Caporegime
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Joey L, I'm personally not a fan of him but a lot of people always disagree with me on that! 
Who are your favourite photographers?
- Thread starter An Exception
- Start date
Soldato
- Joined
- 5 Nov 2004
- Posts
- 9,302
Off top of my head these guys are my main hitters.
Joe Buissink
Vincent Lafaret
Damien Lovegrove
Annie Leibovitz
Lara Jane
Michel Rajkovic
Chase Jarvis
Lisa Bettany
Dave Hill
Alper Çukur
Although I do like so many I just have lost in old book marks! There was one dude who's website was incredible! He shot A list celebrities and you could theme his website using a colour dropper picking any HEX colour on his photographs! I swear his name was Italian and began with A
Joe Buissink
Vincent Lafaret
Damien Lovegrove
Annie Leibovitz
Lara Jane
Michel Rajkovic
Chase Jarvis
Lisa Bettany
Dave Hill
Alper Çukur
Although I do like so many I just have lost in old book marks! There was one dude who's website was incredible! He shot A list celebrities and you could theme his website using a colour dropper picking any HEX colour on his photographs! I swear his name was Italian and began with A
Last edited:
I like documentary and photojournalist photographers.
W. Eugene Smith
Alec Soth
Sebastião Salgado
Eugene Richards
Don McCullin
William Egglestone
Bruce Gilden
Nan Goldin
Diane Arbus
Gered Mankowitz
Jocelyn Bain-Hogg
Can't stop adding...too many favourites!
I had a few lighting workshops with Gered Mankowitz and also chatted had seminars with Jocelyn Bain-Hogg. Lovely guys!
W. Eugene Smith
Alec Soth
Sebastião Salgado
Eugene Richards
Don McCullin
William Egglestone
Bruce Gilden
Nan Goldin
Diane Arbus
Gered Mankowitz
Jocelyn Bain-Hogg
Can't stop adding...too many favourites!
I had a few lighting workshops with Gered Mankowitz and also chatted had seminars with Jocelyn Bain-Hogg. Lovely guys!
Last edited:
Soldato
Recently I'm liking Emily Soto, fashion oriented but nicely executed.
Associate
Inspiration - favourite photographers.
Who makes you want to head off with your camera?
I'm interested in the landscape tradition, and people who somehow tap into the essence of nature... Thomas Joshua Cooper is possibly my favourite, along with Hamish Fulton, who does interesting work. Rather obvious, but Ansel Adam's work is always thrilling to look at.
Not one person, but the ECM record label hosts some amazing images on their CD covers; they have a style of semi-abstract work, often with lots of movement and a rather dark/crushed look, which I really like... I favor black and white also.
It would be interesting to hear who others admire.
Who makes you want to head off with your camera?
I'm interested in the landscape tradition, and people who somehow tap into the essence of nature... Thomas Joshua Cooper is possibly my favourite, along with Hamish Fulton, who does interesting work. Rather obvious, but Ansel Adam's work is always thrilling to look at.
Not one person, but the ECM record label hosts some amazing images on their CD covers; they have a style of semi-abstract work, often with lots of movement and a rather dark/crushed look, which I really like... I favor black and white also.
It would be interesting to hear who others admire.
Soldato
I'm more intrigued as to how people find out about their 'favourites'... Where do you look for example? 
kd
kd
I've mainly taken inspiration from people on TP, there's a few I follow on Flickr and they do consistently good work. I will copy their ideas, implement them in my own way and I've progressed more in the last 6 months than I have in the previous three years.
I don't have favourite photographers as invariably you'll find they're good at certain things and not others, or maybe their style suits some photos and not others. I suppose it depends on how fussy you are or if you like specific shots/style.
I'm more of a fan of styles than photographers so I often end up following various people on sites and liking a low percentage of the images. More often I'll just favourite a particular photo then spend hours looking around for similar styles.
I'm more of a fan of styles than photographers so I often end up following various people on sites and liking a low percentage of the images. More often I'll just favourite a particular photo then spend hours looking around for similar styles.
Associate
I'm more intrigued as to how people find out about their 'favourites'... Where do you look for example?
kd
By chance quite often; I first came across Cooper when I found a book of his in a second-hand bookshop... same with Fulton. Looking at info online will often bring up similar artists/photographers, so one thing leads to another.
