Welcome to the realm of David Bailey’s insightful and profound words. As one of the most iconic photographers of the 20th century, David Bailey has not only captured moments in time but also articulated the essence of human experience through his quotes. His unique perspective, honed through years of lensmanship and an unyielding curiosity about the world around him, shines through in his words, offering wisdom, wit, and inspiration to all who encounter them.
Through his lens, Bailey has immortalized the beauty of the ordinary and the extraordinary, capturing the essence of life in its purest form. From the bustling streets of London to the serene landscapes of distant lands, his photographs evoke emotion and spark contemplation. Yet, it is not only through his images that Bailey leaves his mark but also through his eloquent musings on life, art, and the human condition. His quotes resonate with a timeless quality, transcending boundaries of time and space to touch the hearts and minds of generations.
Below, you’ll find a curated collection of David Bailey’s most memorable quotes. Feel free to explore, reflect, and perhaps even find inspiration to embark on your own creative journey. Whether you choose to copy them, pair them with captivating imagery, or enhance them with stylish fonts, let Bailey’s words guide you on a journey of discovery and self-expression.
I didn’t know I was going to live for 50 years. It has come as a shock. David Bailey
The skull is nature’s sculpture. David Bailey
I always go for simplicity. David Bailey
I don’t think my work does reflect my nationality – I don’t like the idea of nationalism. David Bailey
Every man who is high up loves to think that he has done it all himself; and the wife smiles, and lets it go at that. David Bailey
A positive attitude can really make dreams come true – it did for me. David Bailey
I don’t do proud. David Bailey
I love learning new techniques. David Bailey
Everyone gets old – there’s nothing you can do about it. David Bailey
If I have any sexist feelings they are aimed at men: I hate manly men. David Bailey
I am mad about my wife. David Bailey
It’s only a few nutcases who do art for themselves, like Van Gogh. David Bailey
I just thought it was magic that you could stick a bit of paper in some coffee-type liquid and a picture comes out. David Bailey
If something becomes old-fashioned, it was no good to start with. Think about it. Michelangelo is not old-fashioned. David Bailey
Fashion often starts off beautiful and becomes ugly, whereas art starts off ugly sometimes and becomes beautiful. David Bailey
The earth has a life of its own. David Bailey
Photography is more about money now but then so are most things. David Bailey
I don’t think global warming is to do with us, I think it’s a natural circle. I don’t think a few Ferraris make that much difference. David Bailey
The best advice I ever got was that knowledge is power and to keep reading. David Bailey
Girls are more attractive to me than dresses. David Bailey
Actors are hard to photograph because they never want to reveal who they are. You don’t know if you’re getting a character from a Chekhov play or a Polanski film. It depends what mood they’re in. David Bailey
I’m an image-maker. David Bailey
Fortunately I didn’t get educated because if I’d got educated I’d be an educated fool now. David Bailey
I know everything should be photographed. It helps me make sense of my existence. David Bailey
I did painting before I did photography. David Bailey
The trouble with people like Tony Blair is they get confused, they think intelligence is education when they’re two different things. David Bailey
Sometimes I still can’t believe my luck. David Bailey
In ’73 I photographed the cannibals in New Guinea. They treated me OK but they didn’t make you feel relaxed… I managed to escape unscathed though, I’m pretty good at that. David Bailey
I guess I’m the last of the Cockneys. David Bailey
You can’t really copy what I do because I don’t do anything. David Bailey
Being handsome wasn’t much of a burden. It worked for me. David Bailey
I don’t see the point of photographing trees or rocks because they’re there and anyone can photograph them if they’re prepared to hang around and wait for the light. David Bailey
I’ve always been a bit flip. David Bailey
I won’t do advertising if they bring a layout and say, ‘This is what we want to do,’ because anybody can do that; it’s not interesting. They’ve got digital and the computer; it’s not taking pictures, it’s not magic – it’s a picture done by committee. David Bailey
When I die I want to go to Vogue. David Bailey
I have never met an ugly woman. David Bailey
I have always wanted to live in the present and never the past. David Bailey
London changes because of money. It’s real estate. If they can build some offices or expensive apartments they will, it’s money that changes everything in a city. David Bailey
I don’t like any sport except boxing and bull fighting. David Bailey
I didn’t try and do fashion pictures. I tried to do portraits of girls wearing dresses. David Bailey
I am not responsible for all the journalists in the past that have told lies. David Bailey
I never set out to be a photographer. David Bailey
The reason I did fashion was it was the only way to get paid to do anything creative. You couldn’t support yourself as an ‘artist’ – I hate that word. The only way you could be ‘arty’ was as a fashion photographer, because it still had a certain amount of integrity involved. David Bailey
I hate men who are in touch with their feminine side. David Bailey
