Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/08/11
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I agree that WES was a phenomenal photographer, and his ability to see the shot, get it, and then produce what for the most part were stunning prints is incredible. The tragedy, as I see it, was his complete inability to carry his own projects through to completion, the Pittsburgh project being the most glaring example of his failure in this area. This kind of thing happened not only with Life, but with many organizations and publications, and the Hughes biography is replete with stories of WES breaking promises to get the job done on time (or at all). That said, IMO he is one of the most compelling photographers in the history of the craft. His notion that the photographer/artist/journalist must strive for truth, his recognition that truth (not to mention photography) cannot be objective, and his drive to use his subjective vision and talent to shape the message conveyed by the images he produced displaces the problematics that underlie his work from the field of photojournalism strictly speaking into the realm of art and philosophy. A fascinating photographer, and an equally fascinating body of work. Guy - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html