Edward Burtnsky:

Edward Burtnsky is a famous documentary photographer. He is known for his work from his
Manufactured Landscapes which is based off his documentary with the same name. Edward
started his career in photography at a young age where he was given a used camera by his
father. He eventually enrolled in a graphics art class at Niagara College with evening classes in
photography. The photography teacher was his true inspiration to seek out evidence of man,
Edward then started taking landscapes differently and began the photography program at
Ryerson Polytechnical University. After graduating, he was given a Canada council grant to take
photos around Canada of landscapes transformed by man. He also established Toronto Image
Works to provide a financial base and facility to process his work. Edward Burtnsky was
successful as a photographer because he changed the way ordinary landscapes appear to
everyone. He photographed them with intent to show what mankind has done with the natural
appearance of the environment. The technique that he often used to take his landscape is just
as seen from the lens of the camera. He takes photos of what use to be filled with nature but
transformed by man such as open mines and even an electronic waste recycling plant with
actual children working disassembling components. With his series of photographs, he
communicates a story within the landscape, such as his mining picture showing nickel mines
and also his picture in China showing many workers, in small factories, working for low pay. His
work appeals to me because in each photo taken, there seems to be a deeper message. One
particular photo that appealed to me was his photo of water, taken at a high altitude it shows a
river that branches off, which look like roots of a tree.
Lewis Hine:
Lewis Hine is a portrait-documentary photographer often taking different types of portraiture that
tell a story. His career began when he was given a camera while teaching botany and nature at
the Ethical Culture School in New York. In 1905, his interest with social welfare and reform
movements inspired him to start a documentary series. In 1908, he quit his job teaching to work
as an investigator and photographer for the National Child Labor Committee. Lewis Hine was
successful because he photographed important issues such as child-labor abuse. He would go
where no one else would and attempt to reveal the issues of the world. Techniques that Lewis
used in his photographs are different types of portrait techniques. Some of his images are taken
as candid portraits where the subject was not aware that the photo was being taken while his
other images are taken traditionally where the subject is facing the camera. Lewis Hine wants to
communicate issues in the world such as child-labor abuse as well as some problems with
social welfare and reform movements. Something about his work that appeals to me is the
subject in each photo. In his child-labor abuse series, we can see the emotionless faces of the
children. This clearly represents the labor abuse topic as the children are forced to work with
low pay and long hours.
Edward Burtnsky and Lewis Hine have a similar subject of photography. Both of them report
different areas of world issues such as mankinds effect on nature and child abuse in the United
States. Their styles however are different, as Edward takes pictures of landscapes of the natural

environment, ie the Iron Mines and even Cityscapes. Lewis mainly took portraits with his most
popular work dealing with child labor and the conditions they work under.