James Houston (1921-2009) was a Canadian photographer, filmmaker, and author. He was born in Toronto, Ontario and grew up in the small town of Port Hope. He attended the Ontario College of Art and Design, where he studied photography and filmmaking.
Houston's career began in the 1940s when he worked as a freelance photographer for magazines such as Life and Look. His work focused on documenting the lives of Inuit people in Canada's Arctic regions. His photographs were published in books such as The People of the Deer (1952) and The White Dawn (1974).
In addition to his photography, Houston also wrote several books about his experiences with Inuit people, including The White Dawn: An Eskimo Saga (1971), which was adapted into a feature film in 1974. He also wrote several children's books about Inuit culture, including The White Archer (1972).
Houston received numerous awards throughout his career, including the Order of Canada in 1975 for his contributions to Canadian culture. He continued to work until his death in 2009 at the age of 88. His photographs are held in collections around the world, including at the National Gallery of Canada and the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.