I’d go down to the end of my street, to a garage that had a certain feeling about it, or a particular light I’d take a picture of a friend who needed a head shot. That’s how I learned, instead of having school assignments and learning camera techniques.

Ritts contrasts formal photographic training with an intuitive, self-directed apprenticeship rooted in everyday observation. By describing ordinary locations (“the end of my street,” a garage) and practical needs (making a friend’s headshot), he frames learning as something driven by curiosity, atmosphere, and real-world problem solving rather than by prescribed exercises. The emphasis on “a certain feeling” and “particular light” highlights his sensitivity to mood and illumination—qualities central to his later signature style in fashion and celebrity portraiture. The quote also implies that technique can be absorbed organically through repeated looking and doing, with personal taste and visual instinct developing alongside craft.