The fashion industry is home to some of the most dynamic and fluid trends that the world has ever seen. No doubt, the existence of this ever-changing and highly creative environment is mainly as a result of the diversity and creative uniqueness of the individuals that constitute it. However, even with this seemingly all-inclusive and globally encompassing genre, there is a prominent neglect that seems to be growing even further: the underrepresentation of black female photographers.
Racial divide and marginalization has been a big problem in most fields and even more so in fashion photography. One may argue that this issue spans across all other aspects of black women participation in the fashion industry and there definitely would be a point there. However, the contribution of black women to fashion and beauty photography has brought about great innovation at both ends of the camera and it is a wonder that there are so many of these talented individuals flying under the radar with very little representation.
A vital point that must be noted is a severe lack of appreciable participation in the industry as a whole as a direct result of the marginalization that these woman face. Not only do they lack a strong platform that provides more opportunities for them in all areas of the industry, black female photographers seem to lack the proper exposure necessary for them to get their work noticed by the larger audiences. Even more interesting to note is the remarkable talent of the few black photographers in the industry. Any in-depth research will reveal a good number of black women who are doing groundbreaking work in their functional spaces and possess a strong portfolio of projects under their sleeves.
Why then do the big photography companies and other major players in the industry not shine enough light on this demographic? And why does their work seem to be hidden among their fashion photographer counterparts? Why aren't they standing on the forefront as ambassadors or speakers for any of the photographic companies or community in general? Whatever the case may be, the amazing talent that black women have to offer has proven to be a tasteful and revolutionary touch that cannot be ignored. Bringing more notice to this faction would require the creation of strong platforms for these voices to be heard and for their works to be showcased. This helps to provide an avenue for proper recognition while creating prospects for opportunity and progress. By doing this, these women not only get to learn more about themselves but also find support and motivation in one another by fostering a professional community of like minds.
I did months of researching to compile a list of black female fashion photographers. These ladies are talented and deserve a bit of recognition. I am happy I am able to give them a platform to showcase their talents and work.
All images used with permission.
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105 Comments
I've edited this comment because i could not remove it.
I do not despise the west or americans. All this argument, all this things went way too far.
So, lesson learned, stay away from US issues, and stop visiting Fstoppers.com as this is America Only.
Profile picture removed.
Gallery deleted.
Social data removed.
Stay well with Trump and America First.
Bye all
POC don't look at their skin color..Some Non POC do, and judge some of us for it. So until that no longer happens, discussions need to be had.
and for the record. I live in Norway. It's better than the U.S.A. but nowhere in the world is free from these issues !
I'm white so I necessarily look at skin color? Hyperbole has its place but not in serious discussions as this should be.
Not all.. some !
Better. Thank you! :-)
This is a dangerous statement. You're essentially saying that all POC are non-judgmental and that all non-POC are judgmental.
POC don't look at their skin tone as a bad thing. It is what it is. I did say 'THEIR' skin tone.. meaning themselves.
This may be a case of semantics but I don't think white people look at their skin color as a bad thing, either.
I'm sure there's an issue here. What I'm not sure of is your approach to addressing it. Personally, I think, unless it's an institutional problem, you deal with it case by case. If it is, as others have stated, you should have given details to show it to be so. If nothing else, it would stop people questioning your assertion and allow greater focus on resolution.
Thank you for clarifying and updating your statement to say "some". "Their" depending on how it's used can still encompass a group of people and not necessarily mean an individual.
Did you ever consider that Asians, Blacks, Hispanics, Latinos, etc do not want to be all thrown together in this "POC" label that liberals love to toss about? The very term is racist, lazy and shows complete lack of understanding for any of these groups of people as if the being non-white somehow binds them all together under some common ideology. Yuck.
Great article. Those who oppose are generally those who aren't marginalized.
What does "marginalized" even mean? If it means, some people treat others as being less for ignorant reasons, of course they do and no amount of discussion will change that. If it means, "institutional" marginalization, you'll have to prove it. Even the author states she's only rarely been told her color and sex were the issue.
You can judge people's actions but you can't judge their motivation if you don't know what it is.
Guy makes unoriginal sarcastic comment that contributes nothing to the discussion while making fun of a writer who didn’t even write this article, yet we’re the ones trolling. Got it.
I guess race and sex aren't the only ways to be marginalized. ;-)
Excellent Article! Thank you for writing this. It was well written and we'll stated.
thank you Curtis 😀
You are more than welcome! 😁
Guys name me 5 top AA female photographers. Who's names are on your lips daily. I find it interesting that mostly guys are commenting.