Its almost impossible to like the entire output of one person, but it only takes a few pieces, or a general ethos to what they do to feel excited, and make you think about approaches to you own work. Cooper does some really interesting exhibition projects, sometimes focusing on huge, international themes, and others looking at something quite intimate.
Someone else I really admire is Susan Durges - very different from the others I mentioned, but really interesting work.
I'm more intrigued as to how people find out about their 'favourites'... Where do you look for example?
kd
Art museums, displays, books, libraries, etc.
One of my favorites is the late Galen Rowell, not only was he an amazing photographer but a world class climber ith many first ascents. He used his climbing to push landscape and mountain photography to new limits.
Soldato
Cartier-Bresson
Man of Honour
I appreciate the mention many thanks. I do goof up with some photos from time to time though and only see the error a few days later praying nobody else noticed 
It's like proof reading your own writing, you're bound to miss something but reading someone else's work you spot errors right away, maybe this is a good thing or bad, I'm not sure still Bresson's work was my first exposure to the term capturing the moment/decisive moment. I think that's what got me into street shooting because there's no time to mess around, you either shoot or you don't and I found that game to be immensely challenging but also the most rewarding and in turn that helped change how I shoot other things.
Vivian Maier is another. As for modern inspirations I've been browsing:
- Nicolas Zonvi who has a unique take on environmental portraiture and use of light.
- Mary Ellen Mark for exceptional all BW work.
Soldato
Yep, and how much weight that carries. Some of his shots are a little out of focus and it taught me that it really doesn't matter.
Yet most people who are so wrapped up in the technical/equipment element of things will instantly rubbish a shot because it's not perfectly in focus.
The photographer that actually got me really interested in photography was James Nachtwey. I watched the documentary on him, War Photographer, and my views on photography were blown apart. His photographs are very compelling and unsettling, and really drove home the power of images - up until that point I considered photography as snapshots, flowers, sunsets. Pretty, but boring.
I then came across street photography via Chris Weeks and his PDF, Street Photography for the Purist. It needs updating now, and it's quite a Leica lovefest, but his passion for street was apparent. I loved the idea of it, and sought to take photos of life around me. One of the best things about the internet is that many years ago, I told him that one day I'd like to be as good as he is - today he follows me on tumblr and likes a few images every now and then. Through him I discovered other photographers like Severin Koller and more recently, Rinzi Ruiz.
As I started taking more and more photos, I started buying more photobooks - I now have a list of photographers I keep going back to (that includes the guys I mentioned above):
- Elliot Erwitt
- Garry Winogrand
- William Klein (a general inspiration for me really)
- Bruce Davidson
- David Bailey
- Richard Avedon
- Josef Koudelka
- Trent Parke
- Daido Moriyama
- Shinya Arimoto (amazing B/W work)
- William Eggleston
- Steve McCurry
- Jason Eskenazi
I then came across street photography via Chris Weeks and his PDF, Street Photography for the Purist. It needs updating now, and it's quite a Leica lovefest, but his passion for street was apparent. I loved the idea of it, and sought to take photos of life around me. One of the best things about the internet is that many years ago, I told him that one day I'd like to be as good as he is - today he follows me on tumblr and likes a few images every now and then. Through him I discovered other photographers like Severin Koller and more recently, Rinzi Ruiz.
As I started taking more and more photos, I started buying more photobooks - I now have a list of photographers I keep going back to (that includes the guys I mentioned above):
- Elliot Erwitt
- Garry Winogrand
- William Klein (a general inspiration for me really)
- Bruce Davidson
- David Bailey
- Richard Avedon
- Josef Koudelka
- Trent Parke
- Daido Moriyama
- Shinya Arimoto (amazing B/W work)
- William Eggleston
- Steve McCurry
- Jason Eskenazi
Soldato
Rick Nunn and Neil van Niekerk ... any photographer thats keeps it simple and effective is a genius in my eyes. Most 'pro' photographers get so lost in the kit nowadays its unreal.
I don't really follow anyone famous. Maybe I'm missing out but I tend to look at loads across the web and magazines and take inspiration from that rather anyone in particular.
I must say though I am really enjoying Mark Wallace stuff on snap factory. Even though I don't have or likely to have a studio I like watching the way he builds lighting up and processes the image. His speedlight one the other week was superb.
I must say though I am really enjoying Mark Wallace stuff on snap factory. Even though I don't have or likely to have a studio I like watching the way he builds lighting up and processes the image. His speedlight one the other week was superb.