Herb Ritts
Herb Ritts
Herbert "Herb" Ritts Jr.was an American fashion photographer who concentrated on black-and-white photography and portraits, often in the style of classical Greek sculpture...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionPhotographer
Date of Birth13 August 1952
CityLos Angeles, CA
CountryUnited States of America
affects american-photographer develop environment feeling home matter
Once you develop your own style, you know when you're able to give your best. Feeling at home is part of it, and I don't think that's an L.A. thing. It's a matter of the environment and of what affects you.
american-photographer
When you start out, you're not really aware. I didn't have a sense of photographic history.
american-photographer elements felt foreign halfway home matter
That's why I felt so at home when I went to Africa. It didn't matter that I was halfway around the world in a foreign country, because all those elements are universal. And I think that's one thing about my work: It's universal.
photography important subjects
It's important to let your subjects be themselves.
eye thinking important
For me, the most important thing I learned was just honing my eye. I think I had a good eye.
rehabilitation culture language
Regardless of whether you speak the language or are familiar with a culture, the picture should hold up.
shapes photographer form
I like form and shape and strength in pictures.
self people taught
Many people who excel are self-taught.
ocean light space
I abstract it in my photographs: I like large planes and spaces, areas of texture and light, like deserts or oceans or monumental places.
stars growing-up fun
I did grow up next door to Steve McQueen, who was a very famous movie star at the time, but as a kid it didn't impress me. We always had great fun with him. He would take us out on Sundays on his motorcycles, riding around in the desert; he was like a second father.
photography parent firsts
Actually, when I first started dabbling in photography, I was still working for my parents as a salesman.
black-and-white luxury labs
I'm pretty selective. I generally edit the contact sheets and then do work prints. Because I have my own lab and printers, I can afford the luxury of going through the contact sheets for black-and-white, making up work prints, seeing them big, and honing them down.
growing-up california light
Coming from California and growing up where I did, I've always had a fondness for and innate sensitivity to light, texture, and warmth.
thinking europe different
The education, the cultural awareness, is different in Europe, especially in France, from that in the United States. So I think the public will be much more appreciative of many images.