The Most Memorable Photographs

The old adage "a picture is worth a thousand words" is no truer than the photos collected below. Each has become iconic in nature. They all provoke in the viewer an emotional response of such intensity that once seen are very difficult to forget. Some have won the Pulitzer while others have been used to further political or social causes. But most of all, they have changed the way we all look at the world.


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Burst of Joy - Slava Vader March 17, 1973 Associated Press | Travis Air Force Base, California Burst of Joy became the photographic symbol for the end of the United States involvement in the Vietnam War. It won Vader the Pulitzer. When looking at it you can't help but get choked up and excited when seeing the look of pure joy in the Stirm family in welcoming back Lt.Col. Robert L. Stirm.

Black Power Salute October 17, 1968 Mexico City, Mexico When Americans Tommy Smith and John Carlos took the podium at the 1968 Olympics for a first and third place finish respectively they decided to bring racial politics to an apolitical arena. They raised their gloved hands above their bowed head when the Star Spangled Banner played and gave notice that black people were equal to any other race on the planet, even in the United States. You either swell with pride for their stance or shake your head in disgust for tarnishing an event that has no bearing on political issues. What you can't do is look at it with indifference.

Earthrise - William Anders December 24, 1968 NASA | Orbiting the Moon Earthrise is the name given to the first photograph from space taken of the planet earth. It changed the way we look at ourselves. As Al Gore stated in the documentary An Inconvenient Truth it started the environmental movement 18 months later. Since then, many photos have been taken but it is this one that captured everyone's attention originally.

The Falling Man - Richard Drew September 11, 2001 Manhattan, New York City The Falling Man became one of the most important images surrounding the events of 9/11. It sparked anger when first published but what it invariable became was one of the most profound representations of choice ever photographed. This man knew he was going to die. He decided that between burning from the fires in the building or being crushed from the impact of the ground he would chose the latter and jumped from one of the highest building ever made by man. You can't help but well up in tears at that kind of strength when you realize what must have went through the man's mind while falling to his death.

Lunchtime atop a Skyscraper - Charles C. Ebbets September 29, 1932 New York Tribune | New York City This photo taken high above New York during the construction of the GE building invokes a strong feeling of acrophobia and it gives you a new found respect for the workers who build all the tall buildings of the world. How they can casually sit on a girder high above New York City having conversation and refreshments with their co-workers is beyond the imagination of this writer.

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