Original subtitles

We have the photos anyway, right?

Newton is a genius

because one recognises his photos at once.

That's what distinguishes a great photographer.

Among a thousand photos one immediately sees which is his.

That's also the case with pictures by avedon, bourdin and so on.

But the pictures that I find it easiest to recognize

are Helmut's pictures.

Except when we're talking about a very good copy, which is rare.

Really, there are no good copies of a Newton. All Helmut does is good.

The work of those who copy him is not so good.

It lacks what is essential.

You can compare a black-and-white photo of Helmut's with a sketch by Matisse.

His viewpoint is never the camera's. P

if you look at the photos... And I don't mean portraits,

I mean when he photographs real scenes...

He never puts himself in the position of the camera.

He puts himself in the position of someone observing the scene.

It's very rare to see this viewpoint in sophisticated photo-art.

It's said in such art one must always shoot face, gaze and body.

From a certain "ideal" viewpoint.

His gaze deviates from this "ideal".

It's the gaze of a "voyeur", if you will. But in any case of an observer.

I have an older brother.

He is ten years older than me.

He always wanted to be a farmer,

and I always wanted to be... Already as a boy...

I saw myself as a roving reporter

with ten cameras around my neck,

in a burberry coat with turned-up collar

and a slouch hat with a press card in it.

Other kids dreamed of being a train driver.

I wanted to be the "roving reporter".

It is not that I have difficulties in finding the right location.

I go as directly as a homing pigeon, to any place where I think,

I might be able to find a location.

And then, I am like a sniffing dog.

Many people describe me like that:

Helmut is like a sniffing dog that wants to pee.

He walks around in circles and suddenly finds a place

to pee, or to take his photos.

That's the way it is.

Here is my Berlin notebook.

I have many of them, I forget fast.

For example: What's on the first page? Paris.

There's a bit about Paris.

Rosemary, no hand. Phone number...

A beautiful girl, I was told, but with only one hand.

Fantastic, never saw her.

Here I have a hotel in Paris

with a beautiful alcove

and old iron beds.

Very nice! But that's old, I don't like such things anymore.

Then Berlin again. Here is the word "whipped cream".

A very important word for me.

"Won stroheim" is there, as well. I don't know why.

"Monocle".

What's this? This is really funny.

Thisis a... "More depth"

and a list of brothels,

brothels in Berlin, that a journalist gave me.

Very useful, important.

A bit down, yes, but with that expression in your eyes.

There's too much hair.

Stop! Hold it!

Stay like that!

Black light is a typical thing for Berlin.

You saw it in the pictures we took here in the last 3 or 4 days.

This light is typical for Berlin.

Everything looks like in an etching.

And I don't think... Berlin is not good under the sun.

If you look at the black lakes and the black forests

and those black clouds hanging over them in summer,

it's fantastic.

The light is very permeating. There is an abundance of light.

It is not dark,

the light quality is beautiful.

Like many other elements of my work,

swimming pools reflect certain memories.

Somehow, all of my photos are based on memories,

especially during the past two decades.

I've photographed many women

who are good swimmers

or good divers.

There is something fascinating about a person, a woman...

It could be a man but for me it's always women...

Who float in the air.

Like a circus rider

or a trapeze artist

they float and fly through the air.

You can only do this at a trapeze or above the water.

During summer holidays,

my parents always went to health resorts.

And so...

They went to all the large hotels, it was in fashion then.

The hotels were very elegant

and I spent a large part of my youth there.

There was always something mysterious about them.

In a hotel you were a stranger, it was not home.

You would sleep in beds where many other people had slept before.

You saw rooms that someone new lived in every week or month.

Somehow, that was very exciting for me.

And I also felt there was something erotic about it.

- Will you join us for dinner? - Sure.

Listen. I am very concerned about the girls.

A big one, tall, with bust and all that.

- Do you have one? - Of course,

it is all set, already organised.

- What's your name? - Michaela.

Thanks for coming, very nice of you.

- How tall are you? - 1.74m.

I'm doing landscape photographs in Berlin.

I was born and raised here.

I'm very interested in this.

I do it in the woods, around the lakes and so on.

How do you look in a swimsuit?

It's hard to describe...

- Do you have a bust? - Yes.

- A lot? - Yes, I have quite a bust.

Good. Your legs?

Not that special.

Somehow... well, I'm convinced

there's a typical Berlin figure I recognise on the street.

A young girl,

she's tall...

I'm taking, of course, about an "ideal type" here...

I'm sure there's something about the colour of the skin.

You know, it is a bit bluish, very white.

You can almost see the blue veins through the skin.

I'm sure it's because the sun doesn't shine much here.

Very nice legs.

- What is your bust-size? - 90.

May I... Would you mind taking off your jacket?

- Do you not remember this photo? - Which?

Oh yes, I took this one. What a coincidence.

- What are you wearing underneath? - A bra.

Would you be embarrassed to ...? You don't have to.

No, it's ok, I'm not embarrassed.

- Are you sure? - Yes.

Just provided the photo isn't... I mean, as long as it's not...

No, no, it's a fashion photo.

Because I don't do nude photos.

- I can show a bit of cleavage... - No, it's an advertising photo.

It's not my job to do nudes here. Much as I'd like to!

Ok? - Ok. Oh, ok, I see.

So, do you want to take something off?

If you don't, that's ok.

I'd really rather not.

- Fine. Thanks, then. Good bye. - Good bye.

I'd have thought a man like him, the "photographers' god", would be a snob.

But he was very nice. I was pleasantly surprised.

