If your portraits are not as good as Wayne Lawrence’s, try this:

• Care about the person you are photographing as much as you care about your photograph of them.

• View every portrait as a collaboration.

The beauty of my job as a photo editor is that I learn something new with each story. Once in a while there is an aha moment that brings about a shift in the way I think about photography, like what it takes to make a really good portrait. I think the answer may be caring and trust.

When I look at Wayne Lawrence’s portraits from the Detroit story in the May issue of the magazine, I don’t need anyone to tell me that despite