Photo Documentary - Henri Cartier-Bresson

Henri Cartier-Bresson was a French street photographer who specialised in Photo Documentary. He is considered one of the founding fathers of street photography. He has taken many photos that capture famine, war and conflict.
He based his photos on what he calls "the decisive moment" which is the moment pictured in the photo that defines what is happening at that time and what effect it has on the people involved.

This was taken in Shanghai, 1948, which was when China had changed government to a communist rule. Since the value of money had plummeted, the government had decided to give out forty grams of gold per person, which resulted in huge crowd of thousands gathering outside the bank building. During the claustrophobic struggle, ten people died of suffocation. 

This was taken in Spain, 1933. The cause of the destruction was never revealed, though it was originally assumed this photo was taken during during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). The fact this
image depicts destruction that appears to be the result of war, only a few years before war broke out, creates a sense of foreshadowing and gives this image a much more ominous mood. However, there is some contrast in moods between the children, who appear to be playing like normal, and the deprived backdrop.

I am unsure where and when this photo was taken, though it was likely in an urban environment. This shows contrast between the building it was taken in and the fact there are lots of pigeons on the stairs and railings. It presents the idea of nature taking over urban environments, in which nature has mostly been eliminated by humans' buildings.