Tributes to fashion photography legend Bill Cunningham

American Vogue editor Anna Wintour praises Cunningham's knack for seeing 'something on the street – or on the runway – that completely missed all of us'.

Bill Cunningham. AP Photo

Known for his candid images, Bill Cunningham was a well-known figure around international fashion shows, always arriving by bicycle, wearing his trademark blue workman's jacket, a 35mm camera slung around his neck. The legendary photographer died in New York on Saturday, June 25 at the age of 87; his death was confirmed by The New York Times, where he had worked for 40 years.

A 2010 documentary about him, Bill Cunningham New York, introduced him to a wider audience, going on to win best documentary at several film festivals, including the Abu Dhabi Film Festival.

The film sought to show Cunningham's ­extraordinary ability to capture the new and the emerging in fashion. As American Vogue editor Anna Wintour explained, he had a knack to "see something – on the street or on the runway – that completely missed all of us". The filming itself was a difficult process for Cunningham, who was reluctant to allow access to his life, and saw director Richard Press, following him around on a bicycle for a year. "He was using his camera to document not just how people dress, but who we are," Press explained to the Los Angeles Times.

Cunningham moved to New York from Boston at the age of 19, and began working first as a milliner, then later a fashion writer for Women's Wear Daily. By the late 1960s he had turned his hand to photography, keen to capture the style of everyday people in the city around him. Drawn to a sense of panache – regardless of budget – he was fascinated by those who know instinctively how to put a look together.

His photographs caught the attention of The New York Times and, in 1978, he started work for the Style Section. His weekly columns documenting the endless variations of fashion quickly became must-reads.

His column On The Streets focused on street fashion from around New York, while his second column, Evening Hours, centred on the outfits at the numerous charity events that make up New York society life.

Although he attended glittering events almost every night, he preferred to keep the focus on his subject, declining even offers of water. In contrast, those attending all clamoured to be photographed by Cunningham. As Wintour explained, “We all dressed for Bill.”Choosing to ignore the trappings of his fame, he lived in a studio in Carnegie Hall, ate breakfast at the same deli everyday and tore up cheques from the magazine he helped launch in 1982.

Yet his fame caught up with him. He was awarded the Legion of Honor by France in 2008, while 2009 saw him declared a Living Landmark in New York.

It is hard to underestimate the effect Cunningham had on fashion. As well as giving rise to the genre now known as 'Street style' photographer, and which gave rise to blogging, Cunningham tirelessly captured the good and the bad of fashion. Every look, every suit, dress and accessory were caught on film. Some figures were his favourites, and to who he returned again, and again, One such was Anna Piaggi, creative consultant for Italian Vogue. Another was Iris Apfel, who he discovered at the age of 82. The Hollywood Reporter likened Cunningham to an ornithologist, who "used his camera like a notepad, keeping careful tabs on every genus, phylum and species of stylish bird".

However, perhaps it is the words of New York Mayor Bill de Blasio that best sum up Cunningham: “Today we lost a Living Landmark, not that he ever stood still. Let’s all be more fabulous in Bill’s memory.”