Eddie Adams the photo journalistMINI BIOGRAPHY :
Eddie Adams’ Early Life Adams was born on June 12, 1933, in New Kensington, Pennsylvania. As a teenager, he developed an interest in photography. He served on the photography staff of his high school newspaper and also as a wedding and portrait photographer. After graduating from high school, Adams enlisted in the US Marine Corps. He spent three years as a combat photographer during the Korean War. Along with the Pulitzer, Eddie Adams received over 500 awards during his photography career. Some of them include the George Polk Award for News Photography in 1968, 1977 and 1978. He also received numerous awards from World Press Photo, Sigma Delta Chi, NPPA, Overseas Press Club and many other organizations in the industry.
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In 1969, Eddie Adams won a Pulitzer Prize for the Spot News Photography. He also won a World Press Photo award for the same photograph. Anticipating the great impact of Adams’ photograph, there was an attempt by editors to balance the photograph in the New York Times by putting it into perspective and showing photographs of what the Vietcong had done at the same time.
However, Eddie later apologized to General Nguyen along with his entire family for the irreparable damage this photo did to the General’s honor. After the General’s death, Eddie Adams praised Nguyen as a hero. Adams also shot a series of photographs of Vietnamese refugees sailing to Thailand in a 30-foot boat, only for them to be towed all the back into the open seas by the Thai marines. These photos and the accompanying reports helped in persuading the President to grant over 200,000 Vietnamese people asylum. For these photographs, he won the Robert Capa Gold Medal from Overseas Press Club in 1977. |
He spent three years as a combat photographer during the Korean War. After this, he left the marines and joined the staff of the Evening Bulletin in Philadelphia. He worked there from 1958 to 1962. During this time, he became a photographer for the AP (Association Press).
Eddie Adams was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American photographer and a photojournalist who is known for portraits of politicians and other celebrities as well as his coverage of 13 wars.
In May 2004, Adams was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. After the diagnosis, he still continued to work and even created a video profile of himself. This video was featured during the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Telethon to help raise awareness of his illness. Adams died on September 19, 2004.
Below i put together a little slideshow of my favorite pictures of his work so you, " the viewer" can get an idea of what type of photographer he was.
1.) It was very hard choosing this artist, it was an variety of artist to choose from and to be completely honest when i clicked his name i immediately had to go to his pictures to see if i would even like the man or not and clearly i did.
2.) The thing i find most interesting about Eddie Adams is how he was able to capture the murder of the man and how he showed the world what was going on in other countries outside of the U.S. It takes a lot of bravery to do something like that and he earned my respect.
3.) When i first viewed his work i absolutely loved everything about i, and my favorite thing is the pictures he captures with the kids, and the black and white filter really gives his pictures a dramatic tone which interest me.
2.) The thing i find most interesting about Eddie Adams is how he was able to capture the murder of the man and how he showed the world what was going on in other countries outside of the U.S. It takes a lot of bravery to do something like that and he earned my respect.
3.) When i first viewed his work i absolutely loved everything about i, and my favorite thing is the pictures he captures with the kids, and the black and white filter really gives his pictures a dramatic tone which interest me.
4.) This is my favorite picture, out of all his work, the ladies face makes it seem like she works very hard and the skulls behind here in my eyes make it seem like death is inevitable and is trailing her as i type this response.
"Still photographs are the most powerful weapons in the world. Words and pictures have a continuing struggle for primacy. In my mind, a person can write the best story in the world; but a photograph is absolute".
- Eddie Adams