I respect newspapers but the reality is that magazine "photojournalism" is finished. They want illustrations, Photoshopped pictures of movie stars.
Mary Ellen MarkOne of my all-time favorite photographers is Irving Penn. I wish I could have watched him work.
Mary Ellen MarkI think you reveal yourself by what you choose to photograph, but I prefer photographs that tell more about the subject. There's nothing much interesting to tell about me; what's interesting is the person I'm photographing, and that's what I try to show. [...] I think each photographer has a point of view and a way of looking at the world... that has to do with your subject matter and how you choose to present it. What's interesting is letting people tell you about themselves in the picture.
Mary Ellen MarkEveryone asks me how I get my subjects to open up to me. Thereโs no formula to it. Itโs just a matter of who you are and how you talk to people - of being yourself.
Mary Ellen MarkA great photograph needs no explanation; it functions by suggestion. There is no need to be explicit.
Mary Ellen MarkI think you have to have a real point of view that's your own. You have to tell it your way. And, I think that it's a mistake to shoot for a specific magazine's point of view because it's never going to be as good. You have to shoot for yourself and photograph [ the way] you believe it.
Mary Ellen Mark