Alfred Eisenstaedt Biography

Alfred "Eisie" Eisenstaedt was one to be remembered. He captured famous moments for over sixty years. Born December 6, 1898 in West Prussia, to Regina and Joseph Eisenstaedt he was one of three sons. His first spark for photography started when his uncle gave him a Kodak No. 3 folding camera at the age 14. Alfred's spark for photography was put on hold for a few years, when he was drafted into the German Army at the age of 17. While in battle, Alfred was badly injured, but pulled through. He was the only survivor of his artillery. After his injury, he was sent home. This is when his spark was reignited. As his injuries began to heal he slowly began to visit museums to study light and composition. He then started capturing his own moments and developing them in his own bathroom.The first photo that Alfred was truly proud of was of a woman playing tennis. After showing this photo to a friend he discovered he could enlarge the photo to enhance its qualities. This is when Alfreds spark tuned into a flame. At the age of 31 he had become a full time photographer. He was greatly inspired by the work of Martin Munkasci and Dr. Erich Salomon, whom he called the father of candid photography.In 1949 Alfred married Kathy Kaye who lived in New York. While in New York, he started working for the Pacific and Atlantic Photos, which is now the Associated Press. While working there he shot a vast variety of moments. These included portraits of the famous political and social events of the time.He later began working with three other photographers; Margaret Bourke-White, Thomas McAvoay, and Peter Stackpole. They started a project that was kept secret until its release in LIFE magazine on November 23 1936. Until its release the project was only know as Project X. By this time the Cold War was taking place. Alfred could not go shoot this footage though because he was not yet a citizen.Alfred wanted to recapture the famous kiss in Times Square on VJ Day, so he followed a sailor around who was kissing everyone. The next thing he knew the soldier was grabbing a girl in white and giving Alfred the picture he had been waiting for. This did not turn out to be Alfred's favorite picture though. His favorite was of a young woman in a box seat at La Scala Opera. Although this was Alfred's favorite photo, it was never printed.In 1942 Alfred finally became a citizen and was able to go over seas to document the war. Alfred then traveled to Korea, Italy, and England where Winston Churchill posed for him. Other famous celebrities also posed for Alfred such as Marilyn Monroe, JFK, Marlene Dietrich, Albert Einstien, and his favorite Sophia Loren. Alfred then said "You learn something form every picture you take."Although Alfred was well known and photographed the famous, his first major retrospective show was not until the ripe age of 88 when the International Center of Photography presented 125 of his prints. Alfred shot nearly 100 covers for LIFE Magazine and 10,000 prints. Alfred won many awards and was admired by many. John Loengaurd described Alfred's greatness by saying "He never tries to please editors. He only makes pictures that please him." Alfred was a prime example for those who also have the spark for photography.