Leica Hall of Fame Award

“I don't take pictures of dogs. To me, dogs are people.”

Elliott Erwitt is considered one of the world's best-known photographers (1928 - 2023). His works, which are mostly in black and white feature not only prominent personalities but also memorable moments in contemporary history, are considered modern masterpieces of photography. As a self-confessed dog fan, the four-legged friends also play a special role in his photographic work. The subtle humor in many of his images is Elliott Erwitt's trademark. He was born in Paris on July 26, 1928, the son of Russian immigrants, and spent his childhood in Milan. In 1939 the family emigrated, via France, to the USA. The passionate cosmopolitan returned again and again to the metropolis on the Seine, the scene of some of his first photographic excursions in the 1940s and the founding headquarters of the Magnum - always with his Leica.

“A photo needs to have something magical about it. It is only then that the special atmosphere of the picture invites the viewer to linger.”

The subjects in his repertoire are very diverse and his style is unmistakable. Whether as a chronicler of Germany’s Ruhr district, a globe-trotting travel photographer, a delighted circus-goer, a night-owl travesty photographer, or a lover of espresso coffee – it is easy to recognise Walter Vogel as the chronicler of an era; a classic photo reporter whose experienced eyes and perfect precision produced unforgettable picture motifs. With an imagery defined by authenticity, precision, and an at times sublime sense of humour, Vogel (born 1932) is one of the greatest German Leica photographers of the analogue era.

“I don’t consider myself a documentary photographer – documentary photographer suggests you just stand back, that you’re not in the picture, you’re just recording. I am in the picture but I am not the picture.”

He is one of America’s most important photographers – many of his pictures have written history. His eye is incorruptible: critical, sensitive, empathetic and always respectful of the people he portrays. With passionate dedication, Davidson (born 1933), who now lives in New York, got involved with the subjects and the protagonists of his stories, often accompanying them over long periods of time. Characterised by his personal views, the photographer’s images consequently always also convey a moral stance that elevates his work far beyond mere documentation.

“I often think that the camera is a divining rod. It guides me! Because having it with me, in my hands, or on my shoulder, it is my license to see.”

The photographer belongs to the most renowned representatives of US street and colour photography. Like few others, the photographer (born 1938) manages time and again to draw out surprising and often very curious moments from the tangled confusion of everyday life. “I think all the stuff on the street is a gift. But you only get it if you go out there every day.” Especially in his hometown of New York City, but also in various countries and particularly in many cities, he took well-known photographs that remain iconic within the photographer’s unmistakable body of work.

Joel Meyerowitz was inducted into the Leica Hall of Fame in 2016. The award was presented to him personally the following year.

“I want my pictures to be provocative without creating artificial sensations and without distorting the truth.”

With simple humility, the photographer (born 1936) has always seen himself as just an assignment photographer, someone interested in nothing less than the truth, in the honesty of the moment. In 1959 he started working for international magazines and annuals, travelling throughout the USA for a number of months on assignment for Kristall magazine, and producing Champ in 1966, his legendary reportage about Muhammad Ali. In 1964 he started working full time for Stern, impacting its overall look first as a photographer and later as art director at the end of the eighties. He became a full member of the Magnum Agency in 1989, presiding over the institution from 2003 to 2007. With his precise composition, tight visual statements, and refined imagery, Hoepker has defined German photojournalism like few others.

“Every time I go on an assignment, I look for a story.”

After the death of his brother, he took over his brother’s cameras and began working as a photojournalist in Vietnam. Numerous images and reports were produced, but one of the most famous war pictures of all time is inseparably linked with the photographer (born 1951). It was taken on June 8, 1972 and shows Vietnamese victims on the run, a few minutes after the dropping of napalm bombs, with the screaming Kim Phuc in the centre. The Leica picture went around the world, making the photographer world-famous. But the severely injured girl was also rescued and both are linked by a lifelong friendship. After the end of the Vietnam War, Út left for the USA and acquired American citizenship.

“Most of my photos are grounded in people. I look for the unguarded moment, the essential soul peeking out, experience etched on a person’s face. I try to convey what it is like to be that person.”

The American photographer (born 1950) has been one of the most iconic voices in contemporary photography for more than 40 years, with scores of magazine and book covers, over a dozen books, and countless exhibitions around the world to his name. His work spans conflicts, vanishing cultures, ancient traditions and contemporary culture alike – yet always retains the human element. In 1986 McCurry became a full member of Magnum Photos.