His death was confirmed by Peter Blachley of the Morrison Hotel Gallery, which represents him in New York. The cause was not immediately known, but Mr. Blachley said that Mr. Marshall had died in his sleep.

Mr. Marshall, who lived in San Francisco, was in New York to promote “Match Prints,” his new book with his friend and fellow photographer Timothy White. They had been scheduled to appear at an event at the John Varvatos clothing store in SoHo on Wednesday evening. An exhibition of photographs from the book is to open on Friday at the Staley-Wise Gallery, also in SoHo.

In crisp photographs, shot mostly in black and white and with a stable of trusty Leica rangefinders, Mr. Marshall captured pop stars in their full onstage glory, as well as in unguarded offstage scenes that humanized them as approachable or vulnerable.

Among his most famous pictures are Hendrix setting his guitar aflame at the Monterey International Pop Festival in 1967, which established Hendrix’s early reputation as a wild man; Cash angrily gesturing with his middle finger while at the San Quentin State Prison in 1969; a boyish Bob Dylan following a stray tire down a New York street in 1963; and Janis Joplin clutching a bottle of Southern Comfort backstage in 1968.

To get those pictures he insisted on extraordinary access, and usually got it. He was a favored portraitist for many of his subjects, who sometimes allowed him to follow them for days. He was the only photographer allowed backstage for the Beatles’ 1966 farewell concert in San Francisco, was at Woodstock in 1969, and shot the Rolling Stones’ 1972 tour on assignment for Life magazine.

Annie Leibovitz once called him “the rock ’n’ roll photographer.”

With an imposing figure and gruff, forceful personality, Mr. Marshall was something of a rock star himself, and musicians respected him as much for his pictures as for his dedication to getting them. Yet he saw his work largely in photojournalistic terms, capturing a natural scene instead of staging an artificial one.

“When I’m photographing people, I don’t like to give any direction,” he wrote in the introduction to his 1997 retrospective book, “Not Fade Away.” “There are no hair people fussing around, no make-up artists. I’m like a reporter, only with a camera; I react to my subject in their environment, and, if it’s going well, I get so immersed in it that I become one with the camera.”

Born in Chicago on Feb. 3, 1936, he moved with his family to San Francisco two years later. His father, a housepainter, left when he was a boy, and his mother worked in a laundry. As a child he enjoyed playing with his Kodak Brownie, but it was not until about 1960 that Mr. Marshall, equipped with his first Leica M2, found his calling through a chance encounter with John Coltrane. “He asked me for directions to a club,” he said in a 2004 interview. “I told him I’d pick him up and take him there if he’d let me take his picture.”

In addition to Coltrane, he shot Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk and other jazz stars, but he is best known for his extensive catalog of 1960s and ’70s rockers, which includes most of the San Francisco psychedelic groups as well as Jim Morrison, the Who, Led Zeppelin, Neil Young and the Allman Brothers Band.

In 1962 Mr. Marshall moved to Greenwich Village, where his neighbors included Mr. Dylan and Judy Collins. But after two years he returned to San Francisco, where he remained. In his career he shot for Rolling Stone and other magazines and had more than 500 album cover credits.

No immediate family members survive.

Mr. Marshall spoke candidly about how his cocaine addiction had sidelined his career in the mid-1970s. By the late 1980s he had re-emerged, and his skills — and prestige — were often in demand by younger musicians like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Cult. He had numerous gallery shows in recent years, and some of his work was included in the Brooklyn Museum’s exhibition “Who Shot Rock & Roll: A Photographic History, 1955 to the Present,” which ran from October to January.

“A lot of photography of music is about the look, the style, the celebrity image,” said Gail Buckland, the curator of that show. But Mr. Marshall, she added, “wasn’t really manufacturing an image.”

“He was trying to see who that person was,” she said.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/

One of our times greatest photographers, Elliott Erwitt will attend the Nordic Light Festival 27 april – 1 may 2010 in Kristiansund Norway, so this will be a pure joy for us Norwegians, or the tourist looking looking for an exiting country/city to visit, this is it, Kristiansund is a lovely city, and as we all know Norway is a beautiful country. So pack your bag’s and order a ticket…there will also be other big photographer attending, like Anton Corbijn and Marc Riboud.

Here’s a few fact’s about this amazing photographer:

Elliott Erwitt – (b. 26 July 1928 Paris, France) is an advertising and documentary photographer known for his black and white candid shots of ironic and absurd situations within everyday settings — the master of the “indecisive moment”.

Early Life – In 1939, at the age of ten, Erwitts familly, of Jewish-Russian origin, emigrated to the United States. Erwitt studied photography and filmmaking at the Los Angeles City Collegeand the New School for Social Research, finishing his education in 1950.

Photographic Career – Born in Paris of Jewish-Russian immigrant parents, Erwitt served as a photographer’s assistant in the 1950′s in the United States Army while stationed in France and Germany. Erwitt was influenced by his meeting the famous photographers, Edward Steichen, Robert Capa and Roy Stryker. Stryker, the former Director of the Farm Security Administration‘s photography department, hired Erwitt to work on a photography project for the Standard Oil Company. Erwitt then began a freelance photographer career and produced work for Collier’s, Look, Life and Holiday magazines. Joining the Magnum Photos agency in 1953 allowed Erwitt to shoot photography projects around the world.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliott_Erwitt

More info: www.elliotterwitt.com

Hasselblad releases what is said to be a competitor to the Leica S2, with the new H4D-40, although I do not think it is that much of a competition since it’s way bigger, and builds on the H-System which is nothing like the Leica S2 DSLR compactness. But we can hope this brings down the “out of the galaxy” price for the Leica S2 system, and since I think Hasselblad lost their “charm” after ending development of the V-System I would rather buy a Leica S2.

