““It’s one thing to make a picture of what a person looks like; it’s another thing to make a portrait of who they are.”
— Paul Caponigro”
No matter what
No matter what, nobody can take away the dances you've already had.
– Gabriel Garcia MarquezRead More
Always seeing something
“Always seeing something, never seeing nothing, being a photographer.”
― Walter De Mulder
Embrace Light
“Light makes photography. Embrace light. Admire it. Love it. But above all, know light. ”
How and Why?
“Of course, there will always be those who look only at technique, who ask ‘how’, while others of a more curious nature will ask ‘why’. Personally, I have always preferred inspiration to information.”
Craving the Novel
“The ear tends to be lazy, craves the familiar and is shocked by the unexpected; the eye, on the other hand, tends to be impatient, craves the novel and is bored by repetition. ”
Simple Act of Making Pictures
“To be a photographer, one must photograph. No amount of book learning, no checklist of seminars attended, can substitute for the simple act of making pictures.”
Secrets
“A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you the less you know.”
Runway
“Photographs are of course about their makers, and are to be read for what they disclose in that regard no less than for what they reveal of the world as their makers comprehend, invent, and describe it. ”
Hair...
“There is a creative fraction of a second when you are taking a picture. Your eye must see a composition or an expression that life itself offers you, and you must know with intuition when to click the camera. ”
Shoes...
“Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world.”
Need Each Other
“Remember that the person you are photographing is 50% of the portrait and you are the other 50%. You need the model as much as he or she needs you. If they don’t want to help you, it will be a very dull picture.”
Dynamic
“I feel all things as dynamic events, being, changing, and interacting with each other in space and time even as I photograph them. ”
See Me in My Work
“You should be able to look at me and see my work. You should be able to look at my work and see me.”
Pictures Are Like Blintzes
“To me, pictures are like blintzes - ya gotta get ‘em while they’re hot.”
Style
“I don’t believe a person has a style. What people have is a way of photographing what is inside them. What is there comes out. ”
Understanding
“Ultimately success or failure in photographing people depends on the photographer’s ability to understand his fellow man. ”
Photograph as Mirror
“Photography can be a mirror and reflect life as it is, but I also think it is possible to walk, like Alice, through a looking glass and find another kind of world with the camera.”
To Explain
“The mission of photography is to explain man to man and each man to himself. And that is no mean function.”
Way of Touching
“Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving, what you have caught on film is captured forever… It remembers little things long after you have forgotten everything. ”