Cecil Beaton: Portraits

1 of 7 Cecil Beaton (1904 - 1980) is one of the most celebrated of British portrait photographers, renowned for his images of elegance, glamour and style such as this picture of actress Greta Garbo. (Courtesy Sotheby's, London)

2 of 7 'Cecil Beaton: Portraits' at the National Portrait Gallery marks the centenary of Beaton's birth and brings together over 150 portraits from the five decades of Beaton's remarkable career. (Vogue © The Condé Nast Publications Inc.)

3 of 7 His influence on portrait photography was profound and lives on in the work of many contemporary photographers including David Bailey and Mario Testino. Highlights include this picture of Audrey Hepburn... (Vogue ©The Condé Nast Publications Inc.)

4 of 7 ...as well as his 1956 portrait of Marilyn Monroe, from her own collection, which is accompanied by his handwritten eulogy about her. (Courtesy Sotheby's)

5 of 7 Definitive portraits of 20th century celebrities including boxer Sugar Ray Robinson are shown alongside more sombre works from his time as a war photographer. (Vogue © The Condé Nast Publications Inc./Courtesy Sotheby's)

6 of 7 Beaton devoted himself to his work as an official war photographer when he took this unforgettable portrait of the 3 year-old blitz victim Eileen Dunne (1940) in a hospital bed in the north of England. (Imperial War Museum/ Courtesy Sotheby's)

7 of 7 Cecil Beaton: Portraits can be seen at the National Portrait Gallery in London 5 February - 31 May 2004. (Vogue © The Condé Nast Publications Ltd/Courtesy Sotheby's)