Quote

Only a very small proportion of us take those excesses with us into later life. In the age before everyone had a camera, it was worthwhile, in my opinion, to record those excesses. Sometimes, many times actually, the young people I photographed were only dressed that way for one night that one night that they got snapped by me.

Derek Ridgers

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Derek Ridgers
Age: 72
Born: 1952
Born: October 20
Musical Artist
Photographer
Chiswick
London
Take
Opinion
Excess
Many
Small
Worthwhile
Sometimes
Age
Proportion
Way
Actually
Camera
Life
Times
Cameras
Excesses
People
Everyone
Later
Snapped
Night
Record
Photographed
Young
Records
Dressed

More quotes by Derek Ridgers

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In the age of social media, you have the selfie and some people - not always young people - seem obsessed with showing the world what their face looks like almost every day. Just like some people are obsessed with showing the world what their dinner looks like. It's beyond my understanding to be honest.
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The big downside to the global village that the Internet has created is that nothing has time to grow out of the public gaze and, even more dangerous, whatever your personal interests might be, there will always be someone somewhere to provide validation and encouragement.
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I preferred that option, where my camera (and by proxy, me) could look them straight in the eye. The way they reacted to me was always interesting. Sometimes hard young men would reveal vulnerability and a softer side. In the case of teenage girls, I often got a fascinating glimpse of the woman inside.
Derek Ridgers
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When I was starting, I was very much influenced by the straight up, eyes to camera style of August Sander. He is really the only one. Had I known then the work of people like Ken Russell, Vivian Maier, Helen Levitt, and Steven Berkoff, they would undoubtedly have influenced me too.
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I went from being an underpaid ad man to quite a successful photographer in a very short time. Success breeds confidence and as soon as I got properly confident, I developed my own style. After that I never looked back.
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Once I became a photographer, it stopped me being scared or intimidated by gangs of young men of whatever stripe. Initially, I could hide behind my camera but eventually I came to realize that if I was polite and friendly to them, then they probably would be to me too - a good life lesson.
Derek Ridgers