number of books.-Youth:Bruce Davidson was born to a single mother, who worked in a factory... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1956– | Member from 1959 |
| Carl De Keyzer Carl de Keyzer Carl de Keyzer is a Belgian contemporary photographer. He was nominated to the Magnum Photos agency in 1990, became an associated member in 1992 and a full member in 1994.-Career:... |
 Belgium |
Active (full Member) | 1990– | Member from 1994 |
| Luc Delahaye Luc Delahaye Luc Delahaye is a French photographer known for his large-scale color works depicting conflicts, world events or social issues. His pictures are characterized by detachment, directness and rich details, a documentary approach which is however countered by dramatic intensity and a narrative... |
Early Modern France |
Withdrawn | 1994–2004 | |
| Raymond Depardon Raymond Depardon Raymond Depardon is a French photographer, photojournalist and documentary filmmaker.-Photographer:... |
Early Modern France |
Active (full Member) | 1978– | Associate Member from 1978; Member from 1979 |
| Thomas Dworzak |  Germany |
Active (full Member) | 2004– | Member from 2004 |
| Nikos Economopoulos Nikos Economopoulos Nikos Economopoulos is a Greek photographer known for his photography of the Balkans and of Greece in particular.-Life and career:... |
 Greece |
Active (full Member) | 1990– | Member from 1994 |
| Elliott Erwitt Elliott Erwitt Elliott Erwitt is an advertising and documentary photographer known for his black and white candid shots of ironic and absurd situations within everyday settings— a master of Henri Cartier-Bresson's "decisive moment".... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1953– | Member from 1954 |
| Martine Franck Martine Franck Martine Franck is a Belgian photographer, and a member of the Magnum Photos agency. She was the second wife of photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson after his divorce from Ratna Mohini, and is president and co-founder of the Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation, which administrates his estate.- Biography... |
Belgium |
Active (full Member) | 1980– | Member from 1983 |
| Stuart Franklin Stuart Franklin Stuart Franklin is a photographer, a member of Magnum Photos, and a former President of Magnum Photos . He was born at Guys Hospital, London.-Education:... |
United Kingdom |
Active (full Member) | 1985– | Member from 1990. |
| Leonard Freed Leonard Freed Leonard Freed was a documentary photojournalist and longtime Magnum member. He was born to Jewish, working-class parents of Eastern European descent.-Career:... |
United States |
Deceased | 1956–2006 | Member from 1972 |
| Harris Cohn | United States |
Active (full Member) | 2010– | Associate Member from 2010; Member from 2010 |
| Cristina García Rodero Cristina García Rodero Cristina García Rodero is a Spanish photographer and member of the Magnum and Vu agencies. She was born in Puertollano, Spain in 1949, and studied painting at Complutense University in Madrid. She used to work as a teacher. She also won the Eugene Smith Foundation Prize in 1989 for photos of... |
 Spain |
Active (full Member) | 2005– | Member from 2009 |
| Jean Gaumy Jean Gaumy Jean Gaumy is a French photographer and filmmaker who has been associated with Magnum Photos since 1977.-Career:Gaumy was born in Pontaillac, Charente-Maritime, France. He attended school in Toulouse and Aurillac and went to university in Rouen. While a student in Rouen, he began working as a... |
Early Modern France |
Active (full Member) | 1977– | Member from 1986 |
| Bruce Gilden Bruce Gilden Bruce Gilden is a noted street photographer, known for his work in New York City.-Career:While studying sociology at Penn State, he saw Michelangelo Antonioni's film Blowup in 1968. Influenced by the film, he purchased his first camera and began taking night classes in photography at the School of... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1998– | Member from 2002 |
| Burt Glinn Burt Glinn Burton Samuel Glinn was an American professional photographer who worked with Magnum Photos. He covered revolutionary leader Fidel Castro's entrance into Havana, Cuba, and photographed people such as Andy Warhol and Helen Frankenthaler... |
United States |
Deceased | 1951–2008 | Associate Member from 1951; Member from 1954 |
| Mark Godfrey | Withdrawn | 1974–1981 | ||
| Jim Goldberg Jim Goldberg Jim Goldberg is an American photographer and writer whose work reflects long-term, in-depth collaborations with neglected, ignored, or otherwise outside-the-mainstream populations.-Artistic career:... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 2002– | Member from 2006 |
| Philip Jones Griffiths Philip Jones Griffiths Philip Jones Griffiths was a Welsh photojournalist known for his coverage of the Vietnam war.- Biography :... |
