Hine brought new meaning to photography as he began to document the conditions of child laborers. Before Hine, photographers “romanticized images” and used photography as an art form, rather than tools for education and social reform.
“According to Hine, the art and beauty lay with the people and recording the truth of the people”
-International Photography Hall of Fame
“A picture which has beauty without significance means little to him”
-1920s commentator [Children at Work]
“Hine once questioned the groups artistic methods, from their ivory tower,
how could they see way down to the substrata of it all?”
-International Photography Hall of Fame
“For Hine, the art of photography lay in its ability to interpret the everyday world,
that of work, of poverty, of factory, street, household.”
-International Photography Hall of Fame
-International Photography Hall of Fame
“A picture which has beauty without significance means little to him”
-1920s commentator [Children at Work]
“Hine once questioned the groups artistic methods, from their ivory tower,
how could they see way down to the substrata of it all?”
-International Photography Hall of Fame
“For Hine, the art of photography lay in its ability to interpret the everyday world,
that of work, of poverty, of factory, street, household.”
-International Photography Hall of Fame
His new photographic approach made his social campaign successful. His realistic photographic images showcased information uniquely.
Hine made no attempt to exaggerate the situation of laborers, and tried to keep his photographs as unbiased as possible. Critics often claimed that Hine’s photographs were not shocking enough, but Hine wanted to capture an accurate and realistic portrayal of the deplorable working conditions that would convince the country to join the fight against child labor.
Hine made no attempt to exaggerate the situation of laborers, and tried to keep his photographs as unbiased as possible. Critics often claimed that Hine’s photographs were not shocking enough, but Hine wanted to capture an accurate and realistic portrayal of the deplorable working conditions that would convince the country to join the fight against child labor.
“...double sure that my photo data was 100 percent pure- no retouching or fakery of any kind.”
-Lewis Hine
-Lewis Hine
Additionally, Hine used captions to limit misinterpretation of his photographs. The captions added context making the photograph more powerful.
“Hine also wrote short descriptions of his subjects that were displayed with the photos to make sure there was no ambiguity about the horrors of child labor.”
-Lewis Hine and His Photo Stories: Visual Culture and Social Reform
“His captions gave an extra punch as he detailed the lives of these children in and out of the workplace.”
-Michael Burgan (Bloomberg View Writer)
“Hine’s photographic documents, bolstered by detailed field notes that included names, places, dates, ages, heights, and whatever personal and work history he could glean, were meant to provide such irrefutable knowledge of the appalling work conditions of child labor that something would be done about it.”
-Vicki Goldberg (Author of Children at Work)
-Lewis Hine and His Photo Stories: Visual Culture and Social Reform
“His captions gave an extra punch as he detailed the lives of these children in and out of the workplace.”
-Michael Burgan (Bloomberg View Writer)
“Hine’s photographic documents, bolstered by detailed field notes that included names, places, dates, ages, heights, and whatever personal and work history he could glean, were meant to provide such irrefutable knowledge of the appalling work conditions of child labor that something would be done about it.”
-Vicki Goldberg (Author of Children at Work)
(click photographs for captions)
Through the NCLC, Hine broadened his photographic distribution by publishing his photographs in posters hung on the streets and through newspapers, instead of galleries. These publicity efforts were a form of mass communication, able to reach out to all different social classes on a large scale.