On the Cover Photo

The picture was taken in 1951 for LIFE magazine. Andreas Feininger (1906-1999), who had already been working for the magazine for years, had been commissioned to portray Dennis Stock (1928-2010), winner of the LIFE's Young Photographers Award. In a later interview, Feininger remembered that, at first, he had no real idea how to stage the twenty-year-younger photographer. He had already taken a few pictures of Stock with his medium-format camera, but the other man's wish to focus the light more strongly was the suggestion that provided the decisive solution. An additional spotlight came into play, which emphasised the Leica IIIf held in front of Stock's face in a tight crop. Above all, he added a clip-on viewfinder, which was also intended to cover his second eye. In this way, his eyes merged with the camera to form a single unit. The effect of this composition, where the photographer appears as a mirror image, continues to fascinate the viewer to this day. It is no longer an individual portrait of Stock that takes centre stage; rather it is the direct and universal manner in which the almost hypnotic intensity of seeing is addressed: the lens and viewfinder of the Leica are now mechanical extensions of the eyes and the mind.

Feininger immediately recognised the particular look and power of the image, and wanted it to appear on the cover of LIFE. That was never to happen; it was only published in the magazine four years later. Over the following decades, however, the picture – which was given the title The Photojournalist – was to become one of the publication's best-known and most frequently reproduced images. Stock himself also became a photographer for LIFE, a member of the Magnum Agency, and one of the most important photographers of his time, responsible in turn for producing many unforgettable portraits. We are happy to be able to now give this powerful portrait a cover position – how appropriate to use it on a whole magazine celebrating LFI's 75 year jubilee!