Yuri Kozyrev

One of my dreams (that I know will never become reality) is/was to be a conflict photographer. To be one of those people who are in the middle of a conflict or war and take those photos that are then shown all over the world. Those images that show not only how messed up and horrific mankind actually is, but also how human and fragile we are as individuals.
Nowadays everyone is a photographer, anyone can take a picture with their phone from the middle of a conflict zone and post it on the internet, and the image will find it's way around the world in a matter of seconds. Nothing wrong with this of course, I find the ability to be aware of anything that is going on in the world at any time really important. I like to rely on a large array of resources of media to keep in touch with the outside world. But I have so much respect for those photographers and journalists who risk their lives everyday to bring us words and images that break our hearts and inform us at the same time. I've previously talked about a few of the other photographers that I admire, but I recently came across some of the talented Yuri Kozyrev's work and literally wept with emotion.

Yuri Kozyrev was both in the USSR in 1963, and after graduating from the Moscow State University School of Journalism became well-known for his photographic coverage of conflicts in the Soviet Union (specifically the wars in Chechnya). He has also reported from Afghanistan, and Iraq, where he spent a long time living with the locals, learning about the country and the cultures that surrounded him. He works as a Time contract photographer, and I discovered his work when he won the Visa d'or News Award for his coverage of the Arab Spring in Time Magazine this year. Look at this video which contains the portfolio of these photographs HERE. Your eyes will well up with tears, it really is impossible not to feel all types of emotion when looking at these images. They are simply so full of feeling and meaning.

To me that will always be where the real photographers are, those who can present an images that tells a story with a history and a future, packed with feeling and emotion. See the NOOR link below for more of Yuri's work.

References:
Wikipedia page on Yuri Kozyrev
NOOR Photographer homepage
Time Magazine