Alfred Eisenstaedt - Essay
Taylor Hinzie
12/6/12
Period.5
Mr. Schley
Alfred Eisenstaedt
Eisenstaedt was born in Dirschau in West Prussia, Imperial Germany in 1898.
His family moved to Berlin in 1906. Eisenstaedt was fascinated by photography
from his youth and began taking pictures at age 14 when he was given his first
camera, an Eastman Kodak Folding Camera with roll film. Eisenstaedt served in
the German Army's artillery during World War I, and was wounded in 1918.
While working as a belt and button salesman in the 1920s in Weimar Germany,
Eisenstaedt began taking photographs as a freelancer for the Pacific and Atlantic
Photos' Berlin office in 1928. The office was taken over by Associated Press in 1931.
Professional photographerEisenstaedt successfully became a full-time
photographer in 1929. Four years later he photographed a meeting between
Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini in Italy. Other notable, early pictures by
Eisenstaedt include his depiction of a waiter at the ice rink of the Grand Hotel in
1933. Although initially friendly, Goebbels scowled for the photograph when he
learned that Eisenstaedt was Jewish.Because of oppression in Hitler's Nazi
Germany, Eisenstaedt emigrated to the United States in 1935 where he lived in
Jackson Heights, Queens, New York, for the rest of his life. He worked as a staff
photographer for Life magazine from 1936 to 1972. His photos of news events
and celebrities, such as Dagmar, Sophia Loren and Ernest Hemingway,
appeared on 90 Life covers. Eisenstaedt was awarded the National Medal of
Arts in 1989 by President George Bush in a ceremony on the White House lawn
Martha's VineyardAlfred Eisenstaedt photographing the Clinton family - the last
photos of his life.Eisenstaedt, known as "Eisie" to his close friends, enjoyed his
annual August vacations on the island of Martha's Vineyard for 50 years. During
these summers, he would conduct photographic experiments,
12/6/12
Period.5
Mr. Schley
Alfred Eisenstaedt
Eisenstaedt was born in Dirschau in West Prussia, Imperial Germany in 1898.
His family moved to Berlin in 1906. Eisenstaedt was fascinated by photography
from his youth and began taking pictures at age 14 when he was given his first
camera, an Eastman Kodak Folding Camera with roll film. Eisenstaedt served in
the German Army's artillery during World War I, and was wounded in 1918.
While working as a belt and button salesman in the 1920s in Weimar Germany,
Eisenstaedt began taking photographs as a freelancer for the Pacific and Atlantic
Photos' Berlin office in 1928. The office was taken over by Associated Press in 1931.
Professional photographerEisenstaedt successfully became a full-time
photographer in 1929. Four years later he photographed a meeting between
Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini in Italy. Other notable, early pictures by
Eisenstaedt include his depiction of a waiter at the ice rink of the Grand Hotel in
1933. Although initially friendly, Goebbels scowled for the photograph when he
learned that Eisenstaedt was Jewish.Because of oppression in Hitler's Nazi
Germany, Eisenstaedt emigrated to the United States in 1935 where he lived in
Jackson Heights, Queens, New York, for the rest of his life. He worked as a staff
photographer for Life magazine from 1936 to 1972. His photos of news events
and celebrities, such as Dagmar, Sophia Loren and Ernest Hemingway,
appeared on 90 Life covers. Eisenstaedt was awarded the National Medal of
Arts in 1989 by President George Bush in a ceremony on the White House lawn
Martha's VineyardAlfred Eisenstaedt photographing the Clinton family - the last
photos of his life.Eisenstaedt, known as "Eisie" to his close friends, enjoyed his
annual August vacations on the island of Martha's Vineyard for 50 years. During
these summers, he would conduct photographic experiments,