Steve McCurryBy: Danielle Joseph

Photo by: Antii Kirves

Era Steve McCurry was born in a suburb of Philadelphia,

Pennsylvania Attended Pennsylvania State University where he

studied film. After working free lance he started making trips all around the world, packing lightly with only clothes and film.

Today he is known as one of the greatest photographers with his work being recognized and known all around the world.

Career Path Photographs war related conflicts and consequences. Conflicts he has covered are Cambodia, Philippines,

Afghanistan to name a few National Geographic magazine is where you would find most

of his work but also other major magazines. “His career was launched when, disguised in native garb, he

crossed the Pakistan border into rebel-controlled Afghanistan just before the Russian invasion. When he emerged, he had rolls of film sewn into his clothes and images that would be published around the world as among the first to show the conflict there. His coverage won the Robert Capa Gold Medal for Best Photographic Reporting from Abroad, an award dedicated to photographers exhibiting exceptional courage and enterprise.”

The background behind the girls is foggy, and faded away, the trees shows bareness and emptiness. The obvious group of girls is the subject and its what captures the eye due to the bold color of their clothes. It kind of shows action because of the motion the clothes on their body are swaying.

Technology Depending on what he's shooting and the

situation he uses different types of cameras but prefers to pack light

carry one or two lenses. Shoots both in digital and film, Nikon D3s and Hasselblad HDII-39

This picture shows many levels of color. From the dark thick smoky clouds, the colorful red/orange fiery light then to the dark sands of some dessert. The subject are the three camels and they are made to look like a prop in this amazing battlefield sky.

Ethics To photograph portraits it all depends on the subject Photographs subjects as is “That’s when I make contact and explain what I’m doing. I

don’t snap frames and run away without saying anything. If someone does not like to be photographed, I don’t try to persuade them. It creates bad karma.”

He tells the story how he captures the picture of a widow walking down the street. She even invited him over for tea. He grew such an admiration for her and all that she symbolizes

Motivation Steve is inspired by Henri Cartier Bresson Just everyday people doing there everyday things and

living their life inspires him “cleaning nets, families sharing meals and

celebrations, artisans crafting their wares, nomads continually on the move; even the most seemingly mundane activities can be inspirational when you look beneath the surface”

This a great action shot. You can clearly see the soldiers running in midair, jumping over pits of fire. The subjects however is all black but everything else is in color. The closer the subject is to the foreground the darker then as it reached the far background a subject is in color.

Viewpoints “What is important to my work is the individual

picture. I photograph stories on assignment, and of course they have to be put together coherently. But what matters most is that each picture stands on its own, with its own place and feeling.”

“There will always be new people and situations. In so far as there are new songs to be written, new poems to be told, likewise there will always be a new photograph to be taken!”

Photographic Style From browsing through his many albums on his

website, you will notice that most of his pictures have this sort of composition and emotion.

Uses a lot of different colors not much is shot in black and white

Pictures have their own place and setting Photographs what his naked eye sees without any

alterations

Even with the darkness of this picture, great amount of sunrays are caught by the camera showing some sort of smoke or dust. The rays shows some lines that stands out with the dark background. She subject is not directly in the middle this picture expresses the rules of thirds.

Impact Steve has a great impact on society, the pictures he takes and gets

published impacts the world. His pictures symbolizes the hard times of survival challenges and

hardships. His pictures will make you feel all kinds of different emotions from

happiness to empathy.

“One afternoon I spotted this man walking down the middle of the street with the sewing machine on his shoulder.  He was a tailor and the sewing machine represented his livelihood.  Unfortunately, the machine was ruined, but when the picture appeared on the cover of the National Geographic Magazine, the machine's manufacturer sent him a new one.”

Major at AICMy major at AIC is liberal Arts, Just like Steve McCurry, I would love to travel the world and help people out. Life is to short to remain in the states. I want to put myself in other peoples situations and shoes to get a whole different viewpoint then what I'm used to living.

Viewpoints“What is important to my work is the individual picture. I photograph stories on assignment, and of course they have to be put together coherently. But what matters most is that each picture stands on its own, with its own place and feeling.”

Books The Imperial Way (1985) Monsoon (1988) Portraits (1999) South Southeast (2000) Sanctuary (2002) The Path to Buddha: A Tibetan Pilgrimage

(2003) Steve McCurry (2005) Looking East (2006)

Works Cited

Cover Photo http://www.photoraw.org/node/83 Left: "Afghan Girl" 1985 National Geographic Steve McCurryRight: Gula in 2002 National Geographic Steve McCurry (Courtesy of the NPR) http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2002/04/afghan-girl/index-text All other pictures from Steve McCurry Website http://stevemccurry.com/galleries http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photograph

ers/photographer-steve-mccurry/ http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB1000142412788732332490457

9043303744241562 http://stevemccurry.com/biography http://www.odedwagen.com/2013/01/masters-of-photography-intervie

w-with-steve-mccurry/