Clarence White was born in West Carlisle, Ohio, and moved to Newark, Ohio, with his family six years later. He taught himself photography and organized the Newark Camera Club in 1898. Early on, the work he submitted to the Philadelphia Salons was recognized by Stieglitz for its outstanding quality and in 1902 he was named to the Photo Secession and joined the Linked Ring.

After the disintegration of the Photo-Secession around 1910, White severed his relationship with Stieglitz and in 1916 organized the Pictorial Photographers of America, for which he served as its first president. White died at the age of fifty-four, on a photographic trip to Mexico City with students from his school.