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6 Lessons Inge Morath Has Taught Me About Photography

Inge Morath: one of the great female masters of photography, whose visual imagery I love.


“[Inge Morath was] a high priestess of photography… with the rare ability to penetrate beyond surfaces and reveal what makes her subject tick.” – John Huston

USA. New York City. 1997. Fourty-second Street.
USA. New York City. 1997. Fourty-second Street.
USA. New York City. 1957. Orchard Street.
USA. New York City. 1957. Orchard Street.
USA. New York. Manhattan. 1957. A Llama in Time Square. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
USA. New York. Manhattan. 1957. A Llama in Time Square. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
USA. New York City. 1958. One of the last horsedrawn carriages with a beautiful woman passenger, ballerina Vera ZORINA, in Central Park.
USA. New York City. 1958. One of the last horsedrawn carriages with a beautiful woman passenger, ballerina Vera ZORINA, in Central Park.
USA. New York City. 1958. Mrs. O. Kaletsch promenades her miniature poodle in the upper residential area of Fifth Avenue.
USA. New York City. 1958. Mrs. O. Kaletsch promenades her miniature poodle in the upper residential area of Fifth Avenue.
USA. New York City. 1963. Brooklyn neighborhood with the bridges in the background.
USA. New York City. 1963. Brooklyn neighborhood with the bridges in the background.

Inge Morath assisted Henri Cartier-Bresson (perhaps where she got insight into great and elegant composition) and was one of the early Magnum photographers. I don’t think she is as famous as she should be; so I hope to bring her work to light.

Interesting note, Morath kept this quote from Henri Cartier-Bresson on her mind:

“A good photograph is made when the inner vision behind the closed eye corresponds with the vision of the open one behind the viewfinder in the moment of pressing the button.” – Henri Cartier-Bresson


1. You show your soul through your photos

SPAIN. Navalcan. Province of Toledo. 1955. Bridesmaid's hairdo. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
SPAIN. Navalcan. Province of Toledo. 1955. Bridesmaid’s hairdo. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
USA. New York. Manhattan. 1958. Beauty class at the Helena Rubinstein Salon. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
USA. New York. Manhattan. 1958. Beauty class at the Helena Rubinstein Salon. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
County Kerry. Killorglin. Tinkers (gitans irlandais)
County Kerry. Killorglin. Tinkers (gitans irlandais)
inge morath photography - unseen4
MOI1954018W00232/28AC
Moldavie. Bicaz. Construction d'un barrage hydro-électrique. Femme ingénieur. Contact email: New York : photography@magnumphotos.com Paris : magnum@magnumphotos.fr London : magnum@magnumphotos.co.uk Tokyo : tokyo@magnumphotos.co.jp Contact phones: New York : +1 212 929 6000 Paris: + 33 1 53 42 50 00 London: + 44 20 7490 1771 Tokyo: + 81 3 3219 0771 Image URL: http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/C.aspx?VP3=ViewBox_VPage&IID=2S5RYDZCBT8F&CT=Image&IT=ZoomImage01_VForm
Moldavie. Bicaz. Construction d’un barrage hydro-électrique. Femme ingénieur. Contact email: New York : photography@magnumphotos.com Paris : magnum@magnumphotos.fr London : magnum@magnumphotos.co.uk Tokyo : tokyo@magnumphotos.co.jp Contact phones: New York : +1 212 929 6000 Paris: + 33 1 53 42 50 00 London: + 44 20 7490 1771 Tokyo: + 81 3 3219 0771 Image URL: http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/C.aspx?VP3=ViewBox_VPage&IID=2S5RYDZCBT8F&CT=Image&IT=ZoomImage01_VForm
MOI1967011W00014/30C
IRAN. Rasht. 1956. Kurdish shepard.
IRAN. Rasht. 1956. Kurdish shepard.
CHINA. Beijing. 1978. Actor/director Jin SHAN and actress Zheng ZENYAO.
CHINA. Beijing. 1978. Actor/director Jin SHAN and actress Zheng ZENYAO.

