A good photo tells a story, reflects Sebastião Salgado on his work.

Sebastião Salgado, one of the greatest names in world photography, died this Friday, the 23rd, at the age of 81. The information was confirmed by the Instituto Terra, an organization founded by him and his wife, Lélia Wanick Salgado. Possessing a sensitive and committed gaze, Salgado deeply captured Brazil, the world, and the many human stories he encountered along the way. He left behind more than 500 thousand images in his collection — and a legacy that is hard to measure.

In May 2024, CASACOR had the pleasure of accompanying one of Salgado's last public commitments in Brazil. At the Museum of Image and Sound (MIS), in São Paulo, he presented his exhibition on the Carnation Revolution — a movement that, in 1974, ended the military dictatorship in Portugal. Sebastião Salgado not only lived this moment closely but began to develop his photographic language there. “I learned to take photos in Portugal. I had never used flash before — it was there that I took my first photo with flash. It was an essential period in my training,” he said.

During the conversation with journalists, the photographer reflected on the role of the image and the subjectivity of the gaze: “Photography does not show an absolute reality. It shows the point of view of whoever is behind the camera. It is always subjective, never objective.”

Salgado also talked about his experience as a photography teacher in Portugal and what, for him, differentiates a common image from one that truly communicates. “During the years I taught photography in Portugal, I realized that few would truly follow the path. I told them: first study sociology, anthropology, then come back to photography. The image gains another weight when you understand the world you are trying to capture.”

Always straightforward, he commented on the trivialization of photography in the digital age: “Just because you have a cellphone doesn’t mean you are a photographer. Photography is more than that. It is the mirror of the society we live in. And today, unfortunately, there are few true photographers.”

Finally, he left one of his most striking reflections: “Photography is something we feel. You touch it, you see it; it generates memory. A good photograph tells a story. It produces remembrance, builds a collective memory.”

The words of Sebastião Salgado continue to resonate — just like his images. Even after his passing, his work reaffirms photography as memory, testimony, and language of time.