The Female Lens - Jill Greenberg's Legacy

The discrimination against female photographers is unveiled by a world-reknown photographer. Walking us through her personal experience, Jill Greenberg explains the problem of only seeing the world from a man's perspective.

Greenberg became world famous (and infamous) several years ago for her somewhat controversial End Times portraits of toddlers crying.

Despite having close to two decades of experience, a look named after her, numerous commercial campaigns under her belt, and fine art photos exhibited around the world, Greenberg realized that she might have hit a glass ceiling when she noticed that men were getting photography jobs to shoot in her signature style.

When she asked her agent why this was happening, she was told that the TV networks, movie studios, and magazines were “boy’s clubs.”

“Why should we all care?” Greenberg asks. “Because those who are paid to create the images which shape our culture have real power.”

The Photographer says that women make up 80% of students graduating from art and photography programs, yet they are underrepresented in commercial photography, which is still widely perceived as “a man’s job.”

“What happens when our views of the world are shaped by only a male lens? Obviously then we’re only getting the perspective and the biases of half the population, since almost every image we are surrounded by has been filtered through a man’s eye and a man’s mind.”

After that, Jill Greenberg has launched an online directory in an effort to promote women photographers for advertising jobs, film and television key art, and magazine covers. Called Alreadymade, the platform serves as a resource for clients looking to hire experienced women photographers.