The visual front

How official war photographers portrayed WW1

The many photographs of World War 1 that survived till today give a visual impression of what this war was like. How fair is this impression? What do these photographs reveal about what the war was really like? This source collection is designed to help answer this question by looking at series of photographs made by official war photographers. Most of the photographs, especially the iconic ones, were made by official war photographers. Both the Allies and Central Powers used war photography as means to influence public opinion in favour of the war effort. The photographs were used in (illustrated war) newspapers and in postcards that were send by the soldiers. The images where carefully selected, scenes where often staged, victories and achievements emphasised whilst uncomfortable or confronting images where avoided.

This source collection is made by Steven Stegers. The sources from this collection are coming from the Imperial War Museums and are licensed under a IWM Non Commercial Licence.

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Team work in the factory
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An efficient crew
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Surgery in good conditions
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Our soldiers lives matter
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Posing in front of the camera
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Standing tall despite everything
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Ready for action
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The army in action
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Taking care of civilians
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Taking care of civilians
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Respect for Human Rights
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A victory
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A destroyed (enemy) ship
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Dead enemies
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A captured (enemy) airplane
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War and art
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Kaiser Wilhelm visits the front
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Archduke Joseph August at the front
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Enjoying a swim
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Time for leisure
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To the front, with a smile…
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More than enough weapons in stock
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Showing off the latest military technology
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Commemoration and public history