--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The main thing about directing is…" description: "\"The main thing about directing is: photograph the people's eyes.\" — John Ford" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c45/john-ford-14442_directing_the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photog_292179.jpg" --- # The main thing about directing is: photograph the people's… ![“The main thing about directing is: photograph the people's eyes.” quote by John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c45/john-ford-14442_directing_the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photog_292179.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c45/john-ford-14442_directing_the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photog_292179.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c45/john-ford-14442_directing_the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photog_292179.jpg) > “The main thing about directing is: photograph the people's eyes.” [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Directing focuses on capturing the essence of characters through their eyes, revealing inner stories. **In simple terms:** Show people’s eyes to tell their story. Key Takeaway Use close‑ups to convey emotion. Themes filmmaking observation empathy Mood contemplative inspirational Type cinematic artistic When to use this quote - interviews - documentaries - drama - portrait photography - theatre Key Concepts cinematography character study visual storytelling Questions to Reflect On - What does a character’s gaze reveal? - How can other elements complement eye focus? A Different Perspective Relying solely on eyes may miss other expressive cues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [Anybody can direct a picture once they know the fundamentals. Directing is not a mystery, it's not an art. The main thing about directing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/anybody-can-direct-a-picture-once-they-know-the-fundamentals/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [I think directing and writing are very different jobs. Obviously, directing is a more social and managerial job. The other thing about directing is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-kaufman/i-think-directing-and-writing-are-very-different-jobs-obviously/) [Charlie Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-kaufman/) > [The good thing about directing a screenplay that you've written is that you see the film in your head as you're writing it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-whannell/the-good-thing-about-directing-a-screenplay-that-you-ve-written-is/) [Leigh Whannell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-whannell/) > [I would have to say the most challenging thing about directing is the sheer stamina because... as a director, you're always doing something. Someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-urie/i-would-have-to-say-the-most-challenging-thing-about-directing-is-the/) [Michael Urie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-urie/) > [I've never liked the word 'celebrity.' I like to photograph people who are good at what they do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-leibovitz/i-ve-never-liked-the-word-celebrity-i-like-to-photograph-people-who/) [Annie Leibovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-leibovitz/) > [I've photographed just about everyone in the world. But what I hope to do is photograph people of accomplishment, not celebrity, and help define…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/i-ve-photographed-just-about-everyone-in-the-world-but-what-i-hope-to/) [Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/) > [I don't photograph any two people who are remotely the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jock-sturges/i-don-t-photograph-any-two-people-who-are-remotely-the-same/) [Jock Sturges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jock-sturges/) > [To photograph people is to violate them, by seeing them as they never see themselves, by having knowledge of them that they can never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/to-photograph-people-is-to-violate-them-by-seeing-them-as-they-never/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [The great, rewarding thing about directing is that you're overseeing the whole thing. When you're an actor, you're just one department.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-dillon/the-great-rewarding-thing-about-directing-is-that-you-re-overseeing/) [Matt Dillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-dillon/) > [It's a very stressful thing, directing a movie. You have the budget, you have the schedule, you are in certain confines, and you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-de-niro/it-s-a-very-stressful-thing-directing-a-movie-you-have-the-budget-you/) [Robert De Niro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-de-niro/) > [The cool thing about directing is, whatever cool thing works in the scene, it's still making the episode be a great story, and everyone's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-gregg/the-cool-thing-about-directing-is-whatever-cool-thing-works-in-the/) [Clark Gregg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-gregg/) > [The strange thing about directing, for me, was that opportunities arose; I'd had some nice roles as an actor, but it just never happened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/the-strange-thing-about-directing-for-me-was-that-opportunities-arose/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [The good thing about directing yourself is that you get over yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-slattery/the-good-thing-about-directing-yourself-is-that-you-get-over-yourself/) [John Slattery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-slattery/) > [When you photograph people in color, you photograph their clothes. But when you photograph people in black & white you photograph their souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-photograph-people-in-color-you-photograph-their-clothes-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The more story-appeal there is in the picture or in the photograph, the more people would look at your ad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ogilvy/the-more-story-appeal-there-is-in-the-picture-or-in-the-photograph/) [David Ogilvy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ogilvy/) ## More by John Ford > [Anybody can direct a picture once they know the fundamentals. Directing is not a mystery, it's not an art. The main thing about directing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/anybody-can-direct-a-picture-once-they-know-the-fundamentals/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [Physicians are the cobblers, rather the botchers, of men's bodies; as the one patches our tattered clothes, so the other solders our diseased flesh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/physicians-are-the-cobblers-rather-the-botchers-of-men-s-bodies-as/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [Why, I hold fate Clasped in my fist, and could command the course Of time's eternal motion, hadst thou been One thought more steady…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/why-i-hold-fate-clasped-in-my-fist-and-could-command-the-course-of/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [Sister, look ye, How, by a new creation of my tailor's I've shook off old mortality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/sister-look-ye-how-by-a-new-creation-of-my-tailor-s-i-ve-shook-off/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [It is easier to get an actor to be a cowboy than to get a cowboy to be an actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/it-is-easier-to-get-an-actor-to-be-a-cowboy-than-to-get-a-cowboy-to/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [Delay in vengeance delivers a heavier blow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/delay-in-vengeance-delivers-a-heavier-blow/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [What is done, is done: Spend not the time in tears, but seek for justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/what-is-done-is-done-spend-not-the-time-in-tears-but-seek-for-justice/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [Tis as manlike to bear extremities as godlike to forgive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/tis-as-manlike-to-bear-extremities-as-godlike-to-forgive/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [Love is dead; let lovers' eyes, Locked in endless dreams, The extremes of all extremes, Ope no more, for now Love dies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/love-is-dead-let-lovers-eyes-locked-in-endless-dreams-the-extremes-of/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [They are the silent griefs which cut the heart-strings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/they-are-the-silent-griefs-which-cut-the-heart-strings/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [You can speak well if your tongue can deliver the message of your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/you-can-speak-well-if-your-tongue-can-deliver-the-message-of-your/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [Melancholy Is not, as you conceive, indisposition Of body, but the mind's disease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/melancholy-is-not-as-you-conceive-indisposition-of-body-but-the-mind/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [I like, as a director and a spectator, simple, direct, frank films. Nothing disgusts me more than snobbism, mannerism, technical gratuity... and, most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/i-like-as-a-director-and-a-spectator-simple-direct-frank-films/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [“Lost, I am Lost! My fates have doomed my death. The more I strive, I love; the more I love, The less I hope.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/lost-i-am-lost-my-fates-have-doomed-my-death-the-more-i-strive-i-love/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [Revenge proves itself to be its own executioner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/revenge-proves-itself-to-be-its-own-executioner/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) [Explore all 45 John Ford quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) ## More Directing quotes > [Anybody can direct a picture once they know the fundamentals. Directing is not a mystery, it's not an art. The main thing about directing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/anybody-can-direct-a-picture-once-they-know-the-fundamentals/) [John Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/) > [“I was ambitious and desperate to direct my first film, so I capitulated and blew it. Never again. Never fucking again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/i-was-ambitious-and-desperate-to-direct-my-first-film-so-i/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) > [That's what I learned most about directing on my own - you've got to build a family, a filmmaking family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dustin-lance-black/that-s-what-i-learned-most-about-directing-on-my-own-you-ve-got-to/) [Dustin Lance Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dustin-lance-black/) > [I took on the role of CEO, which involves directing the Management Team and overall day-to-day operations of 500.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-tsai/i-took-on-the-role-of-ceo-which-involves-directing-the-management/) [Christine Tsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-tsai/) > [Steven Spielberg seems to have wanted to be a director from 13. He put his dog in a certain position and made him eat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-brooks/steven-spielberg-seems-to-have-wanted-to-be-a-director-from-13-he-put/) [Albert Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-brooks/) > [When I see my movies on the editing table, I do think I could have done them a certain way. The satisfaction is never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sajid-nadiadwala/when-i-see-my-movies-on-the-editing-table-i-do-think-i-could-have/) [Sajid Nadiadwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sajid-nadiadwala/) > [For me the dream is the freedom to make all the crazy ideas I have in my head into movies. I truly love directing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-ozeki/for-me-the-dream-is-the-freedom-to-make-all-the-crazy-ideas-i-have-in/) [Nicholas Ozeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-ozeki/) > [The producing thing has come quite naturally to me. I feel like for directing, I would like to be more technically-savvy. I want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-bell/the-producing-thing-has-come-quite-naturally-to-me-i-feel-like-for/) [Zoe Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-bell/) > [I'm addicted to directing!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-shankman/i-m-addicted-to-directing/) [Adam Shankman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-shankman/) > [Making a movie and not directing the little moments is like drinking a soda and leaving the little slurp puddle for someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/making-a-movie-and-not-directing-the-little-moments-is-like-drinking/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [Directing films is easier said than done. The job needs a lot of sensibility to put many things in place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-sethupathi/directing-films-is-easier-said-than-done-the-job-needs-a-lot-of/) [Vijay Sethupathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-sethupathi/) > [I starred in a Broadway play that was Sidney Poitier's first directing job and the cast was Lou Gossett, Cicely Tyson, Diana Ladd and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-steinberg/i-starred-in-a-broadway-play-that-was-sidney-poitier-s-first/) [David Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-steinberg/) > [I don't get nervous when I'm directing a play. It's not like acting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-seymour-hoffman/i-don-t-get-nervous-when-i-m-directing-a-play-it-s-not-like-acting/) [Philip Seymour Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-seymour-hoffman/) > [My dad's a prominent theatre director in Toronto, so I grew up in that world, directing and producing theater since I was a teenager.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-gass-donnelly/my-dad-s-a-prominent-theatre-director-in-toronto-so-i-grew-up-in-that/) [Ed Gass-Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-gass-donnelly/) > [The hardest part about directing is getting everyone on the same page.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-marshall/the-hardest-part-about-directing-is-getting-everyone-on-the-same-page/) [Rob Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-marshall/) Browse all 1,163 Directing quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The main thing about directing is: photograph the people's eyes.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Ford" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photograph-the-people-s-eyes/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Directing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photograph-the-people-s-eyes/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c45/john-ford-14442_directing_the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photog_292179.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c45/john-ford-14442_directing_the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photog_292179.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c45/john-ford-14442_directing_the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photog_292179.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The main thing about directing is: photograph the people's eyes.” — John Ford", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Ford", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ford/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The main thing about directing is:...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photograph-the-people-s-eyes/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ford/the-main-thing-about-directing-is-photograph-the-people-s-eyes/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```