I was ten when I got my first serious beating. It was rough. David Bailey
I’ve had some weird experiences. David Bailey
I like change. There’s something Buddhist about it – continuous change is wonderful. David Bailey
Nothing wrong with retouching – nothing new about retouching. David Bailey
I’m not a philosopher, I’m just a simple boy from East Ham. David Bailey
Anybody can be a great photographer if they zoom in enough on what they love. David Bailey
John Parsons, the gay art director at ‘Vogue,’ really started my career. David Bailey
I never cared for fashion much, amusing little seams and witty little pleats: it was the girls I liked. David Bailey
I’ve always tried to do pictures that don’t date. David Bailey
It takes a lot of imagination to be a good photographer. You need less imagination to be a painter because you can invent things. But in photography everything is so ordinary; it takes a lot of looking before you learn to see the extraordinary. David Bailey
I don’t think it matters where I came from any more. David Bailey
My friends are all megalomaniacs – from Damien Hirst to Jack Nicholson – all of them. David Bailey
People want security in this insecure world. David Bailey
There’s nothing wrong with being a fashion photographer, but it’s a bit limited. David Bailey
To get rich, you have to be making money while you’re asleep. David Bailey
All my ex-girlfriends or wives are all kind of great friends and I’ve never understood somebody who can live with somebody for five or six years and then not like them. David Bailey
Rockers are the nicest people to photograph. They have no inhibitions. David Bailey
Good shoes are important. I wear English brogues in a wide fitting. They last me years. David Bailey
My first influence obviously was Picasso. David Bailey
I always look at people and think how I would cast them. David Bailey
I’m not political and I don’t judge. David Bailey
If you’re curious, London’s an amazing place. David Bailey
I hate being so nostalgic about the Sixties. David Bailey
I think about death all the time. I know there’s nothing out there, but I’m curious. There’s a 300 billion-to-one chance that there might be an energy that goes somewhere else, but I doubt it. David Bailey
I’ve never been anti-women. David Bailey
I was dyslexic, so I was put in the silly class at school. David Bailey
I don’t really like the term ‘artist.’ I’m not sure what it means. It’s a bit like ‘love.’ David Bailey
I left school on my 15th birthday. David Bailey
I didn’t know a time when there wasn’t a war because I spent all my time from the age of two or three to eight in a coal cellar really. David Bailey
I’m never shocked, I’m not the shockable type! David Bailey
The only thing they can’t teach you at art school is art. David Bailey
All I could do at school was paint and draw and that was the only time I ever passed any exam. It was the only thing I ever got right at school. David Bailey
Rather than knowing more, I think I’ve got more open-minded. David Bailey
Being dyslexic, I was told that I was an idiot all the time. David Bailey
Journalists never make it clear when you are joking. David Bailey
I had a terrible time with feminists in the Seventies. They hated me, those women. I think they hated everything. David Bailey
I never tried to revolutionise photography; I just do what I do and keep my fingers crossed that people will like it. David Bailey
When I stop working, I go out and start working again. Most people paint a picture, or whatever they do, and go home. For me, it has to be continuous. David Bailey
I’m not mad about movies, there are too many people involved in the making of them, and they lack a definitive creative focus. David Bailey
The Sixties was a time of breaking down class barriers, although I think class still exists today in some areas. David Bailey
You adapt to who you’re photographing. David Bailey
Instead of putting someone in prison for being a hooligan, give him a choice. He may have beaten someone up and he’s got eight years, but tell him you can do eight years inside or spend five years in the Army. Put him in the Parachute Regiment, they’d soon sort him out. David Bailey
All pictures are unnatural. All pictures are sad because they’re about dead people. Paintings you don’t think of in a special time or with a specific event. With photos I always think I’m looking at something dead. David Bailey
You have to kind of be invisible when you photograph children, so you use a longer lens. David Bailey
In a way, a man’s body is more beautiful than a woman’s. David Bailey
It always amazes me when people ask you to do something and then tell you how to do it. David Bailey
I’ve been used by women all my life, fortunately. David Bailey
I could develop a picture by the time I was 12. David Bailey
Kate Moss is the best thing since Jean Shrimpton, really. David Bailey
My exploits are nothing now to the average person. David Bailey
My paintings are rubbish. David Bailey
I suppose because my work was so popular people didn’t really look at it. David Bailey
It’s not about composition. It’s the way you feel about how your objects should relate to each other. I’ve got lots of African statues and things, and the cleaner arranges them like soldiers, which drives me mad. So I have to rearrange them, and I must drive her mad, because I’m doing anarchy and she’s doing military manoeuvres. David Bailey
I don’t feel very optimistic in London. David Bailey
My father was a tailor, my mother a machinist. David Bailey
I’m not really one for regrets. David Bailey