Edward S. Curtis. Photographer. American.

by lev2

Photographer Edward Curtis (1868-1952) spent three decades traveling the US documenting the customs of more than 80 Native American tribes. Curtis started out making portraits of Seattle’s wealthiest citizens at the end of the 19th century, but a preoccupation with Native Americans triggered the idea to chronicle the experience of the vanishing native groups. Curtis took more than 40,000 photographs, preserved 10,000 audio recordings and is credited with making the world’s first documentary film. Edward Curtis may have been one of the first photojournalists before the term existed… he created beautiful portraits with inspiring and important history… truly an epic photographer.
In his book, Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis, author Timothy Egan follows the pioneering photographer’s journey.