As a master of candid photography, Henri Cartier-Bresson excelled in capturing what he called was a "decisive moment" in time.
In the early 1900's in France, the name Cartier-Bresson was a known brand of threads, but the owner Andre Cartier-Bresson's eldest child, Henri Cartier-Bresson would later make a name for himself as a photographer. Cartier-Bresson was born on this day in 1908 Chanteloup-en-Brie, France to his wealthy parents, who exposed him to various forms of art. It was when he was five years old that he found a fascination for painting that would lead to an interest in photography using a Leica Rangefinder.
Art was in Cartier-Bresson's blood, as his uncle Louis Cartier-Bresson was in fact an accomplished painter and winner of the Prix de Rome in 1910. According to The Art Story, Cartier-Bresson bonded with his uncle through art and even called him his "mythical father."
So how exactly did master photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson discover his passion for photography and when did he pick up his first camera? Here are five things to know about the famous photographer and his favorite Leica Rangefinder.
1. Cartier-Bresson was first inspired by a photograph in 1931.
After a year of studies at University of Cambridge in England and being enlisted into the French army for a time, Cartier-Bresson returned to Marseille and found a photograph titled "Three Boys at Lake Tanganyika" by Martin Munkacsi, a photographer from Hungary.
The photo depicted three boys running naked into the waves of a beach in Africa. It was then Cartier-Bresson realized that "photography can fix eternity in a moment."
2. Cartier-Bresson purchased his first camera in 1932.
Following a newfound interest in photography, Cariter-Bresson purchased a Leica rangefinder camera.
The Leica II was a rangefinder camera that was released in 1932 and were the first cameras from the brand that featured a built-in rangefinder. Its compact size and portability allowed Carter-Bresson to capture images without having to intrude in a scene or subject.
3. Cartier-Bresson had a unique photography style.
As a humanist photographer who would later be known as a master of candid photography, Cariter-Bresson had a unique way of taking photos using his Leica rangefinder. According to All About Photo, he would often exclusively use Leica 35 mm rangefinder cameras that had normal 50 mm lenses or at times, a wide-angle lense for landscapes.
Cartier-Bresson would also wrap black tape around the camera's chrome body to make it appear less conspicuous.
4. Cartier-Bresson would craft the image even before he took it.
Because the Leica rangefinder was lighter than previous cameras and was easy to maneuver, it enabled Cartier-Bresson to have what he called "the velvet hand [and] the hawk's eye" in taking photos. He never shot a photo using the flash because he thought it was "impolite."
Cartier-Bresson's photos were also unique in the sense that he composed his photographs in the camera's viewfinder even before he took the shot and not afterwards.
5. Cartier-Bresson exclusively took photos in black and white.
Cartier-Bresson liked to keep his photographs simple and straightforward by shooting mostly in black and white. Other than a few shots in full color, he was not passionate about the process of developing or creating his own prints. He also had a lack of interest in the photography process in general unless it allowed him to express his vision.
As per International Center of Photography, Cartier-Bresson founded an agency called Magnum in 1847 with Robert Capa, Chim (David Seymour), and George Rodger. The famed photographer who pioneered the genre of street photography quietly passed away on August 3, 2004, just a couple of weeks shy of what would have been his 96th birthday.
