This is the first book to take a look at what motivates and inspires photographers and what it is that makes them succeed. It reveals how some of the world's leading photographers from the fields of art, documentary, fashion, advertising and portraiture actually work and explores what it is that picture editors, curators, agency directors and art book publishers are looking for when choosing an image.Combining perceptive interviews with over 200 carefully selected images, Anne-Celine Jaeger delves into the working practices of famous photographers, unveiling the mysterious process of artistic creation involved in making and taking a photograph. Here is the background on how Mario Sorrenti was inspired to capture a naked Kate Moss draped over a sofa for the iconic Calvin Klein campaign, why and how Sebastiao Salgado approaches the people he documents, and how Rineke Dijkstra gets the best from her subjects.With the images taken, or a commission in prospect, how are photographs then selected? How does the picture editor of The New York Times Magazine decide which photographer should shoot the next fashion spread? What photographs are worthy of being hung on a wall in The Photographers' Gallery in London? What advice would art book publisher Gerhard Steidl give to a budding photographer?From questions of what to look for in an image and views on cropping to the use of color over black-and-white, the shapers and makers of taste provide a unique and indispensable account of their working methods.Unique and accessible, Image Makers, Image Takers will inspire you to look at photographs and through your lens in a whole new way.