Born in
Baltimore in 1922 and raised in
North Carolina, Croner developed an interest in photography while in high school. He honed his skills while serving as an
aerial photographer in World War II before settling in New York City in 1947. At the urging of fashion photographer
Fernand Fonssagrives, he enrolled in
Alexey Brodovitch’s class at
The New School where he studied with
Diane Arbus,
Richard Avedon and
Lisette Model. During this period he produced many of his most memorable images including “Taxi, New York Night, 1947–48”, which appears on the cover of
Bob Dylan’s 2006 album,
Modern Times. Another of Croner's photographs was used on the cover of
Luna's album
Penthouse. Croner also had a successful career as a
fashion and commercial photographer – his work was published in ''
Harper's Bazaar and Vogue''. He also worked extensively with corporations such as Coca-Cola and Chase Manhattan Bank. Croner is best known for his haunting night images of
New York City taken in the 1940s and 1950s. He was one of several important photographers who belonged to the
New York school of photography. ==Exhibitions==