I'll admit I can't but to say it must be due to some combination of sexism/racism is too obvious. I'm not saying it's not a factor but is it the only one? I've noticed very few women (black or white) comment on these articles. A few will vote up or down but even they rarely comment. But what does that say? I have no idea other than there aren't a lot of them, percentage wise, reading Fstoppers. Maybe they're just tired of the whole thing? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
D'Artagnan, name five top Asian photographers whose names cross your lips daily. Name five top Asian female photographers whose names cross your lips every day. Name five top female Croatian photographers from the Dalmatian region that belong to the Muslim minority there that cross your lips every day. You probably see where I am going with this...
By the way, I hope D'Artagnan is actually your name, because that is badass.
If I am a potential client looking for a photographer, am I supposed to hire the minority photographer regardless of the quality of the work?
It's sad isn't it.
I don't know much about the fashion industry but, all of the photographers the author linked to in the article seem to do pretty amazing work. I guess I'm pretty simple minded because I don't care what the person taking the image looks like; I just care about the image. I would hope that those who hire photographic talent look at the talent and not the skin color or gender of the photographer. It concerns me that the author states in the comments below that they were denied jobs based off of their skin color by companies in the United States. I think that when there is clear and undeniable racism as the author claims occurred, these companies should be exposed for their behavior. I guess that is a personal choice the author of the article has to make, but, I think that it should be made known.
Black Women Are Phenomenal.
Black Female Photographers are among some of the most talented, poised, classy human beings on the planet. I'm currently dating a black photograpHER who pours her heart and soul into her craft, making sure her clients are happy, making sure she's ahead of the pack. This comment isn't meant as any disrespect to white male photographers but you guys know that you dominate the industry. (((and))) if you didn't know what "True White Privilege is..." please shoot me an email so I can describe it in more graphic detail.
As I read some of the ignorant comments I'm wondering if you ever had the opportunity to talk with a black female photographer to see life through her lens. (I won't assume because that would make me just as ignorant) But they are truly worth knowing.
Spread Love, Spread knowledge and help pave the way for these women to shine. Each One Teach One. Don't be afraid to embrace something new and different.
We must support black "female" photographers because they might be a minority amongst photographers now but they certainly are the future.
BTW Im Keith.
@igrindnationceo on Instagram
These images are amazing!!! Great article!
thank you Gabrielle 😀
I would like to suggest; fstoppers stay with photography and leave editorial projects to the New York Times. Do what what you do best, editorial projects is a distraction from your craft.
Garbage article. You are playing the race card in an extremely liberal industry, very ironic.
For those of you commenting who seem to think a fashion photographer is booked by their photos only, here are some key points...
1. You are not the ones booking these types of photographers.
2. When art buyers and magazine editors look for photographers they are not booking the photos they are booking the photographer - ethnicity and all.
3. Photography isn’t just about photos; it’s about business and people. Those who think that all photographers are judged entirely on the photos are naive and not eperienced enough yet to know any different.
Also, a few of you seem to think I have not spoken to many Black men and women myself and know this is what WE want and our experiences... We want to see more of us..to not be underrepresented !!
Many need to see people, who look like them, succeeding in a field to know it is even something they should try to pursue.
Not sure why that is hard to understand. hmm
Wow, the comments here are full of white men not believing someone at their word and asking for proof. Guess the photography industry is struggling with the same racist and misogonistic rubbish that the tech industry does. Ask yourself, white bros, why are you so defensive?
p.s. no idea why this ended up a reply :(
Matt. Seems they know Me and other black photographers better then we know ourselves and our experiences are all made up. Since they have NEVER seen it happen, it can’t possibly be true. We can’t be trusted. teehee 😜
I would never question someone's account of their experiences. Making overarching conclusions from such experiences is always dangerous and requires additional evidence that individual experiences are representative of the whole. Further, there are two points to the article. One being there aren't a lot of black female photographers in the fashion industry. If you're a black female photographer wanting to break into the industry, that can be disheartening but shouldn't be a deterrent. Obviously, it wasn't for Ms. Cole. The other point being, it's a result of a mixture of racism and sexism. Being impossible to prove, it should be stated as a theory and not a fact. Certainly do something about it if you think it warrants action but telling a bunch of other photographers seems pointless. Is anyone on this forum in a position to do anything?
Regarding your p.s.: I've experienced out of sequence posts too. In my browser, your comment isn't showing up as a reply.
p.p.s. Change your photo. It looks kinda creepy.
lol cute.
You can start your own article on that if you would like, but has nothing to do with this one. Try to stay on topic !
This article has received more comments than any other since I have been on this forum, so I'd say you are well represented.
Hey! Don't build up the competition! I need that NAS!!!
