Many photographers, authors, artists, and others dream of traveling the world in search of inspiration and images for their portfolios. Unfortunately, very few of these aspiring people actually have the opportunity to make their dream a reality. For Santiago Vega, this dream is a reality he has lived many times. As a professional photojournalist, Santiago has traveled throughout his dream world of Europe more than a dozen times.
The images in Santiago's portfolio are a combination of photographs, which he captured during these visits to Europe, as well as a few from the USA. While there are very few people who live out this dream of traveling to their favorite destinations, there are even fewer whose destination includes a war-zone. You guessed it, Santiago is part of this minority.
In his statement, Santiago explains how he lives for his next opportunity to photograph people and war. He definitely does a great job at living out his aspirations, as the images in his portfolio are among the best war and photojournalism images you will find anywhere.
Take your time browsing through the portfolio of this masterful image-maker. Very few photographers have the drive and inspiration of Santiago Vega - a true master of the medium.,My name is Santiago Vega and I was born in Dallas, Texas in 1972. I've lived
in Boulder, Colorado for 6 years and have been making photographs seriously
since 1988. I learned to negotiate access early and was photographing NFL,
NBA, and NCAA sporting events in the early 1990's without any professional
affilliation at all.
I was profoundly influenced by Hemingway and Capa and
the photographs of Nachtwey, Morris, and the Turnley brothers. I began to
focus on Europe and since 1995 have worked in Europe more than a dozen times
for months at a time and always at a high personal expense. I've traveled
through Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia, and most recently Albania, Kosovo, and
Macedonia. The San Fermines of Pamplona, Spain are a favorite subject as is
the Tour de France, particularly the mountain stages like L'Alp D'Huez. I
have never recieved an award for a photograph and rarely show images to
those outside my close circle of friends.
I am a language scholar studying
Spanish, French, German, and Arabic at the University of Colorado, Boulder.
"I want to photograph people and war." I live for my next opportunity to do
so and I think I always will.