airplane with Navy pilots Robert E. Byrd Jr. and
Floyd Bennett.National Geographictook advantage
of the publicity and the popular Byrd received the
society’s highest award, the Hubbard Gold Medal,
the following month. Grosvenor would continue
supporting Byrd, and the young pilot would con-
tinue promotingNational Geographicas well as sup-
plying it with aerial and traditional photographs.
The society provided a $75,000 grant for Byrd’s
flights over the South Pole and surface explorations
of Antarctica during all of 1929.
After providing aerial photographs, National
Geographicdecided to take cameras underwater
for its readers. In January 1927, an expedition
produced color photos below the Gulf of Mexico
near the Dry Tortugas, small islands west of the
Florida Keys. The camera was sealed in a brass box
with a glass window for the lens. Shots taken below
15 feet of the surface needed auxiliary light, pro-
vided by the flash of one pound of magnesium
powder. The dangers of this assignment were evi-
dent when one ounce exploded early, severely burn-
ing W.H. Longley, a zoologist.
Borrowing photographic plates from Europe,
chief lab technician Charles Martin was able to
use them for color photographs taken from dirigi-
bles. The September 1930 magazine carried what
was claimed to be the first-ever color photo taken
from the skies. The plate was directed at the U.S.
Capitol from the Goodyear airshipMayflower. Its
motors had been turned off to eliminate vibrations.
Other scenes captured Washington, D.C. and New
York. They were taken by Grosvenor’s son, Mel-
ville Bell Grosvenor, newly appointed assistant edi-
tor ofNational Geographicand a graduate of the
Naval Academy.
The magazine was the first to print aerial photos
proving the earth’s curvature. In November 1932 it
published the moon’s shadow on earth during a
solar eclipse. In 1936, it produced the first color
shot of the sun’s corona during a total eclipse.
Thanks to George Eastman that same year, Koda-
chrome film became available in rolls, eliminating
the clumsy, heavy, and often fragile glass plates
that previously had to be used.
Therushtodeadlinein1905thatcausedthatfirst
photo spread was no longer a problem at National
Geographic. In fact, by the mid-1940s, the magazine
had a supply of 350,000 unused photos in its files,
along with several thousand unpublished articles.
Grosvenor retired in 1954, and three years later
his son took control of the magazine. He beefed up
the international staff, hiring 50 full-time writers
and 15 full-time photographers. The now common
photo cover was started in 1959.
It did not take long forNational Geographicto
rise to the top of a photographer’s dream assign-
ment. Not only was there excellent color repro-
duction of their creative work on thick, quality
paper, but the contracts paid top dollar. Also
reimbursed were the complete expenses of photo-
graphers on location, typically to exotic locations
for extended periods of time. One calculation put
the number of 36-exposure rolls of color film shot
in a typical assignment at 250 to 350. The average
appearing in the magazine’s main feature is 30 to
40 prints.
Veteran photographers who have enjoyed a long
association withNational Geographicinclude Sam
Abell, William Albert Allard, James P. Blair,
Jonathan Blair, Sisse Brimberg, Jodi Cobb, Reza
Deghati, David Doubilet, David Alan Harvey,
Chris Johns, Ed Kashi, Karen Kasmauski, Emory
Kristof, Joe McNally, Joel Sartore, James Stan-
field, and Alex Webb.
TodayNational Geographicwith its familiar yel-
low border boasts a paid circulation of about 9
million and a monthly readership of 40 million.
The average subscriber is 56 years old with a med-
ian household income of $81,700. Several foreign-
language editions have been launched over the past
decade. There are now 25 editions in 23 languages
other than English. Its interactive website, started
in July 1996, was redesigned in September 2000. Its
online store offers books, guides, posters, prints,
cameras, and equipment.
Spin-off magazines—such as the 1 million copies
of National Geographic World, introduced for
junior members in 1975 and renamed National
Geographic Kids in 2002, and the 1.2 million circu-
lation ofNational Geographic Adventure, launched
in 2001 and aimed at the 18- to 34-year-old mar-
ket—and hundreds of books have provided addi-
tional outlets for photographers over the years. Its
first feature film, ‘‘K-19: The Widowmaker,’’ was
released in July 2002.
RANDYHines
Seealso:Aerial Photography; Representation and
‘‘the Other’’; Underwater PhotographyFurther Reading
Abramson, Howard S.National Geographic: Behind America’s
Lens on the World. New York: Crown Publishers, 1987.
Allen, Thomas B., ed.Images of the World: Photography at
the National Geographic. Washington, DC: National
Geographic Society, 1981.
Bryan, C.D.B.The National Geographic Society: 100 Years
of Adventure and Discovery. New York: Harry N.
Abrams Inc., 1987.NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC