Mathew B. Brady
Photojournlist of the Decade
Who is he?
Mathew Brady was a photographer during the Civil War, and often took pictures before or after a battle was done. He could not take photos during the battle because the development of cameras was still at its infancy. Either way, Mathew’s photos still portrayed the devastation of the soldiers, the land, and the country.
Untitled Photo
Men on the "9th Corpse Headquarters"
Battle of Gettysburg
Photo of dead men after the Gettysburg Battle
Untitled Photo
The aftermath after a battle
His Life
Mathew was the youngest of three children. He was born on Warren County, New York, being the child of irish immigrants (Their names are Julia and Andrew Brady). When he was 16, he moved to Saratoga, New York. There, he met William page, who was a famous portrait painter. Soon after, Mathew became Page’s student. They then moved to Albany, New York.
- Born: January 15, 1823? in Warren County, New York, United States
- Died: January 15, 1896 in New York, New York, United States
His Life (Continued)
After moving to Albany, Mathew met one of Page's former teachers, Samuel F.B Morse. Morse had close ties with Louis Jacques Daguerre. Lois built a daguerreotype, an early tool for capturing images. Brady found this new technology interesting and later on started using it. Skip forward a few years he became one of New York's most famous photographers, having taking pictures of Political figures and being one of the first photojournalist.
Why was he important?
Mathew Brady was important because he was the first Photojournalist of the time. His first photos of photojournalism were of the Civil War. The photos were a big influence and often portrayed the horrors of the battles. This often lead people from both sides (The North and South) to want the war to end. Some of his photos are still famous to this day. And he is still important today because his photos give us a lens to the past.