Personal Background: Helen Levitt was born in New York to Russian Jewish parents. She dropped out of school when she was 18 and started photography. (August 31, 1913 – March 29, 2009) Style: Helen Levitt usually photographs people in the center but the environment they are in overpowers them. She photographed the world in the eyes of children, big yet contained and full of joy. The children are always photographed smaller in comparison to objects or people in the photo. Despite this they are never passive, they are either in action or holding a strong stance which attracts attention to them. The adults are either photographed as tired or busy, these themes carry over to every photo. Philosophy: By photographing through the eyes of children, Helen contrasted other photographers at the time which focused on devastation as the Great Depression was in motion. She used her photographs to empower children by depicting them using their creativity to turn barren streets to their playgrounds. In her photos children are depicted as small yet active and adults are portrayed as tired or busy. With these themes she implies that children are significant factors despite not being old enough to vote or pay taxes. She also implies that adults are worn out and not active enough in politics or daily life. Influences: Helen photographed positive things despite being in an era literally titled the Great Depression. Her way of implication and the commitment to carry out those ideals in each photo inspired me. She was influenced by Ben Shahn and Henri Cartier-Bresson. Shahn’s grittiness made her pursue photographing working class people and Bresson made her realize how artistic photography can be. She was intimidated by them at first as they were highly educated and she was a high school dropout. Her background deeply influenced her work and she was able to better understand compared to Ben Shahn and Henri Cartier-Bresson who had more privileges.