Born 1911, Manhattan, New York
Died 1973

A graduate of Fordham University in 1933, Elisofon joined the Photo League at its inception in 1936. One of the League's most active and productive members, he gave guest lectures (1938–43); co-organized the Men at Work project with Lewis Hine (1940); served periodically as president between 1939 and 1941; taught courses on photojournalism and flash photography (1940–41); and participated in numerous exhibitions. Elisofon also ran a commercial photography studio (1935–38) and made documentary photographs in the South for the Federal Writers' Project series These Are Our Lives (1939). He also taught photography at the American Artists School (1938–42) and worked as a freelance photographer for magazines, including Mademoiselle, Fortune (1937–42), and Smithsonian (1964–73). Elisofon joined the staff of Life in 1942 and remained there until 1964. In the 1950s and 1960s Elisofon worked as a color consultant for the motion picture industry, contributing his expertise to Moulin Rouge (1952; dir. John Huston) and The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965; dir. George Stevens), among other films. Besides teaching at the League he also offered courses at a number of other institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago; Yale and Syracuse Universities; and Radcliffe, Wellesley, Sarah Lawrence Colleges. His archive is at the Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas at Austin.