The evening is here in New York.

Day is not over yet for travel photographer Andy Katz He’s on his way to Healdsburg in California, where he just gave a lecture. Katz took time out of his busy schedule to tell us about his remarkable career. It has taken him from remote villages in Nigeria and Morocco, to Hasidic communities in Israel and Russia.

Katz is a master at connecting with people, places and capturing the essences of all the diverse citizens of our planet. The critics have compared Katz’s work with everything from impressionist paintings to works of cinema. Instead of freezing a moment, Katz can preserve it and distill its most beautiful features into a single picture that transcends geographic boundaries.

How do you connect with each and every one of your subjects so intimately, even when they are on opposite corners of the cultural spectrum? How do you connect so deeply with your subjects, even if they come from seemingly opposing corners of the culture spectrum? “I think that in photography – as in life – people have an ability to feel if you are a good person and understand that you are not trying to exploit them. I am just trying to present them in a way that people may not have seen before. “Having great respect for those you are photographing is essential.”