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Elliott Erwitt

Elliott Erwitt Quotes

Photographer

Elliott Erwitt, born on July 26, 1928 in Paris, France, is a renowned photographer. His photographs are known for their unique perspective and sense of humor, capturing many moments of social change and human emotion. Erwitt's work has won numerous awards and been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world.

Famous Elliott Erwitt Quotes

“I am a professional photographer by trade and an amateur photographer by vocation.”

Trade Photographer Vocation Professional Photographer

Book:Dog dogs

Source: Dog dogs

“The whole point of taking pictures is so that you don't have to explain things with words.”

Inspirational Whole Wise Words Photography Cameras Photographer Photograph Capture Explaining Captured Photography By Photographers Taking Pictures Inspirational Photography Great Photography Analog Cameraman Street Photography Black And White Photography

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Nothing happens when you sit at home. I always make it a point to carry a camera with me at all times...I just shoot at what interests me at that moment.”

Moments Home Happens Interest Photography Cameras Photographer Things Happen All Time That Moment Photography By Photographers Great Photography Camera And Photography Street Photography Film Photography Photography And Film

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“It's about reacting to what you see, hopefully without preconception. You can find pictures anywhere. It's simply a matter of noticing things and organising them. You just have to care about what's around you and have a concern with humanity and the human comedy.”

Humans Matter Care Humanity Comedy Photography Concern Photographer Hopefully Noticing Reacting Preconceptions Noticing Things

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Making pictures is a very simple act. There is no great secret in photography...schools are a bunch of crap. You just need practice and application of what you've learned. My absolute conviction is that if you are working reasonably well the only important thing is to keep shooting...it doesn't matter whether you are making money or not. Keep working, because as you go through the process of working things begin to happen.”

“Making people laugh is one of the highest achievements you can have. And when you can make someone laugh and cry, alternatively, as Chaplin does - now that's the highest of all personal achievements. I don't know that I aim for it, but I recognize it as the supreme goal.”

People Knows Doe Goal Laughing Cry Achievement Photography Highest Aim Photographer Supreme Making People Laugh Chaplin Personal Achievement Make Someone Laugh

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“I like to think I keep my mind open. When I walk the streets I don't look for anything in particular. I come from a philosophy that believes you shouldn't have preconceived notions - that you don't need a gimmick. That you should just photograph what you react to - what you see.”

Thinking Needs Should Mind Believe Looks Philosophy Walks Streets Particular Photography Notion Photographer Photograph Gimmicks Preconceived Notions

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“There's no great mystique to photography. A lot of photographers like to put their hands up to their forehead and tell you how they've suffered and so forth. Well, I just rent a car and drive to the place and take the pictures.”

Wells Hands Car Photography Photographer Foreheads Mystique Hands Up

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“As a professional photographer I take photographs for other people to see - but I want them to see what I see. So I never assume that only a few people will appreciate what I do. At all times, the public should be able to understand what I've done, even if they don't understand how I've done it.”

People Ifs Want Should Done Able Photography Appreciate Assuming Photographer Photograph All Time Never Assume Professional Photographer

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“The work I care about is terribly simple. I observe. I try to entertain. But above all I want my pictures to be emotional. Little else interests me in photography.”

Want Trying Littles Care Interest Simple Emotional Photography Photographer I Care

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“I see no difference between my pictures that people consider amusing and the rest. To me, it's all serious work - they're just a reaction to what I see. I don't leave this apartment in the morning and say to myself 'Today I'm going to be funny and tomorrow I'm going to be sad.'”

People Today Differences Morning Serious Tomorrow Photography Photographer Reactions Apartment Amusing Serious Work

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Good photography is not about Zone Printing or any other Ansel Adams nonsense. It's just about seeing. You either see or you don't see. The rest is academic. Photography is simply a function of noticing things. Nothing more.”

Seeing Photography Function Photographer Nonsense Zone Academic Noticing Printing Good Photography Noticing Things

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“The main thing is to study pictures and stop listening to the pontifictaions of photographers. Photographers aren't oracles of wisdom. If they're good photographers, then take a good look at their pictures - what else do you need?”

Ifs Needs Looks Study Listening Photography Photographer Looking Good Oracles

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“You must have a visual sense if you want to be a photographer. It is a very subtle thing, this visual business.”

Ifs Want Photography Photographer Visuals Subtle

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“All the technique in the world doesn't compensate for the inability to notice.”

World Photography Photographer Technique Inability Street Photography

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Most photographers work best alone, myself included.”

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Ill always be an amateur photographer.”

Photography Photographer Ill

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“It's about time we started to take photography seriously and treat it as a hobby.”

Photography Treats Photographer Hobbies

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“You have to devote yourself totally to be successful at it.”

