He was a candid news photographer whose stark black and white shots documented life in New York City. The title of one of his collections, Naked City, became the title of a pioneering realistic television police drama series.
Fellig's nickname was a phonetic rendering of Ouija, a name he bestowed upon himself due to his frequent arrival at scenes only minutes after crimes, fires or other emergencies were reported to authorities. In 1938, Fellig was the only reporter allowed to have a portable police-band radio in his car. He listened closely to broadcasts and often beat authorities to the scene.
Most of his photos were taken with a 4x5 Speed Graphic camera preset at f/16 at 1/200 of a second with a flash.
In 1958 he was a consultant for Stanley Kubrick's film, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. His accent was purportedly the inspiration for the accent of the title character in Doctor Strangelove.