Dorothea Lange, a famous female portrait photographer, lived during a crucial time in the world and captured the time in Famous Portrait Photographs. She is known for the photographs she took during the great depression. Her Portraits did not only communicate the identity of a single person, but of an entire nation. She indeed humanized the Great Depression and it’s tragic consequences.

One of her most famous works shown here is of a Migrant Mother. We can learn from this famous portrait photograph the importance of capturing what’s around us. We should look at people and things with a critical eye and frame what is natural into a potentially famous portrait or photograph. Dorothea didn’t have to get the woman to pose. The portrait allowed the mother to communicate her need for help in the hopes that that the photograph might do just that.

This article is part of the Famous Photographers Series.