United Kingdom |
Deceased | 1966–2008 | Associate Member from 1966; Member from 1971 |
| Harry Gruyaert | Belgium |
Active (full Member) | 1981– | Member from 1986 |
| Ara Güler Ara Güler Ara Güler is a Turkish photojournalist of Armenian descent, nicknamed "the Eye of Istanbul" or "the Photographer of Istanbul".- Early life :... |
 Turkey |
Withdrawn | ||
| Ernst Haas Ernst Haas Ernst Haas was an Austrian artist and influential photographer noted for his innovations in color photography, experiments in abstract light and form, and as a member of the Magnum Photos agency.... |
 Austria |
Deceased | 1950–1986 | Contributor from 1966 |
| Philippe Halsman Philippe Halsman Philippe Halsman was an American portrait photographer.-Life and work:Born to a Jewish family of Morduch Halsman, a dentist, and Ita Grintuch, a grammar school principal, in Riga, Halsman studied electrical engineering in Dresden.... |
United States |
Deceased | 1951– | Contributing member from 1956 |
| Charles Harbutt Charles Harbutt Charles Harbutt is an American photographer, a former president of Magnum, and full-time Professor at Parsons School of Design in New York.-Biography:... |
United States |
Withdrawn | 1964–1981 | |
| Erich Hartmann Erich Hartmann (photographer) Erich Hartmann was an American photographer.-Life in Germany:Erich Hartmann, was born 29 July 1922 in Munich, Germany, the eldest child of parents who lived in Passau, a small city on the Danube near the Austrian border in which they were one of a five Jewish families... |
United States |
Deceased | 1951–1999 | Member from 1954 |
| David Alan Harvey David Alan Harvey David Alan Harvey is an American photographer. He has been a full member of the prestigious photographic collective Magnum Photos since 1997. He has photographed over 40 articles for National Geographic magazine, and in 1978 was named Magazine Photographer of the Year by the National Press... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1993– | Member from 1997 |
| Bob Henriques Bob Henriques Bob Henriques is a photojournalist associated with Magnum Photos known for candid portraits of famous people, including Marilyn Monroe, Fidel Castro, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King, Jr.. He was active during the 1950s and 1960s.... |
United States |
1957-1961 (circa) | ||
| Thomas Hoepker Thomas Hoepker Thomas Hoepker is a German photographer and member of Magnum Photos known for stylish color photo features. He also documented the 9/11 World Trade Center destruction.-Career:... |
Germany |
Active (full Member) | 1964– | Member from 1989 |
| David Hurn David Hurn David Hurn, born July 21, 1934, in Redhill, Surrey, England of Welsh descent, is a documentary photographer and member of Magnum Photos.-Career:... |
United Kingdom |
Active (full Member) | 1965– | Associate Member from 1965; Member from 1967 |
| Richard Kalvar Richard Kalvar Richard Kalvar is an American photographer who has been associated with Magnum Photos since 1975.-Career:A trip to Europe in 1966 with a Pentax camera given him by Ducrot inspired him to become a photographer himself. On his return to New York he worked at Modernage photo lab... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1975– | Associate Member from 1975; Member from 1977. |
| Josef Koudelka Josef Koudelka Josef Koudelka is a Czech photographer.-Biography:Josef Koudelka was born in 1938 in Boskovice, Moravia, town of about 10,000 inhabitants. He began photographing his family and the surroundings with a 6 x 6 Bakelite camera... |
 Czech Republic |
Active (full Member) | 1971– | Associate Member from 1971; Member from 1974. |
| Kent Klich Kent Klich Kent Klich is a Swedish artist living in Copenhagen. He studied psychology at the University of Gothenburg and worked with adolescent children before turning to photography. He joined Magnum Photos in 1998 and left in 2002. His work is noted for a strong commitment to social issues and has... |
 Sweden |
Withdrawn | 1998–2002 | |
| Hiroji Kubota Hiroji Kubota is a renowned Japanese photographer, a member of Magnum Photos who has specialized in photographing the far east.Born in Kanda on 2 August 1939, Kubota studied politics at Waseda University, graduating in 1962. In 1961 he met the Magnum photographers René Burri, Elliott Erwitt, and Burt Glinn... |
 Japan |
Active (full Member) | 1971– | Associate Member from 1971; Member from 1989. |
| Dorothea Lange Dorothea Lange Dorothea Lange was an influential American documentary photographer and photojournalist, best known for her Depression-era work for the Farm Security Administration... |
United States |
Deceased | Nonmember correspondent 1956– | |
| Sergio Larrain |  Chile |
Active (Contributor) | 1959– | Associate Member from 1959; Member from 1961; Contributor from 1970 |
