On the brief encounters that have led to his best photos: —
Many of McCurry's works off the coffee trail are widely celebrated examples of composition and form, including this photo taken in 2007 among houses of the Blue City in Jodhpur, India. But McCurry explains these are often the result of a snap reaction to his surroundings.
"Generally it's probably rather brief: you go into a home or a shop or some kind of a market or something and you see things and quickly respond."