Annie Leibovitz

In my opinion, Annie Leibovitz is by far the best portrait photographer of this century. I have been attracted to her work since a kid. On of my earliest memories is when my father told my not to look at this Rolling Stone Magazine book. So naturally I did. My first picture that really had that wow effect on me was the John and Yoko Ono cover of Jan. 1981. At first it was the shock factor, that guy is naked, wow that is a little gross. but then I looked at the photo. Now at the mear age of four I had no clue what made a good photo, (nor do I know that much to that today) but I remember feeling my skin tighten and my hair stand up. For a minute I was in ah. Eventually I went back to pestering my sister, or something along those lines. But this photo will and forever has been burned into my memory.
Today I look at that photo often, and relay back to it. It is really the only photo that captures love to me. I don't mean to rant, but I have been through many trials in my life, and oddly enough these events have been documented by hundreds of photographers. But I don't see love. John Lennon, although being a bit of a stoner, lived in love. There aren't people like that in this world that often. He loved Yoko Ono. And there was never a love letter released, or a song entitled Yoko, there is that photo. This photo captured John Lennon's love for his wife. That concept is so powerful and truly does make this image so amazing.
I don't like shooting portraits. I don't have the steady hand for it, nor the ego to work with people like that. But I love portrait photography. And Annie Leibovitz's John Lennon and Yoko Ono portrait is the reason why I love portrait photography, and in a strange way, am continually looking for another portrait to affect me like this one.