| Russell Lee Russell Lee (photographer) Russell Lee was an American photographer and photojournalist.Lee had trained as a chemical engineer, and in the fall of 1936 became a member of the team of photographers assembled under Roy Stryker for the federally sponsored Farm Security Administration documentation project... |
United States |
Deceased | Nonmember correspondent 1956– | |
| Guy Le Querrec Guy Le Querrec Guy Le Querrec is a French photographer and filmmaker, noted for his documentary images of jazz musicians. He is a member of Magnum Photos.... |
Early Modern France |
Active (full Member) | 1976– | Member from 1977. |
| Erich Lessing Erich Lessing Erich Lessing is an Austrian photographer associated with Magnum Photos.-Career:Lessing was born in Vienna to a dentist and a concert pianist. Before completing high school he was forced to leave Austria in 1939 because of Hitler's rise to power. He immigrated to the British Mandate for Palestine... |
Austria |
Active (full Member) | 1950– | Member from 1955; later Contributor |
| Herbert List Herbert List Herbert List was a German photographer who worked for magazines including Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and Life and was associated with Magnum Photos... |
Germany |
Deceased | Contributor 1951–1975 | |
| Danny Lyon | Withdrawn | 1966–1968 | ||
| Alex Majoli Alex Majoli Alex Majoli is an award-winning Italian photographer associated with Magnum Photos known for his documentation of war and conflict.-Career:... |
 Italy |
Active (full Member) | 1996– | Member from 2001. |
| Constantine Manos Constantine Manos Constantine "Costa" Manos, born 1934 in South Carolina to Greek immigrant parents, is an American photographer known for his images of Boston and Greece. His work has been published in Esquire, Life, and Look. He is a member of Magnum Photos.... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1963– | Member from 1965. |
| Mary Ellen Mark Mary Ellen Mark Mary Ellen Mark is an American photographer known for her photojournalism, portraiture, and advertising photography. She has had 16 collections of her work published and has been exhibited at galleries and museums worldwide. She has received numerous accolades, including three Robert F... |
Withdrawn | 1977–1981 | ||
| Peter Marlow Peter Marlow (photographer) Peter Marlow is a British news photographer and member of Magnum Photos.-Career:Marlow studied psychology at Manchester University, graduating in 1974. He then started his career as an international photojournalist, working on an Italian cruise liner in the Caribbean in 1975 before joining the... |
United Kingdom |
Active (full Member) | 1982– | Member from 1986 |
| Fred Mayer Fred Mayer (photographer) Fred Mayer is a Swiss/German photographer. His works include photographs for several news agencies such as ATP, DPA, ADP, UPI and Magnum Photos as well as various portfolios... |
Switzerland |
Withdrawn | 1967 - 2009 | |
| Don McCullin Don McCullin Donald McCullin, FRPS CBE is an internationally known British photojournalist, particularly recognized for his war photography and images of urban strife... |
United Kingdom |
Withdrawn | 1968–1969 | |
| Steve McCurry Steve McCurry Steve McCurry is an American photojournalist best known for his photograph, "Afghan Girl" that originally appeared in National Geographic magazine.-Early life:... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1986– | Member from 1986. |
| Susan Meiselas Susan Meiselas Susan Meiselas is an American documentary photographer. She has been associated with Magnum Photos since 1976 and a full member since 1980. Her works have been published in newspapers and magazines including The New York Times, The Times, Time, Geo and Paris Match... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1976– | Member from 1980. |
| Wayne F. Miller Wayne F. Miller Wayne F. Miller is an American photographer known for his series of photographs, The Way of Life of the Northern Negro. He has been a contributor to Magnum Photos since 1958.... |
United States |
Active (Contributor) | Nonmember correspondent 1956–1958; member 1958– | Member from 1958, later a contributor. |
| Inge Morath Inge Morath Ingeborg Morath was an Austrian-born photographer. In 1953 she joined the Magnum Photos Agency, founded by top photographers in Paris, and became a full photographer with them in 1955... |
Austria |
Deceased | 1953–2002 | Member from 1955. |
| John G. Morris John G. Morris John Godfrey Morris is a picture editor.- Career :Journalist John Godfrey Morris has spent a lifetime editing photographs for magazines and newspapers, working with hundreds of photographers, among them the great names of 20th century photography. He worked for the weekly picture magazine Life... (photo editor) |
