Use this sorting game to explore how a photographer’s motivations and unconscious bias affect their portraits.

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Search for the web for “early Native American photographs,” and Edward Curtis’s picturesque portraits are bound to appear at the top. This algorithm-driven gallery implies that for many, Curtis’s vision of Native Americans has become the dominant narrative. But is it a fair and accurate representation of Native Americans at the turn of the 20th century? Does a photographic portrait objectively capture reality, or does it reflect the photographer’s unique perspective and personal motivations? Below, you’ll find five photographers who, between 1900 and 1910, photographed Native American communities—sometimes even the same individuals. Recognizing each photographer’s distinctive style will allow you to properly organize the photographs by artist.

Edward Curtis
While photographing mountain scenes on Mt. Rainier, Edward Curtis came to the aid of a group of wayward scientists, including pioneering anthropologist George Bird Grinnell. This encounter sparked a friendship that led Curtis to join expeditions studying Native American cultures, which were believed to be at risk of being “corrupted” by encroaching outside influences. Inspired by these experiences, Curtis set out to create a comprehensive visual record of what he saw as “doomed” Native American cultures. Over 35 years, he produced The North American Indian, a monumental 20-volume series featuring 5,000 pages of research and 2,200 images. Curtis’s romanticized photographs perpetuated the myth of Native Americans as a “Vanishing Race.” His images often emphasized exoticism while obscuring signs of assimilation. Curtis paid his subjects, staged scenes, and dictated wardrobe choices, raising questions about the authenticity of his work.

Richard Throssel
In 1902, Richard Throssel moved to the Crow Reservation in Montana to work as a clerk in the Indian Service office. Drawn to the vibrant culture around him, he soon purchased a camera and began documenting Crow life, connecting with the art community in the process. In 1905, Throssel met Edward Curtis and studied photography under him. As part Canadian Cree, Throssel was adopted into the Crow tribe in 1906, giving him a unique insider’s perspective on their traditions and daily life. His near-insider status granted him unparalleled access, enabling him to portray the Crow people with depth and authenticity.

Throssel’s photographs focused on the Crow’s cultural resilience, even as he witnessed the harsh realities of poverty, disease, and forced assimilation on the reservation. While some of his images echo Curtis’s “Vanishing Indian” tropes, Throssel offered a more nuanced perspective—merging tradition with modernity. His work celebrates the evolution of Native culture, blending old lifeways with contemporary influences and highlighting the Crow’s ability to adapt and thrive. To explore Throssel’s powerful body of work, visit the Richard Throssel Collection at the University of Wyoming’s American Heritage Center or the Library of Congress.

Gertrude Käsebier
In 1887, nearly 100 Native Americans toured with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, including a performance at Madison Square Garden that captivated portrait photographer Gertrude Käsebier. The spectacle stirred nostalgic memories of her childhood on the Great Plains, inspiring her to invite Native American performers and their families to her New York City studio. Over the course of a decade, Käsebier photographed many of her subjects, aiming to portray “real Indians” like those she had known as a child—not the romanticized “vanishing race” popularized by others.

To highlight their individuality and character, Käsebier often asked her subjects to tone down the elaborate regalia worn for the show. Her portraits break from the stoic stereotype, instead capturing moments of personality, humor, and humanity. To learn more, read her article “Some Indian Portraits” from Everybody’s Magazine (January 1901, vol. IV, no. 17, pp. 2–24). Additional portraits can be viewed through the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian.

Benjamin Haldane
In 1899, at just 25 years old, Benjamin Haldane became one of the first professional Indigenous photographers, opening his own studio. Specializing in meticulously composed individual and family portraits, Haldane’s work stood apart from the “Vanishing Race” genre that often reduced Native Americans to props. Instead, his subjects actively collaborated in crafting their image, commissioning portraits that celebrated their identity and agency. Dressed in Western clothing and posed against Victorian backdrops, Haldane’s sitters exuded Euro-American affluence and prestige, asserting their photographic sovereignty.

Jennie Ross Cobb
In 1896, Jennie Ross Cobb began photographing her Cherokee community, becoming the first known Native American woman photographer in the United States. Using a small box camera designed for amateur photographers, she developed her glass plates in a closet at home. This portable setup allowed her to explore her interests and capture candid moments of friends and family.

Ross Cobb’s images offer a vibrant portrayal of a proud, modern Cherokee community—affluent, fashionable, and full of life. Unlike the stereotypical, formal depictions of stoic chiefs in traditional headdresses, her work focuses on everyday scenes: young, educated women enjoying a moment together, children at play, and the vitality of contemporary Cherokee life. Her photographs, now celebrated as historic treasures, were instrumental in the restoration of Hunter’s Home, Oklahoma’s only remaining pre–Civil War plantation house. See her collection at the Oklahoma Historical Society’s Gateway to Oklahoma History.

This will be that much more engrossing if you explored George Catlin’s Indian Gallery Look and Learn Gallery Walk.

This can also support class discussions for the cross-curricular lesson plan George Catlin’s Indian Gallery.