Richard Fleischhut was born in 1881 in Köslin, Pommerania. Fleischhut turned to sea travel in 1905, becoming a confectioner on the ship "Kronprinz Wilhelm." His hobby of photography became his profession when he began as ship's photographer for North German Lloyd in 1905, which he continued until 1939. Fleischhut documented over 150 cruises and sea passages on almost all the large passenger steamers, whereby the luxurious ships of North German Lloyd were much more than simply a mode of transportation with their glamorous salons and sundecks. These crossings in that day were society events, with prominent travelers the order of the day. Fleischhut's repertoire contains unique photographs of Marlene Dietrich, Buster Keaton, Richard Tauber, Max Schmeling, Sergej Rachmaninoff, Franklin Roosevelt, and many other famous personages. He also turned his lense toward the ships themselves and the seascape, as well as the landscapes and people at the different destinations. In dealing with the changing styles and innovative developments of the photographic medium in the early 20th century, Fleischhut continually came closer to his various motifs through his technical perfection and high artistic pretense. Therefore his pictures of ship's architecture, the skillful perspectives and clean contours, are very influenced by Bauhaus photography. He seemlessly integrated his penchants for objectiveness and for puristic structuring. Richard Fleischhut died in 1951 in Neukirchen, Hesse.