Morris Schwartz (April 3, 1901 – October 22, 2004) was an American photographic inventor, photographer and businessman.
Born in Russia, Schwartz went to the United States in 1906 with his family,[1] including his father Kalman and brother Hy.[2] He started in the New York Times in 1922, staying with the paper until 1926, when he moved to the Jewish Daily Forward, where he was a staff photographer until 1931. In 1930, Schwartz invented a flash synchronizer for work with flashbulbs,[3] [4] then novel replacements for flash powder.[5]
Schwartz invented the "Kalart Flash Synchronizer" in 1930, founding the Kalart company to market this and other products. His father Kalman ran the Kalart Photography Studio in Manhattan; his brother Hy was also a freelance press photographer, and worked with him in making the Kalart products.[2]
In 1952, Schwartz was awarded the Joseph A. Sprague Memorial Award by the National Press Photographers Association,[3] for "unusual service or achievement beneficial to photojournalism or for an outstanding technology advance in equipment or processes of photojournalism".[6] His citation named "synchronizers, flash equipment, electrical circuits, lens coupled range fliers [sic] and unique camera designs."[3]