“Photography is a strange phenomenon… You trust your eye and cannot help but bare your soul.”

When looking at the photos of Inge Morath, I can see her soul. Her playful attitude, and grace.

2. The joy of making photos!

SPAIN. Pamplona . 1954. Antonio ORDONEZ getting ready to go out to fight a corrida. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
SPAIN. Pamplona . 1954. Antonio ORDONEZ getting ready to go out to fight a corrida. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
Spain. 1954. Pamplona. St. Fermines Festival.
Spain. 1954. Pamplona. St. Fermines Festival.
inge morath spain 3
SPAIN. Navarre. Pamplona. St Fermines Festival.
SPAIN. Navarre. Pamplona. St Fermines Festival.

“Pressing the shutter has remained a moment of joyful recognition, comparable to the delight of a child balancing on tiptoe and suddenly, with a small cry of delight, stretching out a hand toward a desired object.”

Inge Morath was quite ‘child-like’ in her photographic approach: making photos that are fun!

3. Making photos is a necessity

USSR. Moscow. 1965. Pavel KORIN. © Inge Morath/Magnum Photos
USSR. Moscow. 1965. Pavel KORIN. © Inge Morath/Magnum Photos
USSR. Leningrad. 1965. State Ballet School. © Inge Morath/Magnum Photos
USSR. Leningrad. 1965. State Ballet School. © Inge Morath/Magnum Photos
RUSSIA. 1965. Drawing room in novelist Lev KASSIL's house. (left to right) Mme. SOBINOV, widow of the tenor, under an early portrait of herself. Her granddaughter & Lev KASSIL and his wife.
RUSSIA. 1965. Drawing room in novelist Lev KASSIL’s house. (left to right) Mme. SOBINOV, widow of the tenor, under an early portrait of herself. Her granddaughter & Lev KASSIL and his wife.
USSR. Moscow. 1988. Decoration. Red Square. ©Inge Morath/Magnum Photos
USSR. Moscow. 1988. Decoration. Red Square. ©Inge Morath/Magnum Photos

“To take pictures had become a necessity and I did not want to forgo it for anything”

I love this — making it your own personal imperative to make photos.

4. Discovering inner-truth through photography

USA. NYC. 1991. Louise BOURGEOIS (FRA), sculptor.
USA. NYC. 1991. Louise BOURGEOIS (FRA), sculptor.
SPAIN. 1954. Torero Antonio ORDONEZ. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
SPAIN. 1954. Torero Antonio ORDONEZ. ©Inge Morath/MAGNUM PHOTOS
USA. Untitled. (from the Mask Series with Saul Steinberg), 1962. Photograph by Inge Morath © The Inge Morath Foundation/MAGNUM PHOTOS. Mask by Saul Steinberg © The Saul Steinberg Foundation/ARS, NY
USA. Untitled. (from the Mask Series with Saul Steinberg), 1962. Photograph by Inge Morath © The Inge Morath Foundation/MAGNUM PHOTOS. Mask by Saul Steinberg © The Saul Steinberg Foundation/ARS, NY
USSR. Leningrad. 1967. Poet Joseph BRODSKY on the roof of the Peter and Paul Fortress.
USSR. Leningrad. 1967. Poet Joseph BRODSKY on the roof of the Peter and Paul Fortress.
USA. California. Los Angeles. 1959. French-born author Anais NIN, sips coffee in Schwabs Drugstore.
USA. California. Los Angeles. 1959. French-born author Anais NIN, sips coffee in Schwabs Drugstore.
USA. Reno, Nevada. 1960. Set of "The Misfits". Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller in their suite in Reno’s Mapes Hotel after a day’s shooting.
USA. Reno, Nevada. 1960. Set of “The Misfits”. Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller in their suite in Reno’s Mapes Hotel after a day’s shooting.
CHINA. Beijing. 1978. 6:30 a.m., Chang An Avenue.
CHINA. Beijing. 1978. 6:30 a.m., Chang An Avenue.
AUSTRIA. Salzburg. 1991. Klessheim castle.
AUSTRIA. Salzburg. 1991. Klessheim castle.
IRAN. Shiraz. 1956. Veiled Muslim women and caged cockatoos (wives of one man).
IRAN. Shiraz. 1956. Veiled Muslim women and caged cockatoos (wives of one man).
The Gaza HOPE Orphanage is operated in part by UNRWA, 70 boys ranging in age from 7 to 13 learn a variety of useful trades from refugee instructors.They learn to cobble their own shoes, and contribute the surplus to the camps.
The Gaza HOPE Orphanage is operated in part by UNRWA, 70 boys ranging in age from 7 to 13 learn a variety of useful trades from refugee instructors.They learn to cobble their own shoes, and contribute the surplus to the camps.
USA. Roxbury, Connecticut. 1963. Sculptor Alexander CALDER in his studio.
USA. Roxbury, Connecticut. 1963. Sculptor Alexander CALDER in his studio.
USA. Walker, Kentucky. 1965. A poor mother and her children.
USA. Walker, Kentucky. 1965. A poor mother and her children.
GB. ENGLAND. London. Publisher Eveleigh NASH at Buckingham Palace Mall. 1953.
GB. ENGLAND. London. Publisher Eveleigh NASH at Buckingham Palace Mall. 1953.

