The Moment It Clicks: Photography Secrets From One of the World's Top Shooters

go and try it. Win, lose, or draw, Bill believes fiercely in the capabilities of the lone photographer in the field to produce significant, moving images. He defends the process, and has faith in ideas, even some of the nuttier ones I have had. The mandate to simply go out, unfettered, and find stuff to make pictures of is the greatest gift a picture editor can give a photographer.

    As far as shooters go, so many heroes, so many influences. In school I wanted to be W. Eugene Smith. I devoured the work of Leonard McCombe, John Zimmerman, Gjon Mili, Ralph Morse, and Gordon Parks. When I got to New York, I encountered real pros (there is no higher praise). Guys like Danny Farrell, Jimmy McGrath, and Mike Lipack showed me the ropes at the Daily News . In the magazine world, I always stood in awe of Wally McNamee, Neil Leifer, David Burnett, Jim Stanfield, Jim Richardson, Alex Webb, Brian Lanker, Greg Heisler, Michael O’Neill, Bill Allard, David Alan Harvey, Walter Iooss, and Jay Maisel, to name a few. I always tell young photographers to study the work of others. It is the shoulders upon which you stand.
     
    I bought my first Nikon camera in 1973 and, little did I know, I bought much more than a camera. Over the years, I have become part of the Nikon family, and they have been a source of strength, counsel, and support in amazing ways, including the creation of this book. People like David Lee, Anna Marie Bakker, Ed Fasano, Bill Pekala, Jay Vannatter, Joe Ventura, Frances Roth, Barbara Heineman, Lindsay Silverman, Melissa DiBartolo, Mark Kettenhofen, Bill Fortney, Sam Garcia, and Carol Fisher are the human face of a great camera system. Nikon puts their people in the trenches with us, like my blood brother Mike Corrado. Guys like Mike are the reason their cameras are so good, and why being a “Nikon shooter” has always been something special.

    Every photographer needs a support system and mine is extraordinary. My sisters Kathy and Rosemary are also my dear, dear friends. Their phone calls often start with the question, “Where are you?” Even though a bit of my life remains a mystery to them, and I am often far away in the field and out of touch, we are extraordinarily close. They are always there for me, and are far wiser than I. Their love, advice, and confidences are shelter from the storm. My friend and studio manager, Lynn DelMastro, has held together the ramshackle enterprise known as McNally Photography for 15 years now, through thick and very thin, and continues to this day to be a friend, the smart and engaging face of our business, a source of wisdom and humor, a confidante, and an astonishingly skilled producer. The list could go on. Lynn wears many hats during the course of an average day at the studio. (When did we last have one of those?) All that aside, at the end of the day, it is her deep and abiding friendship, her wit and wisdom, her love of this collective enterprise, her unshakable faith and trust that enables me to once again put the cameras on my shoulder and go out and make a picture. She is one of the treasures of my life.
     
    About a year ago, a very atypical Tennessean named Brad Moore walked in our doors. He is an able field assistant, a computer wizard, an excellent photographer who is represented in this book, and a devotee of funny, bad, good, and just plain strange movies. He has become a fast friend to Lynn and me, indispensable at the studio, and, at many points, the glue that has held together this book project. Much the same could be said of Ellen Price, who is the shepherdess of the Faces of Ground Zero—Giant Polaroid Collection. She has been tireless in seeking support and a repository for the pictures, which is no simple task, seeing as the collection consists of twelve 2,000-lb. crates of framed, life-size Polaroid prints of the heroes of 9/11. Her faith in the importance of these photographs will find them a home. Likewise, Allison Lucas, Chris Parker, and Meghan Long work at our studio. They share in the adventure, the wonderful and daunting process of running a very small photo business.

    I have been fortunate to meet and work with some of the very best people in this business. Kriss Brungrabber of Bogen, Dan Steinhardt of Epson, Michelle Pitts of Lexar, Justin Stailey of Leica, Bahram Foroughi and Martin Gisborne of Apple, John Omvik (formerly of Lexar), Reid Callanan at the Santa Fe Workshops, Elizabeth Greenberg at the Maine Media Workshops, and Gen Umei of K &