12. Hyde Park in the Grey Drizzle
1937
Black and White film
13. His Life
• Born August 22 1908, in Chanteloup, France
• He studied in Paris with André Lhote
– Inspired Cartier-Bresson to paint
• 1929: studied literature and painting at
Cambridge
• Became interested in photography
after seeing the work of Eugène
Atget and Man Ray
14. His Life
• Bought his first 35-mm Leica
camera in 1933
– Became his camera of choice
• Started making documentary films in1937
– 1st on medical aid in Spanish Civil War
• 1937 started reportage photography
• Working with film director Jean Renoir taught
him how to capture the essential moment
15. His Life
• Prisoner to Germans in 1940-1943
• 1947 had exhibit in MoMA and founded
Magnum Photos
• 1955 France honoured him with an exhibition
– 400 of his photos
• 1960s he focused on film and then drawing in
his later years
• Died August 3, 2004
16. His Goal
“Above all, I craved to seize the whole essence,
in the confines of one single photograph, of
some situation that was in the process of
unrolling itself before my eyes”
- Henri Cartier-Bresson
17. His Goal + Interests
• He wished to be a silent unseen witness
– He covered the chrome bits of camera with black
tape
– Hid it under a handkerchief
• Preferred capturing people + events
• Reportage style and content
• Documentary films
18. Reputation
• He was known for
capturing the
“decisive
moment”
• Helped establish
photojournalism
as an art form
Dublin
1952
23. Why Henri?
• Photos aren’t posed
– Captures movement and
emotion
• Composition
– Use of line and shape
Alberto Giacometti, rue d'Alésia,
Paris
1961
24. In Conclusion...
• Henri Cartier-Bresson was a photographer,
filmmaker, drawer, and painter
• Took photos from 1940s-70s
• He is best known for his work in
photojournalism and capturing the “decisive
moment”
• He is skilled in creating strong compositions
