A crying baby in a bombed station, a kiss to celebrate war’s end and the world’s most shared selfie…these are Time magazine’s 100 most influential photos of all time
Each iconic image tells its own story
TIME Magazine has compiled a list of the Top 100 most influential pictures of all time.
A specialist team of historians, curators and photography experts put together
The editors explained: "There is no formula that makes a picture influential.
"Some images are on our list because they were the first of their kind, others because they shaped the way we think.
“And some made the cut because they directly changed the way we live. What all 100 share is that they are turning points in our human experience."
Here's a selection of the most poignant photos in history...
Warning: Some of these images contain graphic or upsetting content
1. 1972: The Terror of War, Nick Ut
South Vietnamese forces follow after terrified children, including nine-year-old Kim Phuc, as they run down Route 1 near Trang Bang after an aerial napalm attack on suspected Viet Cong hiding places.
The terrified girl tore off her burning clothes while fleeing the scene, after a South Vietnamese plane dropped its flaming napalm on South Vietnamese troops and civilians.
2. 1969: A Man On The Moon, Neil Armstrong, NASA
Neil Armstrong is responsible for taking one of the most iconic photos of all time.
In 1969, he took a snap of lunar module pilot Edwin E. Alrdrin Jr. walking on the cratered surface of the moon during the Apollo 11 extravehicular activity.
3. 2001: Falling Man, Richard Drew
Following the horrific attacks on the World Trade Center, Associated Press photographer Richard Drew snapped this devastating image.
At least 200 people were victim to the fatal drop, including this unidentified man.
On the day of the atrocity, the falling figure was a stark reminder of all of the victims that lost their lives.
4. 1932: Lunch Atop A Skyscraper
The person who took this photograph still remains a mystery, but this hasn't stopped it from becoming one of the most influential images of all time.
11 construction workers sit eating their lunch 840 feet above Manhattan.
The men, who have been working to build the Rockefeller Center, don't show an ounce of fear as they precariously dangle 840 feet above Manhattan.
5. 2015: Alan Kurdi, Nilüfer Demir
This distressing image was captured by Nilüfer Demir off the shores in Bodrum, southern Turkey.
A photographer captured the heart-breaking moment that Syrian boy Alan Kurdi, 3, was found lying face-down on the beach.
His family boarded an inflatable boat in the hope they could travel from Turkey to the Greek island of Kos, but this proved a devastating decision.
6. 2014: Oscars Selfie, Bradley Cooper
Hunky actor Bradley Cooper snapped this popular image of actors front row from left, Jared Leto, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Ellen DeGeneres, Peter Nyong'o Jr., and, second row, from left, Channing Tatum, Julia Roberts, Kevin Spacey, Brad Pitt, Lupita Nyong'o and Angelina Jolie.
The notorious Oscars selfie won an award of its own as it became the most retweeted picture EVER.
7. 1989: Tank Man, Jeff Widener
Photographer Jeff Widener took this amazing image while he was sitting on a sixth-floor balcony of the Beijing Hotel.
The day after the Tiananmen Square Massacre, a man bravely stood in front of four huge tanks, waving his arms and refusing to move.
Luckily, the anonymous man was not taken down by the tanks, which held fire until he was whisked away.
8. 1945: V-J Day in Times Square, Alfred Eisenstaedt
LIFE magazine's Alfred Eisenstaedt set out to capture the "storytelling moment" in New York City.
When he reached Times Square, he spotted a sailor sweep a nurse off her feet, celebrating the war victory with a kiss.
9. 1937: Bloody Saturday, H.S. Wong
The chilling image of an innocent baby lying among the rubble at Shanghai train station is a shocking sight to behold.
After South Station was destroyed by Japanese bombers, Wong spotted a sobbing Chinese boy whose mother had perished in the attack.
A moment after the photo was taking, the baby's dad raced over and carried him to safety.
10. 1993: Starving Child and Vulture, Kevin Carter
Kevin Carter spotted a whimpering child during in the open bush of apartheid-era South Africa.
As he took out his camera to snap the heart-breaking moment, a vulture landed beside the tiny toddler.
After scaring the creature away, reports reveal that Carter lit up a cigarette and burst into tears.
The tragedy didn't end there, as Kevin Carter took his own life in 1994.
In his suicide note, the photographer wrote: "I am haunted by the vivid memories of killings and corpses and anger and pain...of starving or wounded children, of trigger-happy madmen, often police, of killer executioners."
11. 1945: Mushroom Cloud Over Nagasaki, Lieutenant Charles Levy
The moment that U.S. forces dropped powerful weapon nicknamed Fat Man on Nagasaki has been captured in this image.
Following the explosion, the sheer force of the attack caused a 45,000-foot-high column of debris.
While many of the photos taken in the aftermath of the explosion were censored, Lieutenant Levy's remains an iconic image.
12. 1968: Earthrise, William Anders, NASA
Astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders were in lunar orbit when they spotted this stunning view of the Earth.
It became the first full-colour picture of our planet, which is why the picture is celebrated for being so iconic.
13. 1943: Jewish Boy Surrenders In Warsaw
The identity of the photographer that snapped this World War II image still remains unknown.
In the moving picture, a young Jewish child can be seen holding his hands up in surrender to SS troops.
Sickeningly, SS Major General Stroop was known for keeping images like this one as trophies as he transported victims from the ghetto's to concentration or extermination camps.
14. 1961: Leap Into Freedom, Peter Leibing
Another World War II image to make the most influential photo list is this snap taken by Peter Leibing.
The image shows an East German soldier fleeing the Soviet section in a bid for freedom.
In the perfectly-timed photo, he can be seen leaping over reams of barbed wire that was put in place to prevent soldiers from defecting.
