Joao Silva

South African photographer

Joao Silva is a renowned South African photographer. He has covered conflicts in Africa, the Balkans, the Middle East and Iraq, in addition to many other countries. He co-authored, with Greg Marinovich, a book called The Bang-Bang Club, about the work of photojournalists covering ethnic violence in South Africa before 1994. He has won many awards for his work, including World Press Photo and Pictures of the Year International. In October 2010 while on contract with The New York Times Silva stepped on a land mine while accompanying American soldiers patrolling in southern Afghanistan. Both his legs were lost below the knees.