The way I would describe a pictorial is that it is a picture that makes everybody say โAaaaah,โ with five vowels when they see it. It is something you would like to hang on the wall. The french word โphotogeniqueโ defines it better than anything in English. It is a picture which must have quality, drama, and it must, in addition, be as good technically as you can possible make it.
Alfred EisenstaedtIt's important to understand it's OK to control the subject. If most editorial stories were photographed just as they are, editors would end up throwing most in the waste basket. You have to work hard at making an editorial picture. You need to re-stage things, rearrange things so that they work for the story, with truth and without lying.
Alfred EisenstaedtPeople will never understand the patience a photographer requires to make a great photograph, all they see is the end result. I can stand in front of a leaf with a dew drop, or a rain drop, and stay there for ages just waiting for the right moment. Sure, people think I'm crazy, but who cares? I see more than they do!
Alfred Eisenstaedt