“Photography is essentially a personal matter – a search for inner truth.”

Inge Morath didn’t just make photos for journalistic purpose. She also used photography as a philosophical tool — to search for her own inner-truth; how she saw the world (which I saw as optimistic, joyful, and bright!)

5. Always remain an amateur photographer

ENGLAND. London. 1954. Street corner at World's End.
ENGLAND. London. 1954. Street corner at World’s End.
SPAIN. Madrid. 1955. Plaza de Toros. Picador and Matador.
SPAIN. Madrid. 1955. Plaza de Toros. Picador and Matador.
AUSTRIA. Cafe in Vienna. 1961.
AUSTRIA. Cafe in Vienna. 1961.
inge morath color photos 4
USA. Reno, Nevada. 1960.
USA. Reno, Nevada. 1960.
MEXICO. 1959.
MEXICO. 1959.
TUNISIA. Mahdia. 1959. Fishermen.
TUNISIA. Mahdia. 1959. Fishermen.
SOUTH AFRICA. Basutoland. 1955.
SOUTH AFRICA. Basutoland. 1955.
ROMANIA. Certeze. 1958.
ROMANIA. Certeze. 1958.
MIDDLE EAST. Gaza. U.N. troops at Israeli frontier. 1960.
MIDDLE EAST. Gaza. U.N. troops at Israeli frontier. 1960.

” In my heart I like to remain an amateur, in the sense of being in love with what I’m doing, forever astonished again at the endless possibilities of seeing and using the camera as a recording tool.”

Don’t seek to be an indifferent ‘pro’ photographer. Stay an amateur (which means “lover” in Latin). Never lose your hope and optimism for the epic ability of the recording possibilities of the camera!


6. Photographing humans

USA. Nevada. Reno. 1960. Marilyn MONROE during the filming of The Misfits ©Inge Morath /Magnum Photos.
USA. Nevada. Reno. 1960. Marilyn MONROE during the filming of The Misfits ©Inge Morath /Magnum Photos.
FRANCE. Paris. 1957. Ives SAINT LAURENTE during his early days at the Christian Dior fashion house, prior to his first opening of his own collection.
FRANCE. Paris. 1957. Ives SAINT LAURENTE during his early days at the Christian Dior fashion house, prior to his first opening of his own collection.
Swedish actress Ingrid BERGMAN.
Swedish actress Ingrid BERGMAN.
USA. Nevada. Reno. 1960. "The Misfits." Clark GABLE and Marilyn MONROE.
USA. Nevada. Reno. 1960. “The Misfits.” Clark GABLE and Marilyn MONROE.
ENGLAND. London. 1953. New Bond Street. Two women dressed almost identically according to the rules of one particular and popular English school of fashion.
ENGLAND. London. 1953. New Bond Street. Two women dressed almost identically according to the rules of one particular and popular English school of fashion.
USA. Reno. Nevada. 1960. Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller in the back seat of a car during the filming of "The Misfits".
USA. Reno. Nevada. 1960. Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller in the back seat of a car during the filming of “The Misfits”.

