We (the SustainableESL.com team) are very moved by the power of art and imagery.

A photographer might refer to herself/himself (or be referenced by others) as a "social documentary photographer", an "activist photographer", an "anthropologist photographer", a "photojournalist", ... .  No matter which, these photographers have (continue to) create(d) bodies of work that are compelling, arresting, and provocative.

Photography I (this is a work-in-progress)

• Ansel Adams - addresses xxx - http://www.anseladams.com/
  
• Brian Ulrich - addresses contemporary consumer culture, its excess, its downfall (e.g., abandoned and derelict 'big box' retail malls); Ulrich also maintains an extensive list of photographers and bloggers (check to see which of them explore sustainability issues as well) - http://notifbutwhen.com/
  
• Chris Jordan - addresses xxx - http://www.chrisjordan.com/
  
• Edward Burtynsky - addresses the interplay between nature and human endeavours and rituals, with emphasis on how nature is transformed by intensive industry (e.g., factories in China,  mass consumerism, mining) - http://www.edwardburtynsky.com/ - Some of Burtynsky's photographs have been published in book form (see his website for details).  Note: Some of Burtynsky's work is the basis of the films Manufactured Landscapes ^⊕* and Watermark. ^* 
• Rick Lundh - Fine Art Landscape Photography - http://www.crazyaboutnature.com/galleries.htm/
• Robert van Waarden [social media: @rvanwaarden] - addresses fossil fuels, renewable energy, climate change, climate change activism, and specific topics such as northern Alberta, Canada's Tar Sands (industry term=Oil Sands) and their impacts on the culture, lifestyle and health of the First Nations in the region - http://vanwaardenphoto.com/ - Currently (Nov. 2014) van Waarden's latest project "Along the Pipeline"--which focuses on the proposed Energy East Pipeline in Canada--can be viewed online - http://www.alongthepipeline.com/
  
• Sebastião Salgado - addresses the human side of aspects of globalization, including starvation (in Africa), the work conditions and social impacts for manual labourers (e.g., gold mine, coffee plantation) in less-developed nations (e.g., India, Guatemala, Ethiopia and Brazil), mass migration and refugee crises; also presents unblemished images of pristine Nature, wildlife, and tribal people living deep in the Amazon - some information is here. 
  Some publications include: Workers: Archaeology of the Industrial Age (1993), Migrations (2000), Genesis (2013)
  Some of Salgado's work is the basis of the following documentaries:
  
  • Looking Back at You: A Leading Photojournalist's Life and Work (1993 documentary) documents the lives of the working class around the world.
  • The Spectre of Hope (2012 documentary)
    
  • The Salt of the Earth (2014 documentary),^⊕ directed by Wim Wenders and Juliano Salgado, tells the life story of Salgado (who started as an economist, and became a photographer), including his bodies of photographic works, and his efforts at reforestation at his family farm in Brazil.
• Tim Hetherington (born 1970, died 2011) - photographer, human rights advocate, humanitarian - addresses war and conflict zones, with emphasis on 'human nature' - http://www.timhetheringtontrust.org/
  • Which way is the Front Line from Here? The Life and Times of Tim Hetherington (2013)^*, directed by Sebastian Junger - examines some of the concerns, questions and passion that drove Tim's work
    
• Vik Muniz - addresses social and environmental sustainability (e.g., consumer excess, garbage & waste levels, social impacts of working conditions of sugar plantation work - http://vikmuniz.net - Note: Some of Muniz's work is the basis of the film Waste Land. ^⊕* 
  

Photography II (this is a work-in-progress) (Note: These individuals are better known for (and more focused on) other endeavours.)

• Wade Davis - addresses xxx - http://daviswade.com/

We (some of the SustainableESL.com team members) were fortunate enough to see photographic exhibits for Ansel Adams and Edward Burtynsky (McMichael Art Gallery near Toronto, 2013 Summer) and Sebastião Salgado (Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, 2013 Fall).

Note: Some of these photographers have published (in book form or online) some of their works, or have partnered with documentary makers.  Some of these projects are noted (above).