I sometimes get commissioned to photograph families, and they see the results and say, "Oh, I look terrible." And that's when I realize the difference between the people I choose and the people who choose me.

I've always said that the Europeans subconsciously knew how to pose because of the culture or tradition of having your portrait made. They were surrounded by these portraits, and subconsciously they were already posing for them.

I'm at the point now where I don't really have an agenda. I kind of let things flow, and there's not a narrative. On the set it's usually one or two people, and I'm not trying to choreograph them as I did in the past. I'm really just trying to see what's going on in their minds and in their faces.

People aren't really looking at the result when taking a picture on an iPhone. And they don't print it. So to me, it's almost not a photograph. It's like looking in the mirror. It's a tool I don't relate to at all.

I feel as if most people are pretty much the same within a certain class, due to the schools they attend and the way they are raised.

The conservatism is extraordinary to me; just compare the way they dress to the way their parents dress. There are still no tattoos or piercings, which is interesting to me. Why does everyone who lives in one place dress alike, look alike, eat the same thing, and decorate the same way?

Can you see the deaths, divorces, job losses or changes, disappointments, surprises, and successes on people's faces? Have they been happy, sad, disillusioned, or gratified? I have been trying the single, vertically shot portrait with my 8 x 10 since 1985 and never felt I succeeded in finding what I was looking for.