Gerd Ludwig

Documentary photographer

Documentary photographer Gerd Ludwig was born in Germany in 1947. He studied Photo Design at the University of Essen, cofounded VISUM, Germany’s first photographer-owned photo agency, and in 1978 began working for magazines like Geo, Spiegel and Life.

In 1984 he relocated to New York, continuing to shoot for major international publications before signing as a contract photographer for NationalGeographic in the 1990s, focusing on environmental issues and the social changes in Germany and eastern Europe.

He is best known for his coverage of the aftermath of 1986’s Chernobyl nuclear disaster. First photographing it in 1993 for National

Geographic, Ludwig returned in 2005, taking him deeper into the contaminated reactor than any other western photographer.

Now based in Los Angeles, Ludwig continues to work for

NationalGeographic, as well as on personal projects. He has won numerous awards, including the IPA’s 2006 Lucie Award for International Photographer of the Year and the Honor Medal for Distinguished Service in Journalism from the Missouri School of Journalism in 2015.