At dinner he talked a lot.

It was very interesting for me, listening to him,

because, after all, there aren't many photographers as experienced as him.

He told one story

about how they hung a girl from a helicopter

and threw bits of meat into the sea so that there were sharks all round her

and there he was, snapping away.

I couldn't help thinking of the photo with the champagne

being thrown in my face. He often has to do stuff like that.

Pretty nasty stuff, eh?

Sure, there's not many photographers who'd dare to do those things.

But the girls who work with him know what they're in for.

That's what you're paid for.

Me, for example, I had to wear size 38 shoes, although I'm a 42.

I mean, running about in those...

That's even worse, in a way. It hurts.

That pretty girl in the jeans jacket wants to ask a question.

It was discussed yesterday whether you're a photographer or an artist.

Professor honnef has already said it. How would you describe yourself?

I'll repeat what I often say in lectures, and what I said yesterday:

There are two dirty words in photography:

"Art" and "good taste".

Are some of your pictures for sale?

If so, for how much?

Not through museums, they do not sell pictures.

They are, of course...

I'd sell anything, it just depends on the price.

But...

I do this for a living, it is my life.

I work because I enjoy it and I also enjoy making money.

So how much would I have to pay for one of your wall-sized ladies?

The smallest size...

I don't know... let me tell you...

The smallest one, sized 30 x 40cm,

would be about $1,000.

Could be more.

- A genuine Newton: $1,000 or more. - Yes, but there are lots of fakes.

I mean, a lot of "stealing" is going on.

Ladies and gentlemen, Helmut Newton is one of the best and most famous

fashion photographers of our time.

But "fashion photography" is a very inadequate description of his work.

Because there's no doubt he's changed our whole view of the world...

I'm sorry, I know I'm being very tough, but it isn't always easy.

When you do a photo with Helmut you actually become a "Newton".

You become something "graphic". Hence my comparison to Matisse.

He searches for a form, and you must accept this or it just won't work.

Me, if I do a photo with a great photographer,

I actually like it to end up looking like a typical work by that photographer.

It doesn't matter to me whether it's pretty or ugly.

I'm interested in how the photographer's personality shows forth in the image.

Fashion photographers often want to be good portrait photographers too.

Good fashion photographers want to feel fashion, but for me these are the same.

Helmut's portraits reflect an age and fashion reflects the spirit of an age.

That's why Helmut is, for me, a great photographer.

I won't try to stick him in one "drawer" or the other. That would be silly.

I have a dread of photographers who come with assistants and lots of stuff.

He comes sometimes with one assistant, sometimes just by himself.

He brings just one or two cameras and works very quickly.

Shots that take 6 hours to set up

and turn out just ok in the end are an annoyance for everyone.

Very nice.

Think of Marie curie. She found everything she needed in her kitchen

before she worked in proper labs. Helmut is a bit like her.

He is very... I won't say an "artisan" but he's very physical in his work.

The spontaneity of his photos,

which nonetheless look very composed and considered,

distinguishes his work from others'.

I recognise his "eye" even before I recognise the photo.

Sometimes, he has a sort of violence.

I find the work he does today

very evident in its meaning and yet at the same time secret.

There's one photo I especially like though I can't explain just why.

Is it because of the photo? Because there's me in it

with the projection of a photo Helmut took of me before?

The photo in the photo is like a mirror in a mirror.

I like it because it's complicated.

It was taken at my home.

He's the only photographer that I allow into my home.

My private space is very important to me.

But he had the right to that.

This is the same shooting.

That's a real "spur-of-the-moment" photo.

I mean by that that it was shot in the very last moment.

It was a rush production for the New York times,

for the fashion collection of yves Saint Laurent.

We took the photo very quickly in my car.

People have to know each other very well

to be able to pull off a photo like that in 20 minutes.

I like the combination of the skin, the dress, and this deep black

that hides everything that must be hidden.

In Helmut's photos the black is always just where it needs to be.

In this photo one is always looking for an answer.

One is always hoping that the picture will give an answer

to the question that one is putting to it.

Helmut's photos are "revealing", yes, but they are also always mysterious.

One always wants to know more but they only give part of the answer.

That's why women like him so much.

Everyone asks us: What do you do all day in monte Carlo?

We always say: The day isn't long enough.

I get up at 8 o'clock, in summer breakfast on the terrace,

I look through my post, make some calls.

At noon, we go to the beach hotel, I like to swim there.

We eat lunch there and stay till about 4.

I love the light here. I don't like working in artificial light.

I like working in daylight.

The light here is fantastic. And I have the sea as a background.

It's no problem here finding the background one needs.

I'm 67 now.

I couldn't live any longer in a big city like New York or Paris.

That's why I move back and forth between monte Carlo and Los Angeles.

Hollywood is almost like here, only a little bigger.

The palm-trees are taller there and there are more people.

But the spirit of the place is very similar.

Open a window! It smells disgusting!

I don't like to have too much equipment.

I am not a pro who loves hardware.

The less I have with me,

the better for me.

It's all inside my head, in my eye.

My lenses are mostly normal lenses,

I'd say, 85 to 90 percent of them.

It is faster and better for me to work like that.

I'm a professional voyeur.

I have no interest at all in the people I photograph,

the girls, their private life or their character.

I'm interested in the outside, what me and my camera see.

People tell me I don't photograph the soul.

What is that: Photographing a soul?

I photograph a body, a face.

I'm interested in face, bust, legs.

You see that in my photos, and, hopefully, something more.

But soul? I don't get it.