Successful Photography Photographer Being Successful

Book:The private experience: Elliott Erwitt

Source: The private experience: Elliott Erwitt

“If you keep your cool, you'll get everything.”

Ifs Photography Photographer

Book:The private experience: Elliott Erwitt

Source: The private experience: Elliott Erwitt

“I wasn't imposing my presence on anyone, which is very important for a would- be journalist. I stayed back. Always let people be themselves.”

People Important Would Be Photography Photographer Journalist Imposing

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“The advice I would give to any photographer - young, old or in-between - is to explore anything visual because this is, after all, how you express your artistry. Look at paintings, movies, drawings, sculptures - look at anything visual and try to integrate that into your visual sense. After that, go out and take pictures and keep on taking pictures!”

Giving Trying Looks Young Advice Painting Photography Photographer Drawing Visuals Sculpture Integrating Artistry Taking Pictures

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Photography is pretty simple stuff. You just react to what you see, and take many, many pictures.”

Stuff Simple Photography Photographer

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“A picture should be looked at - not talked about.”

Should Photography Photographer

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“You can find pictures anywhere. It's simply a matter of noticing things and organizing them.”

Matter Photography Photographer Noticing Noticing Things Noticing You

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“I'm not a serious photographer like many of my contemporaries. That is to say, I am serious about not being serious.”

Serious Photography Photographer

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“If you're not a curious person, you're certainly not going to be a good photographer.”

Ifs Persons Photographer Curious

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Photography is a craft. Anyone can learn a craft with normal intelligence and application. To take it beyond the craft is something else. That's when magic comes in. And I don't know that there's any explanation for that.”

Knows Magic Normal Photography Photographer Crafts Explanation Application

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“To me, photography is an art of observation. It's about finding something interesting in an ordinary place... I've found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.”

“Now very often events are set up for photographers... The weddings are orchestrated about the photographers taking the picture, because if it hasn't been photographed it doesn't really exist.”

Ifs Events Photography Photographer Wedding

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Be sure to take the lens cap off before photographing.”

Photography Photographer Lenses Caps

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“I'm an amateur photographer, apart from being a professional one, and I think maybe my amateur pictures are the better ones.”

Thinking Photography Photographer

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“My 'work' is about seeing not about ideas.”

Ideas Seeing Photography Photographer

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“It's just seeing - at least the photography I care about. You either see or you don't see. The rest is academic. Anyone can learn how to develop. It's how you organize what you see into a picture.”

Care Seeing Photography Photographer Academic I Care Organize

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“I don't think you can create luck. You're either lucky or you're not. I don't know if it's really luck or if it's just curiosity. I think the main ingredient, or a main ingredient for photography is curiosity. If you're curious enough and if you get up in the morning and go out and take pictures, you're likely to be more lucky than if you just stay at home.”

Ifs Thinking Knows Enough Home Morning Lucky Photography Luck Curiosity Photographer Get Up Curious Ingredients Stay At Home

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“The thing is that when you don't carry a camera, that's when you see pictures in particular, or at least that's when you think you see pictures in particular. When you do carry it, if you do see one on the occasion that you do, you can take it.”

Ifs Thinking Particular Photography Cameras Photographer Occasions

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Something catches your eye, or your interest. You attack it in some way or observe it in some way, and try to put it in some kind of form and take a picture. It's as simple as that.”

Way Trying Kind Eye Form Interest Simple Photography Photographer

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“I like things that have to do with what is real, elegant, well presented and without excessive style. In other words, just fine observation.”

Wells Real Style Fine Photography Photographer Observation Elegant

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“Working myself into a position of total versatility, so that I can do anything I want to do at the time I want to do it. Whether I do it or not is another question.”

Want I Can Can Do Position Photography Photographer Versatility

Book:The private experience: Elliott Erwitt

Source: The private experience: Elliott Erwitt

“You don't study photography, you just do it.”

Study Photography Photographer Just Do It

Author:Elliott Erwitt

“I don't like explosions. I don't mind progress. But digital photography has made every man, woman, child and chimpanzee a photographer of sorts and consequently has numbed down the general quality of photographs.”

Men Mind Children Made Quality Progress Photography Photographer Photograph Every Man Digital Explosions Men Women Chimpanzees Digital Photography

Author:Elliott Erwitt

About the Author

Born: July 26, 1928
Known for: Photographer
Quotes: 72

Related Topics

Photography Photographer Ifs Photograph Cameras People Thinking Want Way Littles Mind Noticing Noticing Things Observation Quality Simple Street Photography Taking Pictures Care Great Photography

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

The private experience: Elliott ErwittRelated source material

Dog dogsRelated source material

The private experience, Elliott ErwittRelated source material

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