I was looking through my photographic books and realised that many of my favourite photographers have died in the past year or so:Herb Ritts,Helmut Newton,Richard Avedon...what's going on?

I was looking through my photographic books and realised that many of my favourite photographers have died in the past year or so:Herb Ritts,Helmut Newton,Richard Avedon...what's going on?

It's called life.

Don't know how to tell you this but your born, live for a short while then turn back into compost .... so many of the greats are from the same era and it's their turn to die ;)

Gentlemen!!
So cynical! :D Oh sure, it's that old 'circle of life' thing...but please...a moment of silence here for our dear departed brothers in film!

Harvinder Sunila...we feel your pain! From developer to fixer...and then to dust (too short of time in the fixer, no doubt)...we all must fade like color photos from the 70s.

Jeanette

What!...you mean we don't live forever, I'm sure I read somewhere on the net that we live forever?

Only, and I repeat ONLY if we are printed on fiber, fixed and rinsed properly, toned in selenium and have magic incantations said over us! haha :p
Jeanette

I agree it's sad. I feel the same way about famous actors that I loved to watch when I was a kid. I knew there would come a day when I'd have to watch them die off and sure enough.......

As for photographers, most of my favorites are long gone. My current favorites are pretty young and I may well outlive them, thankfully.

Question is, are any of us becoming the 'favorites' of any young ones out there?

-Mike

It is a down hill slide from conception on.:):):)

Even Ansel had to go to the "Final Wash". That is why we need to celebrate life with friends, family, and film.
As I get older, I feel like I am apartment hunting when I pass by a cemetery.

The best part is they left something endearing behind that we can continue to enjoy. Hey, if we have enough money, we can even own a piece. While many knew these few, most only know their published works. The families and friends miss the person, the masses, like me will miss the unrealized new work. Like how I miss new music from SRV.
The Rat

One thing about AA which classifies him as a genius, is that he realized that he is only a link in the chain and that others will come to surpass his accomplishments. In fact he always encouraged it of his students do try to do so.

I found out that my good friend and mentor, Carroll Siskind, died 4 years ago. His was the photo teacher at Monmouth College, NJ in the late 1970's and was my main influence for getting me into photography. His work is not well known yet he did one series on manaquins that is sensational. He also did street and fashion photography that rivals any master.

This thread makes a case for self portraits. A poor substitute for life (for the individual, at least) but in any case, more than just the evidence left by our mortal residue.

____________________________

This time, get in front of the camera.

Dean - the problem I find with my self portraits is they actually look like me :( Even I'm not so evil as to leave that kind of residue to future viewers.

Helmut Newton is dead!!?? I didn't realize that. How sad.

In spite of all the terrible horrors, many good things came out of the enormous effort we remember as WWII.

Commercial advertising photography as we know it, was created in the 50's almost exclusively by photographers who were trained by the US Government or were members of the allied forces.

It is rumored that the formula for Ektachrome itself was "liberated" from the German scientists at Agfa after their surrender. Before the war there was only Kodachrome.

The time has come for all of these marvelous players to return to The Father.

I swear though, it seems like the true masters are all going away leaving us with little in their wake.

Add one more name to the list: George Silk died over the weekend. He was one of the great Life magazine photographers who covered WWII, and a lot of sports. He was at the Battle of the Bulge.

Maybe the on-slaught of the digitial age has something to do with it?

DEATH. Is just mother nature's way of telling you to slow down.