Sergio Larrain studied at the University of California, Berkeley. Upon his return to Chile he began taking photographs in the streets of Santiago and Valparaiso; the early purchase of two images by the Museum of Modern Art, New York, reassured him in his chosen profession. After presenting a project on los abandonados (street children in Santiago) to Henri Cartier-Bresson, he was invited to join Magnum in 1960; around this time he also began what would become a legendary project on Valparaiso with a text by poet Pablo Neruda. Unsure if he was suited to working for the press, Larrain retreated to the Chilean countryside and dedicated himself to yoga, meditation, and drawing until his death in February 2012.

Pablo Neruda is one of the most celebrated poets of the twentieth century. Throughout his lifetime he worked as a diplomat for his home country of Chile. He was awarded a Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971. He died in Chile in 1973.

Agnès Sire has served as the director of the Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson in Paris since its creation in 2003, where she oversees exhibitions and publications. Previously, she worked at Galerie Alexandre Iolas and was art director at Magnum Photos in Paris.