Most Influential Photographs of All Time

By: Andrea Mainardi

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1. Lunch Atop a Skyscraper

This photo depicts a group of construction workers in New York City having their lunch on top of a suspended beam. The photograph was taken by Charles C. Ebbets in 1932, during the peak erection of the legendary GE Building at Rockefeller Center. The 11 men, 840 feet above group, wearing no harness, which was a reflection of the Great Depression that had swept the US during those years. People, especially men of Irish decent, were willing to take on any job that came their way, despite the obvious dangers.

1. Lunch Atop a Skyscraper

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2. Sudan Famine UN Food Camp

The photograph was taken in 1994 during the horrible Sudan Famine that claimed over 70,000 lives due to hunger and poor human conditions. The Johannesburg photographer, Kevin Carter took the photo of a starving child kneeled over, feet away from a vulture. The photo was picked up by the New York Times, and it was then posted in hundreds of magazines around the world. Three months after winning the Pulitzer Prize, Carter committed suicide.

2. Sudan Famine UN Food Camp

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3. Tiananmen Square “Tank Man”

The photo is an un-identified man who stood in front of a row of tanks in order to stop their advancement in the Tiananmen Square. The photo was taken in 1989 by Jeff Widener of the Associated Press and it spread around the world. Although the fate of the man is still unknown, his move showed people that there was hope against the Communist regime at the time.

3. Tiananmen Square “Tank Man”

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4. Afghan Girl

The legendary picture was shot by Steve McCurry of National Geographic. The girl, Sharbat Gula, was a refugee in Pakistan during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. and attended the informal schools set up in the surrounding camps. After making the cover of National Geographic in 1985, many critics dubbed her as the "The First World's Third World Mona Lisa.”

4. Afghan Girl