"The Steerage" by A. Stieglitz

   Stieglitz is considered the most important photographer in American history, acting as a pioneer in the field of photography. During the course of his life, Stieglitz strove for photography to be recognized as an accepted art form. This movement became known as the Photo-Secession, being pushed forward by Stieglitz's magazine Camera Work. In 1923, the Museum of Fine Arts asked if he would display some his works in the museum. This was a turning point in photography because this was the first time photographs were put on display in a major American art museum.

                                                A. Stieglitz      

   Stieglitz also worked toward the production of a hand-held camera, which was much easier to handle and was less bulky. He owned and operated a handful of galleries, including the famous 291 (otherwise known as the Photo-Secession Gallery, located at 291 Fifth Avenue in New York). Stieglitz also gathered together a group of artists who followed Cubism and German Expansionism; they were known as the Stieglitz Group.
   Stieglitz's influence can be seen in the works of many artists of his time and afterward, including Man Ray, a painter and sculptor of the surrealist and abstract movements of the 1920s. Man Ray (Emmanuel Rudnitsky) made Rayographs, which were "artistic photograms using three dimensional opaque and translucent objects." Ray would paint and then photograph his painting, later destroying the original work and leaving only the photograph behind.
   One of the characters of The Great Gatsby, Mr. McKee, was also a photographer. He boasted the fact that he had taken a myriad of pictures of his wife since they had married. McKee focused on people in his works, taking care of lighting, shadows, and positioning.

Many thanks to these sources:
A History of Photography: Man Ray
A History of Photography: Alfred Stieglitz
Alfred Stieglitz
Alfred Stieglitz
Alfred Stieglitz and the Photo-Secessionists
Art: Alfred Stieglitz