15. 1968: Black Power Salute, John Dominis
In the 1968 Olympics, two athletes made history by executing the black power salute after collecting their medals.
US sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos stood on the podium at the Games in Mexico City and raised their black-gloved fists in the air as The Star-Spangled Banner began to play.
16. 2011: The Situation Room, Pete Souza
The Official White House photographer Pete Souza has placed this snap in his top 55 pictures of President Obama.
In the picture, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton can be seen covering her mouth in suspense as the officers carried out the covert operation to eliminate Osama bin Laden.
17. 1937: The Hindenburg Disaster, Sam Shere
The disastrous moment the LZ 129 Hidenburg caught fire and was destroyed was snapped by Sam Shere.
Tragically, there were 35 fatalities of those on board and one worker on the ground was also killed.
The iconic image was splashed across newspapers and magazines across the world, including a front page in LIFE.
It was also included in the album artwork of the first Led Zeppelin album.
18. 1945: Raising A Flag Over The Reichstag, Yevgeny Khaldei
Two days after Adolf Hitler's suicide, war raged as Khaldei made the journey to the Reichstag.
As the photographer climbed up onto the parliament building, he waved the Soviet flag in triumph.
It was later published in Russian magazine Ogonek in attempt to stir up feelings of patriotism.
19. 2003: The Hooded Man, Sergeant Ivan Frederick
This brutal photo became one of the most memorable reminders of the conflict in Iraq.
U.S. Army Sgt. Ivan Frederick took a picture that exposed the torment and torture of Iraqi prisoners.
His pose looks chillingly similar to Christ on the crucifix, which is one of the reasons why this image has become so iconic.
20. 1934: The Loch Ness Monster
For over 80 years, the British public have questioned whether or not the Loch Ness monster exists or not - and a lot of the debate was sparked by THIS legendary photo.
The snap, reportedly taken by doctor Robert Wilson, has largely been discredited since it hit the press.
In the pre-Photoshop days, theorists were stumped as to how the image was created.
Some questioned whether the 'monster' was actually just a bird or a toy submarine.
21. 1963: The Burning Monk, Malcolm Browne
On a street in Ho Chi Minh City, photographer Malcolm Browne watched flames take hold of a serene-looking monk.
In spite of the fire that roared around him, the religious man sat still in lotus position as he died a martyr.
The poignant photo sparked greater discussion about America's association with Diem's government.
John F. Kennedy said: “No news picture in history has generated so much emotion around the world as that one.”
22. 1995: Pillars of Creation, NASA
After the Hubble Space Telescope's risky mission aboard Atlantis, the craft finally made into orbit.
The telescope has since captured some of the clearest images of space in existence, including the Pillars of Creation.
This snap is of the Eagle Nebula was taken 6,500 light-years from Earth in the Serpens Cauda constellation.
23. 1936: Migrant Mother, Dorothea Lange
Dorothea Lange revealed that it felt she was "drawn by a magnet" towards this hungry and desperate mother.
After a farm in Nipomo, north of Los Angeles, had its crop frozen, those who worked on the land were left to starve.
Caring photographer Lange sold her own car tyres to help the destitute family before taking this moving image.
24. 1960: Guerillero Heroico, Alberto Korda
This photo of Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara was taken a day after a ship exploded in Havana Harbor.
His resigned expression followed news that dozens of dockworkers had died following the disaster.
Seven years after the photo was taken, Kirda's depiction of the revolutionary was noted as being the leader's most enduring symbol of all time.
25. 2007: Gorilla In The Congo, Brent Stirton
Senkwekwe was a silverback mountain gorilla that was shot dead during a violent dispute at the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The 35 stone mammal was transported by dozens of park rangers as a mark of respect to the creature.
Those responsible for the killing are believed to be people who were illegally harvesting wood in the area, as they had the National Park under siege.
26. 1972: Munich Massacre, Kurt Strumpf
During the 1972 Olympic Games, 11 Israeli athletes were taken hostage and killed by Palestinian terrorist group Black September.
Kurt Strumpf took this snap during the 21-hour hostage standoff, and this image chillingly encapsulates the horrors their victims were forced to endure.
27. 1963: Birmingham, Alabama, Charles Moore
As protests rippled through Birmingham, Alabama, Charles Moore snapped this evocative image.
A year before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, this photo commanded the public's attention.
Many pointed out the casual brutality of the dog launching itself at a black protester, as a number of other officers turn their backs on the situation.
28. 1968: Saigon Execution, Eddie Adams
Associated Press photographer Eddie Adams walked the streets of Saigon, Vietnam, two days after the Tet offensive.
During the turmoil, he noticed an altercation between Brigadier General Nguyen Ngoc Loan, chief of the national police and Nguyen Van Lem, the captain of a terrorist squad.
He managed to snap the horrific moment Loan raised his pistol and fired a bullet towards Lem's head.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning image was widely published to highlight the brutality of the Vietnam war.
29. 1966: Chairman Mao Swims In The Yangtze
This image of the Chinese Communist Party leader is a lot more political than it may seem at first glance.
Chairman Mao worried that his legacy would be ruined by a counterrevolution, so the 72-year-old swam in the Yangtze River to prove that he was in good health.
The propaganda photo was so strong that it worked to cement the leader's power.
30. 1948: The Babe Bows Out, Nat Fein
Hailed as being the greatest ballplayer of all time, Babe Ruth returned to the field to the delight of thousands of fans.
The much-loved athlete returned to the sport after a decade-long battle with terminal cancer.
On the silver anniversary of the Yankee Stadium, he was greeted with cheers as the crowd sang out Auld Lang Syne.