Favorite Photographer [edit: and a few tangents]

I never really have an answer to the question "who is your favorite photographer?" Part of this may stem from the fact that I do not consider my niche in photography as of now as art, while I also don't see myself doing art in the future. This all may just be a matter of perception, but part of my view on being in the photography department is that it wouldn't make much sense for me to try to make a living, or a start for that matter, in the photography industry without a degree in the field, even though I consider what we're learning not very related to what I intend to do. Ideally I would like to make a living off of being a sports photographer, primarily from the documentary aspect, though the art side of the genre does interest me as well. I'm digressing, I'll get back to the favorite photographer question in a second. I wholeheartedly agree that I am learning very valuable skill, and my work overall has improved greatly in just one year, and by no means would I change anything about the situation- but there are times where I feel like I'm just majoring in photography for the words on the diploma. Anyway, that sounded more negative than I intended it to be. I'm very happy where I am, and am learning a great deal. To finish off the aside, I will borrow the words of a photographer recently introduced to me by a friend. In Miles' "MUTE" photography blog, he answers the are you an artist query with the following:

I don't consider myself an artist, or the kind of photography I do art. I don't have anything profound to say, they're just images. In my opinion art requires intention.

This site isn't a portfolio, I'm not trying to build a coherent body of work, it's just a blog. I do love photography and it's a creative outlet that I want to keep on my own terms.

On the contrary, I believe that I shoot with much intention, and I would argue that his work reflects a significant deal of intention as well, but I understand what he means. One of my best friends opted out of majoring in photography because, like Miles said, she would rather keep it her personal thing and make the discoveries on her own rather than being instructed in a classroom. Okay, I'm done.

Neil Leifer is usually my answer to the original question of the post, though my favorite photograph is Timothy O'Sullivan's "A Harvest of Death".

Favorite probably sounds creepy when referring to an image of bodies ravaged by war, but an interesting parallel was drawn between this image and my work by my darkroom teacher last year. She said that they both demonstrate the defining moment of an event- this one, obviously not only symbolizes Gettysburg, but it represents the Civil War as a whole, the most defining moment in American history. Not that the picture of a winning touchdown holds nearly as much weight emotionally or in any other respect, but the both epitomize the moment that delineates the outcome of an event. Now, back to Neil Leifer. Leifer is a sports photographer, surprise, who was born in New York City in 1942. Leifer quickly rose in prominence as photographer from his teenage years when his work began appearing in publications throughout the country. As a child, Leifer gained admittance to Yankee Stadium by helping disabled patrons into the stadium, and would often remain for the entire game. According to his website,

In August 1972, Leifer became a staff photographer for Sports Illustrated . He left Sports Illustrated in February 1978 and became a staff photographer for Time magazine. In 1988 he was made a contributing photographer at LIFE magazine and spent the next two years dividing his time between Time and LIFE magazines. Leifer left Time, Inc. in 1990. By that time, his photographs had appeared on more than 200 Sports Illustrated, Time and People covers, the most covers ever published of one photographer's work in Time, Inc. history.

What Leifer has done in the photography industry epitomizes what my aspirations are. He has photographed 15 Olympic Games, 4 World Cups, the first 10 Superbowls, countless World Series games, and every important heavyweight title fight since 1960. Leifer's favorite subject and that which he is most famous for is boxing, more specifically, Muhammad Ali. He now devotes almost all of his time to directing films, but his legacy remains as his name is behind several of the most iconic images in sports.