WOMEN IN PHOTOGRAPHY AND THE DIGITAL ERA

The contribution of women to photography

Women have been an active part of photography since its inception. While not credited with the invention of photography, women have played significant roles working alongside the pioneers, often printing for their husbands, and taking photographs themselves. Some women fought tradition and were among the pioneer photojournalists, such as Gerda Taro, who worked alongside Robert Capa, photographing the Spanish Civil War. Photojournalism is still a field dominated by men, but the numbers are changing. As more women become photographers, our exposure to conflict stories broadens. They have revealed untold stories suffered mostly by other women. The percentage of women photojournalists remains low, about 20 percent of all photojournalists are women, current events are bringing us stories that we would not–and in many cases, could not–see but for the fact that the photographers are women.