From 1960 until his death in 2019, Terry O'Neill portrayed countless movie stars and Hollywood celebrities. His career as a photographer began at the English newspaper Daily Sketch. After a few years, he moved on to work as a freelance photographer for magazines such as Vogue, Rolling Stone, Time Magazine and Vanity Fair. With his natural and spontaneous manner, Terry O'Neill broke the 1950s style and quickly became popular. During the 1960s and 70s, he was one of the world's most published photographers.
O'Neill has portrayed everything from rock stars and politicians to royalty. With their personal and human nature, O'Neill's portraits are different from how the subjects are usually depicted. His approach to publishing assignments has always been: "I want my pictures to tell a story - not sell a story".
O'Neill photographed the Rolling Stones and the Beatles back in 1963 when they were young musicians on the verge of a breakthrough. Later, he followed both Elton John and David Bowie backstage. In the late 1970s, he began photographing more and more in Hollywood. He worked and interacted privately with actors, musicians and cultural celebrities. He was a close friend of Frank Sinatra and followed him through his career, both publicly and privately.
O'Neill took several portraits of actress Brigitte Bardot. The iconic image of her with the wind in her hair and a cigarette in her mouth was taken in Spain during the filming of 'Les Pétroleuses' (The Legend of Frenchie King). It is part of the National Portrait Gallery's prominent collection, which includes 80 of O'Neill's images.
Terry O'Neill was awarded the Royal Photographic Society Medal of Honor in 2011 and was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) for his photographic achievements in 2019, the same year he died.