Robert Capa (1913

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Biography

Robert Capa was a Hungarian-American war photographer and photojournalist. He is considered by some to be the greatest combat and adventure photographer in history.

Timeline

The story of Robert Capa, told in moments.

1913 Birth

Born Endre Friedmann in Budapest. Jewish. Fled Hungary at 18 due to political repression. Moved to Berlin, then Paris. He invented the name "Robert Capa" because it sounded American.

Why invent an American-sounding name? What was it like fleeing Hungary at 18? Did Paris make you a photographer or just give you a stage?

1936 Event

Photographed the Spanish Civil War. His image "The Falling Soldier," showing a loyalist militiaman at the moment of death, became one of the most famous war photographs ever taken. Its authenticity is still debated.

Is 'The Falling Soldier' authentic? How close were you when you took it? Did the Spanish Civil War change what photography meant to you?

1944 Event

Landed with the first wave of troops at Omaha Beach on D-Day. His hands shook so badly that most of his photos were blurred. A darkroom assistant melted the negatives. Only 11 frames survived.

What was it like landing at Omaha Beach? Did your shaking hands make the blurred photos more honest? How did losing those negatives feel?

1947 Event

Co-founded Magnum Photos with Henri Cartier-Bresson, David Seymour, and George Rodger. The agency let photographers own their negatives. It changed photojournalism.

Why did photographers owning their negatives matter so much? What was the vision behind Magnum Photos? Did Cartier-Bresson and you agree on everything?

1954 Death

Stepped on a landmine in Thai Binh, Indochina, while covering the First Indochina War for Life magazine. He was 40. He'd once said: "If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough."

Were you thinking of your own words about getting close enough? Is dying at 40 in the field the photographer's fate? What would you want your last frame to show?

Artifacts (15)

Death in the Making

"Death in the Making (1938) is a photographic book by Gerda Taro and Robert Capa that documents the Spanish Civil War. It was published by Covici · Friede Publishers while the conflict was still...

1938

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Images of War: By Robert Capa, with Text from His Own Writings

Photo-journalistic essays on the atmosphere and attitudes of warfare, from the Spanish Civil War to the author's last days in the jungles of Vietnam.

1964

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Robert Capa, 1913-1954

"Robert Capa: Photographs is the first true retrospective book of one of the century's greatest photographers. Drawing upon hundreds of previously unseen images, this collection reveals Capa as one of...

1974

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Robert Capa, 1913-1954

Biografie van de Hongaar Andre Friedman, die onder andere veel bekendheid kreeg als oorlogsfotograaf.

1974

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Robert Capa

Robert Capa was the most highly acclaimed war photographer of his time, and one of the most courageous photojournalist who ever lived. His startling, often shocking images of the realities of war...

1999

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Heart of Spain: Robert Capa's Photographs of the Spanish Civil War

In 1936, the rebellion of monarchists and fascists led by General Franco, in alliance with Hitler and Mussolini, mobilized anti-fascists all over the world, among them Robert Capa. During the entire...

1999

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The Mexican Suitcase: The history

"Lost since 1939, the Mexican suitcase contains nearly 4,500 negatives documenting the Spanish Civil War by Robert Capa, Chim (David Seymour), and Gerda Taro. These films had traveled from Paris via...

2010

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Slightly Out Of Focus

In 1942, a dashing young man who liked nothing so much as a heated game of poker, a good bottle of scotch, and the company of a pretty girl hopped a merchant ship to England. He was Robert Capa, the...

2015

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Robert Capa: Death in the Making

Once a cult-status rarity, Capa's classic, impassioned Spanish Civil War photobook is available again with new, high-quality image scans and supplementary research Robert Capa's Death in the Making...

2020

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Calm down Bob. ... And come and see me as soon as you get back.

According to the Live 8 programme notes by Geldof's biographer and friend, Paul Vallely, the Prime Minister responded: "Calm down Bob. ... And come and see me as soon as you get back." The result was...

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Slightly Out of Focus: The Legendary Photojournalist's Illustrated Memoir of World War II

Renowned photograher Capa first published this memoir in 1947, recalling his time covering World War II between 1942 and 1945. His firsthand reminiscences are buttressed with his signature...

2001

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I was a quarter Catholic, a quarter Protestant, a quarter Jewish and a quarter n...

per. Regarding his Jewish ancestry, in a 2011 interview with the Manchester-based Jewish Telegraph, Geldof said "I was a quarter Catholic, a quarter Protestant, a quarter Jewish and a quarter nothing...

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It's no wonder Bob Geldof knows so much about famine – he's been dining out on '...

ME awards in 2006, when accepting an award, Geldof referred to the host Russell Brand as a "cunt". Brand responded by saying "It's no wonder Bob Geldof knows so much about famine – he's been dining...

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Robert Capa war photographs

1961

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Robert Capa

1969

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