Underrated Masters of Photography

The baffling calculus of fame is hard enough to get your head around, even without factoring in the strange metaphysics of photography.

Andy Warhol's theorem that everyone would have it for 15 minutes certainly factored in the power of images to transfix the culture's attention, as well as the growth curve of the mass media and its resulting tendency to shorten our collective attention span. The broad implication of this insight was that modern culture would treat the untalented and unworthy with unquestioning fascination. On the other hand, Warhol knew that everyone -- even the truly talented -- would be disposable, because the search for the next big thing was always on.

In this special section, we examine the fleeting nature of fame as it applies to photographers over the past 30 or so years. Continue to our essay on the underrated masters, or browse the individual profiles and photo galleries below.