“I am especially interested in photographing in countries where a new tradition emerges from an ancient one. I am more attracted to the human element than the abstract.”

Photograph more humans!


More inspiration by Inge Morath:

ROAD TO RENO:

inge morath road to reno1
USA. New Mexico. 1960. Hitch hikers on the road from Albuquerque to Gallup.
USA. New Mexico. 1960. Hitch hikers on the road from Albuquerque to Gallup.
inge morath road to reno3
USA. New Mexico. 1960. Highway entertainment at an Indian Trading Post before arriving in Albuquerque.
USA. New Mexico. 1960. Highway entertainment at an Indian Trading Post before arriving in Albuquerque.
USA.Arkansas. Little Rock. 1960.
USA.Arkansas. Little Rock. 1960.
MOI1954015W00015/29C

“This is the story of my first trip across the United States. It is not really a story, they are bits of notes written each night at a table in a motel room that always was a different place and always looked the same,”

“Cars run like hurried beetles, stuffed with their passengers, men and women and children, with suitcases and paper bags with beds and blankets.”- Inge Morath

“Practically nothing announces the approach of one of the most extraordinary places I was to see on this trip, grown out of the barbaric desires to gamble and gain and forget, Las Vegas suddenly receives you, wearing stage makeup in full daylights with the sophistication of a ham actor in an ambulant road show. The magnificent setting of this highly perishable world of a few boulevards, expensive hotels, motels, slot machines, chemin de Fer tables and chorus girls is the desert. Las Vegas spills you out into it again just a few minutes after you have left its main boulevard and one wonders how long it would take this sand to cover it all up, this heat to dry it all out.”


SPAIN

Inge Morath describes Spain as “ … almost like entering a dream one had had many times. I loved the people, they let me photograph them, but also they wanted me to listen to them, to tell me what they knew, so that we told their story together”.

Inge Morath desired (through photography) to:

“Express the things I wanted to say, giving them form through my eyes.”


Great Female Masters of Photography

“Migrant Mother” by Dorothea Lange

Men are over-represented in photography. Here are some great female photographers to know:

The Female Masters of Photography

Photo by Zoe Strauss / Magnum Photos
  • Inge Morath: Contemporary of Henri Cartier-Bresson, did epic photos of fashion, travels, with poetry and humanism.
  • Diane Arbus: Famous for her medium format flash photos, photographing the “outcasts” of society in an empathetic way. Unfortunately committed suicide.
  • Dorothea Lange: Famous for FSA photos of Dust Bowl and Great Depression. Iconic Migrant Mother photo.
  • Helen Levitt: Best classic street photographer, photographed children. Innovative color street photos.
  • Mary Ellen Mark: Probably one of the best composition photographers. Epic projects. My personal favorite female photographer. Great teacher, and timeless photos. Passed away recently.
  • Vivian Maier: Chicago Nanny, Whose passion was photography on the side. Discovered by John Maloof. Empathetic photos of everyday life, and pioneering color 35mm work as well as great street portraits in black and white on her Rolleifex
  • Zoe Strauss: Best living Magnum female photographer. Very down to earth, and has documented many individuals living with abusive partners. My favorite living female photographer.
  • Martine Franck: Wife of Henri Cartier-Bresson. I prefer her work over his. Strong layers and clean compositions.

Who are your favorite female photographers? Contribute your recommendations on ERIC KIM FORUM.


Learn From the Masters

Dorothea Lange in action

Start here:

  1. Cheat Sheet of the Masters of Photography
  2. 100 Lessons From the Masters of Street Photography
  3. Beginner’s Guide to the Masters of Street Photography
  4. Photos: Learn From the Masters of Photography

Download all articles as an ePub/PDF >

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