Herb Ritts

“Fashion is about a moment. It's about a mood. It's about a person.”

“I'm very much a Californian.”

“For me, a portrait is something from which you feel the person, their inner quality, what they are.”

“The light in California is so beautiful. It’s what inspires me.”

“Simplicity is key.”

“I try to get a real sense of the person. Not just a pretty picture.”

“I think a lot of the time these images are simply about a certain kind of mystery.”

“I work very quickly. I have to. The light's not going to wait for me.”

“I don't stage things. I try to capture a moment.”

“The models I work with are not just objects; they are collaborators.”

“To me, the body is a canvas.”

“I want my pictures to be timeless.”

“I like that my pictures are accessible. I don't want them to be elitist.”

“I'm not an intellectual photographer. I'm a photographer who's more about feeling and heart.”

“I like to make people look as good as they'd like to look, and with luck, a shade better.”

“I've always been a big fan of beauty. Sure, you can't judge a book by its cover, but a beautiful cover certainly helps you sell it.”

“Black and white is a different way of seeing.”

“I was never one to do my own printing... I didn't have the patience.”

“I'm always looking for that little bit of mystery.”

“A lot of my work has been about the body, and it's something I've always been interested in.”