Stephen Johnson has received recognition and funding from a variety of sources over the last 30 years.

The awards have largely been associated with photographic projects, such as At Mono Lake (1979-84), the Great Central Valley (1982-93), and With a New Eye (1994-2004).

Stephen Johnson Awards and Grants

  • 1980 Polaroid Foundation
  • 1980 National Endowment for the Arts for the exhbtion At Mono Lake
  • 1980 Sierra Club Foundation for At Mono Lake
  • 1983 Columbia Foundation to Friends of the Earth for At Mono Lake
  • 1984 Eastman Kodak Company
  • 1984 Wilson & Geo. Meyer & Company
  • 1984 Ilford Photographic
    • 1985 California Arts Council for the Great Central Valley Project
    • 1985 California Council for the Humanities
    • 1985 Fleishhacker Foundation
    • 1985 L. J. and Mary Skaggs Foundation
    • 1985 van Löben Sels Foundation
    • 1985 Wells Fargo Bank
    • 1988 Mervyn's
    • 1988 Congressional Special Recognition by the U.S. House of Representatives for Johnson's work on behalf of Mono Lake.
    • 1988 Apple Computer 
    • 1992 McClatchy Newspapers
    • 1993 The New York Times, Eight Best Photography Books of 1993
    • 1993 Bay Area Book Reviewers Association, non-fiction 1993 Book of the Year Award
    • 1993 Commonwealth Club of California, Silver Medal for Californiana Book of the Year
    • 1993 Golden Light Award, Best Natural History Book of 1993, Maine Photographic Workshops
    • 1993 American Association of University Presses 1994 Design Book Show Award
    • 1993 PEN finalist for best non-fiction of 1993
    • 1993 Arts Council of Kern Outstanding Book of the Year 1993
    • 1993 American Association of State & Local History 1993 Award of Merit
    • 1994 Adobe Systems for With a New Eye
    • 1996 Apple Computer for With a New Eye
    • 1997 Awarded Apple Computer's "Profiling Excellence" Award at Print '97 in Chicago.
    • 1999 Folio Magazine listed the publication of Johnson's digital photographs in Life Magazine to be one of the Top 15 Critical Eventsin magazine publishing in the twentieth century.
    • 2000 PDN Digital Photography Award
    • 2001 PDN Promotional Award
    • 2003 Stephen Johnson was named as a 2003 Inductee into the Photoshop Hall of Fame, recognized for his achievements in Photoshop Art.
    • 2006 Stephen Johnson named as Canon Explorer of Light
    • 2007 Hot One Award for "Stephen Johnson on Digital Photography" Professional Photographers of America.