Born into segregation 100 years ago, Gordon Parks was no stranger to racism in the United States. Images of migrant workers in a magazine inspired him to explore the medium of photography. When he was 25, he bought his first camera from a pawn shop and taught himself how to use it.

Though he was a graphic designer by trade, Leon Levinstein’s photographs appeared in books and magazines in the 1950s and 60s. Even as a master of street photography, he was not interested in fame or glory. He captured people in natural moments, often remaining unnoticed himself.

Photographer Robert Burley has been documenting the demise of analog photography in the transition to the digital age since 2005. He started the project after discovering the Kodak Canada complex in his native Toronto was being shut down in response to the drop in the demand for film.

For his project exploring the small mountain towns and mining communities in the American West, Bryan Schutmaat tried to emanate the beauty and sorrow of Richard Hugo’s poetry. The poet’s work focusing on the Northwest during the Depression often directed Schutmaat to certain towns.

Two years ago, on a drive through Ireland, photojournalist Birte Kaufmann saw a group of people camped on the side of the road. Intrigued, she began digging for more information, hoping to find out more about them. The Irish Travellers, as they’re called, are the biggest minority group in the country.

Bhopal residents fell victim to the world’s worst industrial disasters in December 1984, and for many, the nightmare isn’t over. Photographer Alex Masi visited Bhopal, India, and found children with neurological and physical defects after being exposed to drinking water contaminated with chemicals.

Dutch photographer Jan Banning started taking portraits of homeless people across the southern United States in 2010. He wanted to focus on them as individuals and hopes his images make people look at themselves and possibly rethink their views toward the homeless.

Photojournalist Ed Kashi spent three weeks in Brazil examining the farming and consumption of sugar and ethanol. He also spent a week traveling to factories in the Netherlands that use sugar as an ingredient. His work is part of a collaborative project, “The Sweet and Sour Story of Sugar."