We warmly recommend you pop over to Time and have a look at their wall of the most historic photographs ever taken – to both remind yourself of the brilliant photos, but also to read the “back story” of any photo that interests you particularly.
It is a very considerable effort by Time and they are to be commended for it.
Some celebrate or expose great moments in history. Some track societal trends. Some are simply the first time a photo was ever taken like that.
All remind us of the debt of gratitude we owe photographers for capturing what we need to know. A picture sometimes tells not just a thousand words, but many thousands of words; often much more immediately than tens of thousands of fractious, argumentative, disputatious words.
A picture frequently says much more, and without argument.
Sadly, in today’s “Photoshop” world, it is becoming increasingly difficult to trust the evidence of our own eyes. Nevertheless, a great photograph taken in context can still inform the world, like the little refugee boy drowned in the Mediterranean a little while back.
A fascinating read. Enjoy.
Well, This Is What I Think 