Steve McCurry

     Steve McCurry was born on April 23, 1950, and is a photographer who mainly takes pictures of conflicts in the Middle East and Africa. Some of the places he has taken pictures in were Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Lebanon. His goal is to help people understand the tragedies of these wars that are so far away and humanize the people in them. Due to his photography, he won many accolades because of his pursuit for awareness. I believe that the photos that he has taken truly emphasize both the cruelty and the determination of humanity.

In the photo above I think it truly represents both facets of humanity I talked about before. Here we can see presumably a mother and her child sitting on an apartment porch with decimated buildings nearby due to bombings and other catastrophes. It shows how humanity can be extremely cruel to each other, willing to kill and ruin the lives of others as long as it benefits them. Yet in this same picture, both mother and daughter are cutting potatoes to eat. Despite the fact that their home is ruined, their lives changed irreparably, and danger likely at every corner, these two people are still surviving. They continue to survive regardless of the odds, with the pure determination to get to the next day and eventually move on from the conflict surrounding them. I think this is a beautiful picture that perfectly encapsulates the suffering people experience and the hope that pervades even in the most direst of circumstances. Steve did an amazing job showing the way the people in Lebanon live even in a war-torn country. 

Another example of Steve's amazing photography is the picture below. It shows a bunch of kids playing on an old broken down artillery gun and just having a good time, while in the background, you can clearly see the decrepit buildings heavily damaged in the war. I think that this picture looks good visually seeing as it provides a clear focus on both the kids jumping around and the weapon they are playing on. It creates a deep contrast because kids shouldn't be near these massive weapons, even if they are nonfunctional. Yet the fact that they are shows that this is their way of life. These kids were likely born into the conflict and it's all they've ever known, and despite the inherent dangers of living in a war zone, they have managed to find some joy in their situation. I feel like this picture symbolizes the adaptability of humanity. These kids are able to adapt to their terrible circumstances and cope with the reality around them, using the same weapons created to harm others to instead bring themselves joy.