Journalist+Biography

__ James Nachtwey __ James is a wonderful photo journalist who chooses to expose the truth, no matter how terrifying it might. For example James took pictures of what happened on September 11th 2001. He said the purpose of his photographs is to testify the horrible events in the world that should never happen again. In order to get these tragic yet graphic photos he has put his life on the line many times to report the evil things that are oblivious to most and yet affect the whole world. James grew up in Massachusetts, born on March 14, 1948 and graduate from Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire where he studied Art History and Political Science in 1966-1970. Shortly after graduating he joined the Merchant Marine. Inspired by The Vietnam War and The Civil Rights Movement he became a photographer. He taught himself how to be an extraordinary photographer and worked among ships in the Merchant Marine. While in his time of teaching himself he was an apprentice news film editor and a truck driver. Later in 1976 - 1980 he became a photographer for a newspaper in New Mexico. In 1980 he moved to New York and became a freelance photographer. While in New York he joined the Black Star Agency to build up his career. He traveled for his work to Northern Ireland, Central America, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. His photographs after his traveling appeared in many popular magazines such as // National Geographic, Life, Time, El País // and // L’Express //. In 1984 he became a contract photographer with // Time // Magazine. From the time of 1986 – 2001 he became a founded member of the photo agency VII. // “I use what I know about the formal elements of photography at the service of the people I'm photographing—not the other way around. I'm not trying to make statements about photography. I'm trying to use photography to make statements about what's happening in the world. I don't want my compositions to be self-conscious.” Said by James Nachtwey. //  He has received many respected photography awards, many of them multiple times including the Robert Capa Gold Medal, Magazine Photographer of they year, the World Press Photo of the Year. The compassion in a particular compelling view of death, destruction and inhumanity, James witnessed more than two decades of tragedy. This has enabled James to be present at and to record the heart wrenching moments in the personal lives throughout the world. . Since 1980, Nachtwey has devoted himself to documenting wars, conflicts and critical social issues. He has worked on extensive photographic essays in El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza, Israel, Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, the Philippines, South Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Rwanda, South Africa, Russia, Bosnia, Chechnya, Kosovo, Romania, Brazil and the United States. . He has had solo exhibitions at the International Center of Photography in New York, the Palazzo Esposizione in Rome, El Circulo de Bellas Artes in Madrid, the Carolinum in Prague, the Hasselblad Center in Sweden, the Canon Gallery and the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam, and the Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College, among others. In 1994, Nachtwey was coving the upcoming elections in South Africa, the first non-racial one in decades. As an associate of the Bang-Bang Club he was at the scene when Ken Oosterbroek was killed and Greg Marinovich was seriously injured. Nachtwey was injured previously in his work while he was covering the United States invasion of Iraq and that he receive his first combat injury. As Nachtwey, along with the // Time //Correspondent Michael Weisskopt rode in the back of a humvee with the United States Army Survey Platoo, An Insurgent threw a grenade in the vehicle. Weisskopf grabbed the grenade to throw it out of the humvee but it exploded while in his hand. Two soldiers were injured in the explosion, along with the // Time // journalists. Nachtwey managed to take several photographs of the medic Billie Grimes treating Weisskopf before passing out. Nachtwey later recovered sufficiently and returned overseas to cover the tsunami in Southeast Asia in December, 2004. Nachtwey photographs have been exhibited throughout Europe and the United States and he has received numerous prizes and awards including the World Press Photo award in 1994. Nachtwey has also been awarded the Overseas Press Club's Robert Capa Gold Medal in 1983, 1984, 1986, 1994 and 1998. In 2001, the documentary //War Photographer// was released, focusing on Nachtwey and his work. Directed by Christian Frei, the film received an Academy Award nomination for best documentary film.Nachtwey received the prestigious Dan David Prize in 2002 for his haunting photos aimed to burden viewers with an uncomfortable awareness that will force them to seek justice and change. In 2006, Nachtwey was awarded the 12th Annual Heinz Award in Arts and Humanities from the Heinz Family Foundation for his body of work, an honor that includes a monetary prize of US $250,000. Nachtwey is one of three winners of the 2007 TED Prize. Each recipient was granted $100,000 and one "world-changing wish" to be revealed at the 2007 TED conference, in Monterey, California. Many members of the TED Community, and a group of world-class companies, have pledged support to help fulfill the wishes. Nachtwey's wish, revealed March 8, 2007, is this: "There's a vital story that needs to be told, and I wish for TED to help me gain access to it and then to help me come up with innovative and exciting ways to use news photography in the digital era." Those who wish to help him will sign an NDA and help him "gain access to a place in the world where a critical situation is occurring and fully document it with photography; set a date to unveil the pictures and find a series of innovative ways to create powerful impact with them, using novel display technologies and the power of the Internet as well as media; and use the campaign to generate resources for organizations that are working to address and transform the situation." Early results of this work have been unveiled at XDRTB.org to document extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis throughout the world. In 2008, Nachtwey exhibited a series of original photographs at Le Laboratoire in Paris, France. The exhibit entitled "Struggle For Life" documented the human toll of TB and AIDS presented the work of Nachtwey with text by Dr. Anne Goldfeld of work they began together in Cambodia in 2003, as well as photos from Thailand, Africa and Siberia. The work was accompanied by film portraits of Nachtwey and several leading medical scientists participating in the Attention! Symposium by American filmmaker Asa Mader. Work Cited "James Nachtwey Biography." //Biography Base Home//. Web. 15 Dec. 2010. . "James Nachtwey Biography." //Biography.com//. 1996. Web. 15 Dec. 2010. . "James Nachtwey." //Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia//. Web. 15 Dec. 2010. . "War Photographer." //Icarus Films//. Web. 15 Dec. 2010. . Watterson, Derek. "James Nachtwey- Famous Photo Journalist | Digital Photography Courses." //Free Digital Photography Courses, Photography Lessons, and Tutorials//. June-July 2009. Web. 15 Dec. 2010. [].