Please Don't Leave

August 16, 2010 12:02 PM

The great jazz photographer Herman Leonard is dead at 87. Leonard took photos of some of the best, including Art Tatum, Dizzie Gillespie, Sarah Vaughan, Charlie "The Bird" Parker, Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday and Miles Davis -- to name a few. He led an interesting life, which included losing thousands of prints (though not, fortunately, the safeguarded negatives) to Hurricane Katrina. Here are a few of his shots. Previously on Metafilter.
posted by bearwife (6 comments total)

He took my favorite photos of Billie Holiday and Dexter Gordon. Both of these make me want to smoke.
posted by grabbingsand at 12:17 PM on August 16, 2010

His website.
posted by ericb at 12:28 PM on August 16, 2010

One of the few posters I own is a reproduction of one of his shots of Coltrane. Man, I love his work.
posted by clvrmnky at 1:09 PM on August 16, 2010

Erich, this is the image on which his current website look is based.
posted by bearwife at 1:49 PM on August 16, 2010

I saw an exhibit of his work in Montreal last year, it was stunning. I'd never heard of him before.
posted by Xurando at 3:10 AM on August 17, 2010

I spent last night surrounded by his photos as I enjoyed a great set by David Sanborn, Joey DeFrancesco and Steve Gadd. His work is as iconic as some the people he photographed.
posted by Kimothy at 8:03 AM on August 17, 2010