LGBTQ Photographers

It is astonishing the large number of LGBTQ photographers that have made a significant contribution to their craft.

Do you know the gay photographer who was the first non-English and the first photographer to win the prestigious Turner Prize? Or the gay Australian landscape photographer who has been awarded the Order of Australia? These are stories you should know.

These photographers have recorded history in the making. They have chronicled the lives of ordinary folk, celebrities, and the rich and the famous. They have brought images of far-off lands into our homes. They have helped create and develop the market for magazines such as Interview, Esquire, Mademoiselle, Glamour, GQ, Newsweek, Harper's Bazaar, Tattler, Rolling Stone, Time, Vogue, Allure, Vanity Fair, National Geographic, Details, or Elle. They have educated us on the many wonders of nature. They have helped create the fashion houses of Giorgio Armani, Revlon, Ralph Lauren, Chanel, Gianni Versace, Calvin Klein, Elizabeth Arden, Yves Saint Laurent, Donna Karan, Hugo Boss, Cartier, Guess, Maybelline, TAG Heuer, Lacoste, Gianfranco Ferré, Levi's, Victoria's Secret, Gap, Acura, CoverGirl, Lancôme, Valentino, and so many more.

Some of these photographers are also activists, both directly and indirectly, that have helped shape the LGBTQ world as we know it today. Early on, pictures of loving individuals of the same sex or pictures that portrayed the beauty of the human body as art were considered pornographic or obscene (and still are in many countries). But these photographers would have none of that - they have challenged these laws and won.

They are truly international, hailing from countries such as Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, India, China, Thailand, Nigeria, Canada, Israel, South Africa, Argentina, Russia, Mexico, Israel, the United States, Italy, France, Australia, Slovakia, New Zealand, Japan, and Sweden. Most have received significant recognition and awards from their peers, their industry, and their home countries.

Perhaps most importantly, these photographers are chroniclers of our history - not just the LGBTQ world, but the world as a whole. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Albania