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Press Release:

Copenhagen, February 2nd 2010: The announcement of Hasselblad’s H4D line of cameras and True Focus technology heralded the beginning of a new chapter in the history of medium format DSLRs. Now, with the launch of the H4D-40, Hasselblad is announcing its intent to bring the advantages of Medium Format DSLRs to high-end 35mm photographers.
The announcement of Hasselblad’s H4D line of cameras and True Focus technology heralded the beginning of a new chapter in the history of medium format DSLRs. Now, with the launch of the H4D-40, Hasselblad is announcing its intent to bring the advantages of Medium Format DSLRs to high-end 35mm photographers.
“Most high-end photographers understand the advantages that a Medium Format system has over smaller formats,” explains Hasselblad CEO Larry Hansen, “but many younger photographers have never been exposed to larger format photography. Most everyone in the photographic world is aware, for example, of the dramatic developments that have taken place in the 35mm in recent years,” he continues, “but there many of the younger generation of shooters are not aware of the fact that Medium Format DSLRs have evolved equally dramatically, maintaining – and even in some cases increasing – the quality gap that has historically existed between small format and larger format systems.”
“The fact that our large sensors have millions of pixels more than 35mm sensors is known, for instance,” Hansen continues, “but the superior image quality that results, in terms of color, detail, and clarity, is not as well known. Likewise, many photographers are not aware of the fact that the larger format of the H System cameras provides a considerably shallower depth of field range, making it much easier to utilize selective focus to creative effect.

When combined with True Focus, this opens enormous creative possibilities and technical accuracy. Add to this the modularity of the H4D-40 with its choice of bright image viewfinders and an extensive accessories program, and you get a feature set that makes a Hasselblad system, today, more than ever, a crucial component of any professional photographic toolbox.”
Features such as new low noise color filters of the H4D-40’s sensor and the high performance HC/HCD lens line, provide the basis for increased clarity and increased depth of field. The Hasselblad Natural Color Solution (HNCS) achieves consistent color reproduction using a single color profile, and Press Release Copenhagen, February 2nd 2010 Hasselblad brings Medium Format DSLR advantages to new generation of photographers with new H4D-40 camera. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE page 2/3 digital lens correction (DAC), perfects each image captured through the HC/HCD lenses, by removing any trace of distortion, vignetting, or chromatic aberrations.

The H4D also comes bundled with Hasselblad’s new Phocus 2.0 imaging software, featuring a dramatically reduced learning curve, enabling the average photographer to be up to speed in less than 30 minutes, and a feature set that matches the industry standards defined by Adobe and Apple.

“We are thrilled to be able to announce the introduction of the H4D-40,” continues Hansen, “and look forward to welcoming a new generation of 35mm photographers as they step up to a higher level of image quality and begin to explore the creative possibilities provided by a Hasselblad system. With the H4D-40, photographers get a camera that is as easy to use – or even easier – than a high-end 35mm DSLR, but that comes with the famed Hasselblad image quality – larger lenses and sensors, more advanced optics, increased resolution and clarity, and all the other benefits of Hasselblad’s Medium Format DSLRs.”

“For over half a century,” Hansen concludes, “Hasselblad cameras have been the choice of the most discerning professionals and the reason for that loyalty has not changed – at Hasselblad, image quality always comes first. We will continue to pursue image quality perfection and will continue to provide the ultimate imaging tools for any application where image quality is important. And in the upcoming months we will do our best to see that as many 35mm photographers as possible get the opportunity to try these amazing products for themselves.”

Hasselblad is launching the H4D-40 worldwide via a series of dealer demonstrations and events in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The H4D-40 starts at 13,995 Euro / 19.995 USD / 12.995 GBP for camera body, viewfinder, and 80mm lens, and is available for immediate shipping. For dates and times of regional or local launch events, or to learn more about the advantages of the Hasselblad system, log on to www.hasselblad.com

The Thames and Hudson photofile book’s are just brilliant, because they fit in your pocket or photo bag, so when you walk around all day looking for subjects, just sit down have a coffee and browse through one of these inspirational softback’s…

The makers own words

“The classic Photofile series brings together the best work of the world’s greatest photographers in an attractive format and at a reasonable price. Handsome and collectible, the books are produced to the highest standards. Each volume contains some sixty full-page reproductions printed in superb duotone, together with a critical introduction and a full bibliography. Now back in print, the series was awarded the first annual prize for distinguished photographic books by the International Center of Photography.”

Source : Thames and Hudson

For more info: http://www.thamesandhudsonusa.com/series/photofile.html

The amazing Duane Michals exibition will visit Horten, Norway. The exibition starts on the jan 17. 2010 and will be up until the april 11. 2010, the exibition will include some of his most valued work, and is set up by ADMIRA, Milano.

Duane Michals – Chance Meeting