This video [4:15] segment from the American Masters film Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning provides a documentary photographer's perspective of the severe economic despair and difficult living conditions that characterized the Great Depression. It also explores Lange's career transition from portrait to documentary photographer, one she felt compelled to make as she witnessed the social experience of the Great Depression from her San Francisco studio window. Lange speaks about the processes, instincts, and feelings she experienced in her new role as a documentary photographer. Other videos and teaching materials are included.