Weegee
Weegee
PhotographerKnown for:
flashbulb crime and tabloid photography in New York
Education:
Self-taught; learned through darkroom work at Acme Newspictures
Born Usher Fellig in what is now Ukraine, Weegee worked the night beat in New York for decades, arriving at crime scenes and fires before the police through a combination of police-band radio and instinct. His flashbulb-lit photographs of murder victims, tenement fires, and bystanders were published in the tabloid press and later collected in Naked City (1945). He gave himself the name Weegee - a phonetic spelling of Ouija - in reference to his apparent ability to predict news events.
Weegee's Gear List(1)
Graflex
Connection Source
BhphotovideoBook
Connection note
Weegee used a 4x5 Speed Graphic press camera with a flash for his nocturnal crime and street photography in New York. His camera setup is documented in "Naked City" (1945) and in his autobiography "Weegee by Weegee" (1961).
Product description
The Speed Graphic was the dominant press camera in America from the 1930s through the 1960s, used by newspaper photographers for its large 4×5 inch negatives, focal-plane shutter, and compatibility with flash synchronization. Its side-mounted rangefinder and rugged construction suited deadline-driven work in all conditions.
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Last updated March 20, 2026