Great photographers you should know.

Q: YOU MENTION THAT YOU LIKE TO STUDY GREAT PHOTOGRAPHERS’ WORK, AND THAT IF WE WANT TO UNDERSTAND GOOD WORK, WE SHOULD LOOK INTO DOING THE SAME. I AM CURIOUS, DO YOU HAVE A LIST OF YOUR FAVORITE PHOTOGRAPHERS?

A: In no specific order. Go look these folks up.

W. Eugene Smith

Gordon Parks

Mary Ellen Mark

Mark Seliger

Edward Weston

Dan Winters

Philippe Halsman

Robert Capa

Yousuf Karsh

Kareem Black

Peter Yang

Peggy Sirota

Herb Ritts

Gregory Heisler

David Burnett

Susan Meiselas

Mario Testino

Paolo Roversi

David Turnley

Sebastiao Salgado

James Nachtwey

Dorothea Lange

Margaret Bourke-White

Gregory Colbert

Sam Abell

That should keep you busy. These are folks, both new and old, that you should know about. There are so many more people I could list. Study these. They will lead you to others.

Mark Seliger is one of my personal photographic heroes. He has been an inspiration to me and my work for at least 15 years. I had the opportunity to hear him speak at Photo Plus a few years ago, and I cornered him on his way out the door for a portrait. He was kind enough to give me a minute of his time. :: Canon 5D Mk II / 24–70mm lens @ 70mm / f3.2 @ 1/160th @ ISO 100 / Lit with a Nikon SB80-DX in a 28″ Westcott Apollo softbox.