I realise that I had the best of serious picture journalism. There was an innocence in our approach, especially in the 1950s and 1960s when we naively believed that by holding a mirror up to the world we could help - no matter how little - to make people aware of the human condition.

I found a way of working which pleased me because I didn’t have to frighten people with heavy equipment. It was that little black box and me.

You can't make a great musician or a great photographer if the magic isn't there.

If the photographer is interested in the people in front of his lens, and if he is compassionate, it's already a lot. The instrument is not the camera but the photographer.

If the chemistry is right between star and photographer and the geometry of the pictures pleases the star, often the two people end up with a long-term professional friendship during which they continue to work together and to produce highly personal images.

It's the hardest thing in the world to take the mundane and try to show how special it is.

The instrument is not the camera but the photographer.