Story Behind the Picture: Iwo Jima Flag Raising

Story Behind the Picture: Iwo Jima Flag Raising

Here at PhotoWings, we believe that photography can act as an amazing conduit for learning. Looking at photographs is a great way to practice and sharpen skills encompassed by visual literacy, an ability important to anyone trying to navigate the media-saturated world we live in. But more than that, photographs provide a great launching pad to talk about a whole host of issues and ideas, from ethics to history and storytelling.

All of this great stuff is packed into the above video, which details AP photographer Joe Rosenthal's story of snapping the famous Iwo Jima flag raising photo on Feb. 23, 1945.

For more on photographs and history, take a look at Dublin City University's Collaborating on Intergenerational Stories