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| Trent Parke Trent Parke Trent Parke is an Australian photographer.Parke was born and brought up in Newcastle ; he now lives in Sydney. He started photography when he was twelve. In 2003 he and his wife the photographer Narelle Autio made a 90,000 km trip around Australia, resulting in the series and book "Minutes to... |
 Australia |
Active (full Member) | 2002– | Member from 2007. |
| Suzy Parker Suzy Parker Suzy Parker was an American model and actress active from 1947 into the early 1960s. Her modeling career reached its zenith during the 1950s when she appeared on the cover of dozens of magazines, advertisements, and in movie and television roles.She appeared in several Revlon advertisements, but... |
United States |
Deceased | According to John G. Morris John G. Morris John Godfrey Morris is a picture editor.- Career :Journalist John Godfrey Morris has spent a lifetime editing photographs for magazines and newspapers, working with hundreds of photographers, among them the great names of 20th century photography. He worked for the weekly picture magazine Life... , "Capa showed model Suzy Parker how to take pictures, and for a while she was listed as a Magnum photographer". |
|
| Martin Parr Martin Parr Martin Parr is a British documentary photographer, photojournalist and photobook collector. He is known for his photographic projects that take a critical look at aspects of modern life, in particular provincial and suburban life in England... |
United Kingdom |
Active (full Member) | 1988– | Member from 1994. |
| Paolo Pellegrin Paolo Pellegrin Paolo Pellegrin is an internationally renowned photojournalist who was born in Rome, Italy, into a family of architects.-Biography:... |
Italy |
Active (full Member) | 2001– | Nominee from 2001; Member from 2005. |
| Gilles Peress Gilles Peress Gilles Peress is an internationally renowned French photojournalist known for his documentation of war and strife, including in Northern Ireland, Yugoslavia, Iran, and Rwanda. His work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, Du magazine, Life, Stern, Geo, Paris-Match, Parkett, Aperture and... |
Early Modern France |
Active (Contributor) | 1970– | As of 2010, a Contributor. |
| Gueorgui Pinkhassov Gueorgui Pinkhassov Gueorgui Pinkhassov is a photographer, born in Moscow in 1952. He began his interest in photography in his teens, and enrolled at the Moscow Institute of Cinematography in 1969.... |
 Russia |
Active (full Member) | 1986– | Member from 1994. |
| Mark Power Mark Power Mark Power is an English photographer, born in Harpenden, England. He studied Fine Art at Brighton Polytechnic , and then traveled extensively, discovering a love for photography along the way... |
United Kingdom |
Active (full Member) | 2002– | Member from 2007. |
| Raghu Rai Raghu Rai Raghu Rai is an Indian photographer and photojournalist. A protege of Henri Cartier-Bresson who appointed Rai, then a young photojournalist to Magnum Photos in 1977, which he co-founded.... |
 India |
Active (Correspondent) | 1977– | |
| Eli Reed Eli Reed Ellis Reed is an award-winning American photographer and photojournalist. Reed was the first full-time black photographer employed by Magnum Agency and the author of several books, including "Black In America"... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1983– | |
| Marc Riboud Marc Riboud Marc Riboud is a French photographer, best known for his extensive reports on the East: The Three Banners of China, Face of North Vietnam, Visions of China, and In China.-Early life and education:... |
Early Modern France |
Active (Contributor) | 1955– | |
| Miguel Rio Branco |  Brazil |
Active (Correspondent) | 1978– | Associate Member from 1980 |
| George Rodger George Rodger George Rodger was a British photojournalist noted for his work in Africa and for taking the first photographs of the death camps at Bergen-Belsen at the end of the Second World War.... |
United Kingdom |
Deceased | 1947–1995 | Founding member; Contributor from 1970 |
| Sebastião Salgado Sebastião Salgado Sebastião Salgado is a Brazilian social documentary photographer and photojournalist.-Biography:Salgado was born on February 8, 1944 in Aimorés, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. After a somewhat itinerant childhood, Salgado initially trained as an economist, earning a master’s degree in... |
Brazil |
Withdrawn | 1979–1994 | |
| Alessandra Sanguinetti | United States |
Active (Nominee) | 2007– | |
| Lise Sarfati | Early Modern France |
Active (full Member) | 1997– | |
| Ferdinando Scianna | Italy |
Active (full Member) | 1982– | Member from 1989 |
| Ernst Scheidegger | ||||
| David Seymour David Seymour Chim was the pseudonym of David Seymour , a Polish photographer and photojournalist. Born Dawid Szymin in Warsaw to Polish Jewish parents, he became interested in photography while studying in Paris... |
