Like all other sectors, the world of photography has legends who are still talked about to this day. Such is the case for Robert Capa, an American journalist and photographer who stood out for his unseen pictures. Indeed, his feat is especially in the photos related to wars and conflicts.
The life of Robert Capa in a nutshell
Robert Capa's birth name is Endre Ernö Friedmann. He was born in 1913 in Bulgaria. Of Hungarian origin, he slipped into an American identity. A future legend in war photography, he has always been passionate about this art from a young age. He started as an assistant photographer and granted his first reportage in 1932. The photographer had a bad start that pushed him to renew his identity in 1935. He died in 1947 during the Indochina war by stepping on a mine.
Robert Capa's beginnings and career in his field
Since then, the name Robert Capa has become a celebrity and a reference in his field. It was not until the Spanish Civil War in 1936 that he took his first timeless photograph, "Death of a Republican Soldier". From this, the unique destiny of Robert Capa, the greatest war photographer, was born. For him, the success of a photograph depends on the photographer being close enough to the scene.
His photos and reports were mainly about wars and conflicts. He traveled the world and continued to provide famous shots like those of a Chinese child in military garb during the Sino-Japanese war. His achievement continued with the covers of the Second World War.
A pillar for photography
Robert Capa the greatest war photographer was present during the wars that marked his time. He was the only photographer on the scene of the arrival of the Allies in Normandy in June 1944. His objective was simple: to bear witness to what is really happening without taking part in the events and never to remain silent.
This conviction leaves its mark on his work, such as the shorn woman in Chartres with her baby and the shattered faces of refugees in Teruel. The pictures of Robert Capa, the greatest war photographer, showed great empathy for the victims of war. The world owes him the creation of Magnum, an international structure that regulates image rights.