I wonder if everyone trying for them even knows how to use them? Actually, I didn't read this but I'm thinking they don't include the drives so I'll be out several hundred dollars if I win. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I am a bit surprised that people are still talking about stuff like this. This is being written about in every scene and about every industry and has been increasingly so for some years. "Why are black, female, gay, hispanic, asian, transgender, autistic, bipolar, etc. photographers, DJs, chefs (insert interest or artistic medium here) underrepresented in whatever field?" The logic is totally flawed. If there were, for example, an equal number of back and white photographers producing the same quality work, yet white photographers got hired for more jobs, or had their work displayed more often in prominent places, that would be underrepresentation. If there are simply not as many people from one "group" doing something as there are from another "group", in this case black photographers, that is disproportionate, not underrepresented. Now, you may ask yourself or wonder, "are there less black female photographers because the photography community has marginalized them?" In some cases have black female photographers been treated differently, or encountered difficulty because of their race and gender? Probably. Sure, we know racism and sexism exist, but is that why they are not proportionally equal to there white male counterparts? No. the fact is that some people are simply not as interested in things as others. Some argue that there are not enough female DJs "represented" in that scene. There are loads of famous female DJs, but, there are simply not as many females that are interested in DJing. Why are there not as many female chefs as there are males? Sexism? No. A lot of women don't want to spend hours in a smelly kitchen away from their families only to develop a nasty alcohol and coke habit. Are there female chefs? Yes. Is there an equal number of female and male chefs? No. So, are they underrepresented? No. Why are white rappers so underrepresented in that scene? Why are straight asian men from single parent homes underrepresented in synchronized swimming? We, as a society, cannot force an equal number of people to be interested in, nor successful at, any particular thing. Can we allow any particular group of people access to an industry? Yes, and we are constantly moving in that direction socially and legally. But, we have to stop asking this question and trying to make everything proportionate and equal. Otherwise, the very logical and uncomfortable outcome will be enforced proportionate equality where certain groups are actually overrepresented and other groups will be pushed into an industry they don't want because their allotment in their industry of choice is full. "Sorry, Mr. Johnson, we have reached our quota of straight, white, anglo-saxon, protestant nail technicians for this season. Maybe you can try again next year or find another field where you are firmly underrepresented." I don't dislike this article, the author, nor the question she is trying to ask. I just think it is an invalid question and the wrong question to be asking. You really have to ask the questions, why don't more people of X group want to do Y thing, should they want to do Y thing, and is it possible for every socially constructed category of X to achieve perceived equal representation in every scene, industry and interest Y?
First of all, amazing work Dana! Do you do your own retouching as well? I would love to read about your process sometime.
As for your article I'm not really sure what you're claiming the issue to be. Are you claiming that black female photographers are being shut out of the industry because they are black females? Also, I don't understand what you mean by representation. Who represents Annie Leibovitz or Joanna Kustra? Don't they represent themselves?
I think you're posing a question to a problem that doesn't exist and therefore cannot be solved. If your portfolio is good, you'll get work. It's as simple as that. There's no fashion photography committee sitting around guarding entry into the market based on race & gender.
Hello Jason, thank you for liking my work. yes I do retouching also 🙂
I plan to do more indepth topics on this as it is bigger then this article alone.
One thing(of many) I am saying that, to black women and girls, who may want to get in the fashion photography scene, there is no one on the front line or ambassadors, or speakers, etc, that they can look up to and say, ‘hey, I can do this to’. Versus looking at countless of our white counterparts in every avenue of photography everywhere.
Same goes for other other races as well. I have had this discussion with many of my Latino photographer friends as well. Many of them as well feel they are also lacking proper representation.
There are a few black sucessful female photographer speakers in other genres of photography(portrait, kids, etc.), so, the black female photographers will migrate to those genres because they feel they will have better success there.
My point of my list and speaking on this, is to show and tell them and everyone else that, ‘Hey, there are a few of us out here and we are making it work’!
There is also the aspect of being denied jobs due to things we can’t control like our skin tone and/or gender. In a comment above to another commenter, I shared an experience on which I was discriminated for this reason, and know many other black photographers who have had similar experiences as well.
I can’t tell you how many message I have gotten since my main article and list went up 5 days ago, from all different types of people, from white to black to purple(lol), who said they could not name 2 black female fashion photographers, and did not know we existed at all, and that they were happy to see this my list.
Also, messages from other black female photographers, who were happy to see the list and thought this was a genre they could not do, because they did not know any who did it and is succeeding.
So this list, this article, and hopefully a few more indepth ones, are needed, and wanted !
Hope that answered your question a bit.