United States |
Deceased | 1947–1956 | Founding member |
| Marilyn Silverstone Marilyn Silverstone Marilyn Rita Silverstone was an accomplished photo-journalist and ordained Buddhist nun. Hers would be an eventful life, and she is said to have proclaimed with undeniable truth: "I can say that I did it all."-Youth:... |
United Kingdom |
Active (Contributor) | 1964– | Associate Member from 1964, Full Member from 1967, Contributor from 1975 |
| W. Eugene Smith W. Eugene Smith William Eugene Smith was an American photojournalist known for his refusal to compromise professional standards and his brutally vivid World War II photographs.- Life and work :... |
United States |
Withdrawn | 1957–1958 | now deceased |
| Jacob Aue Sobol Jacob Aue Sobol Jacob Aue Sobol is a Danish photographer. He has worked around the world, including in East Greenland, Guatemala, Tokyo, Bangkok and Copenhagen.Since 2007 Sobol has been a nominee at Magnum Photos... |
 Denmark |
Active (Associate) | 2007– | |
| Alec Soth Alec Soth Alec Soth is an American photographer notable for "large-scale American projects" featuring the midwestern United States. His photography has a cinematic feel with elements of folklore that hint at a story behind the image. New York Times art critic Hilarie M... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 2004– | Nominee from 2004; Member from 2008 |
| Chris Steele-Perkins Chris Steele-Perkins Christopher Horace Steele-Perkins is a British photographer and member of Magnum Photos, best known for his depiction of Africa, Afghanistan, England, and Japan.-Life and career:... |
United Kingdom |
Active (full Member) | 1979– | Nominee from 1979; Associate Member from 1981; Member from 1983 |
| Dennis Stock Dennis Stock Dennis Stock was an American photojournalist and documentary photographer and a member of Magnum Photos. He was born in New York City and died in Sarasota, Florida.-Career:... |
United States |
Deceased | 1951–2009 | Associate Member from 1951; Member from 1957 |
| Mikhael Subotzky |  South Africa |
Active (Nominee) | 2007– | |
| Kryn Taconis | Withdrawn | 1954–1960 | now deceased | |
| Nicolas Tikhomiroff Nicolas Tikhomiroff Married Shirley Lou Ritchie by whom he had a daughter, Tamara Joan Tikhomiroff.Nicolas Tikohomiroff is a Russian photographer, born and raised in France. He started working for Magnum in 1959. Famous for his work on World Cinema, he also had a large portfolio of war photography... |
Russia |
Active | 1959– | |
| Larry Towell Larry Towell Larry Towell is a Canadian photographer, poet, and oral historian.Towell grew up in a large family in rural Ontario and studied visual arts at York University in Toronto where his interest in photography first began... |
 Canada |
Active (full Member) | 1988– | |
| Ilkka Uimonen |  Finland |
Withdrawn | 2002– | |
| Burk Uzzle | United States |
Withdrawn | 1967–1983 | 1979-1980 President |
| Peter van Agtmael | United States |
Active (Nominee) | 2008– | Nominee from 2008 |
| William Vandivert | United States |
Deceased | 1947–1948 | Founding member |
| John Vink | Belgium |
Active (full Member) | 1993– | Member from 1997 |
| Alex Webb Alex Webb (photographer) Alex Webb is a photojournalist associated with Magnum Photos. He has primarily worked in color, has published several books, and has contributed to such magazines as GEO, Time, and the New York Times Magazine.-Career:Born in San Francisco, Webb was raised in New England... |
United States |
Active (full Member) | 1976– | |
| Simon Wheatley | ||||
| Donovan Wylie Donovan Wylie Donovan Wylie, is a British Photographer from Northern Ireland.-Career:He started photography in his teens, and at the age of 16 he left school and went on a three-month journey around Ireland... |
United Kingdom |
Active (full Member) | 1992– | Member from 1997 |
| Patrick Zachmann | Early Modern France |
Active (full Member) | 1985– |
Books
- Magnum: Fifty Years at the Front Line of History by Russell Miller, Grove Press (October, 1999), ISBN 0-8021-3653-2.
- Magnum Stories by Chris Boot, Phaidon PressPhaidon PressPhaidon Press is a British publisher of books on the visual arts, including art, architecture, photography, and design worldwide.As of 2009, Phaidon's headquarters are in London, UK, though they were in Oxford for many years, with offices in New York City, Paris, Berlin, Milan, and Tokyo...
(December 1, 2004), ISBN 0-7148-4245-1. - Pop Sixties by Magnum Photos, Abrams (October 1, 2008), ISBN 978-0-8109-9526-0.
- Our World In Focus by Trolley BooksTrolley BooksTrolley Books is an independent UK publisher, specialising in art and photography books. Areas covered by Trolley include social reportage, photojournalism/current affairs and contemporary art and architecture....
(2004) ISBN 1-904563-22-8