Survey Results: The 30 Most Influential Photographers of The Decade?

Jan 19, 2010

30 Most Influential Photographers: by number of individual voters. 

BECKER
ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
SETH RESNICK
JAMES NACHTWEY
SEBASTIAO SALGADO
JASMINE STAR
JAY MAISEL
JOE MCNALLY
CHRIS FAWKES
JESSICA CLAIRE
ALEXANDER GARZA
CHASE JARVIS
DANE SANDERS
IRVING PENN
DAVID LACHAPELLE
EUGENE RICHARDS
ROBERT FRANK
MARY ELLEN MARK
DAVID HOBBY
DAVID JAY
STEVE MCCURRY
ED KASHI
STEPHEN WILKES
YURI ARCURS
ELLIOTT ERWITT
STEVEN MEISEL
WILLIAM EGGLESTON
MARTIN PARR
YERVANT
JOSE VILLA

(Note: This was a survey about living photographers. Irving Penn passed away about a month after we closed the poll.)

But wait. Take a look at this next ranking.

30 Most Influential Photographers: by number of votes received.

SETH RESNICK
CHRIS FAWKES
BECKER
ED KASHI
ALEXANDER GARZA
YAZYJO
JAY MAISEL
STEVEN FONTAS
NEVADA WIER
ERIC MEOLA
ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
JAMES NACHTWEY
PETER DAZELEY
KEVIN MAZUR
JASMINE STAR
DANE SANDERS
KRISTIN REIMER
JOE MCNALLY
STEPHEN WILKES
LYNN GOLDSMITH
SEBASTIAO SALGADO
ERWIN OLAF
JOSE VILLA
BEBB STUDIOS
IRVING PENN
SCOTT MC KIERNAN
JESSICA CLAIRE
BOB DAVIS
CHRISTINA WILCOX
MIKE COLON

Finally, here’s our third list.

Votes Per Voter
Here is a list of the 30 photographers who received the highest average number of votes per voter. We divided the number of votes they received by the number of voters.  It’s an average, which means  one feverish and persistent fan (or collector, or agent, or devoted mother or spouse) could lift a photographer’s average.

NEVADA WIER
LOUIS TORRES
KRISTIN REIMER
KEVIN MAZUR
YAZYJO RACLAWSKI
ED KASHI
STEVEN FONTAS
PETER DAZELEY
JODI FRIEDMAN
CHRIS FAWKES
JASON ATEN
ALEXANDER GARZA
DAVID FREUND
ALLEN KEE
SETH RESNICK
TOM BRILL
STEVEN HIRSCH
LAUREN DUKOFF
LYDELL PHOTOGRAPHY
MARK GAMBA
JINKY ART
SIMON NORFOLK
JESSICA ELIZABETH
ASHTON KUTCHER
JAMES MCENTEE
TARA WHITNEY
FRESH SUGAR
BEBB STUDIOS
MARTIN BAILEY
ERWIN OLAF