| American photographer Date of Birth: 09.03.1947 Country: USA |
David Hume Kennerly, an American photographer, was born in 1947 in Roseburg, Oregon. He was the fourth child of O.A. 'Tunney' Kennerly, a traveling salesman, and his wife Joanne Hume Kennerly. Kennerly became interested in photography at the age of 12, and by the time he was 15, he had his first photograph published in the school newspaper 'The Orange 'R'. He saw photography as his ticket to explore the world and show it to those who couldn't experience it themselves.
After graduating from West Linn High School in 1965, Kennerly began working as a photographer for the 'Oregon Journal'. His work was also featured in 'Oregon National Guard' and 'Oregonian'. Even at the beginning of his career, Kennerly started capturing celebrities, including Miles Davis, Igor Stravinsky, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and music groups such as 'The Rolling Stones' and 'The Supremes'. It was Senator Kennedy who advised him to pursue political photography.
In the fall of 1967, Kennerly moved to Los Angeles as a staff photographer for the news agency 'UPI'. The following year, he relocated to New York, and in 1970, 'UPI' transferred him to Washington, D.C. Kennerly was only 23 years old when he photographed President Nixon for the first time. His next assignment was covering the Vietnam War as a military photojournalist. It was his photographs from Vietnam that earned him the Pulitzer Prize in 1972. While in Vietnam, Kennerly established a relationship with 'Life Magazine', and after his photographs gained fame, he also collaborated with 'Time Magazine'.
In the summer of 1973, Kennerly returned to the United States and worked for 'Time', while also contributing to various other publications. During this time, he captured one of his best-known images, President Nixon waving goodbye as he left office. The next president, Gerald R. Ford, appointed Kennerly as his personal photographer and the official White House photographer. From this position, Kennerly had the opportunity to photograph a wide range of political leaders, including Hirohito, Leonid Brezhnev, Francisco Franco, Nicolae Ceaușescu, Ferdinand Marcos, Tito, Muhammad Suharto, Deng Xiaoping, and Queen Elizabeth.
After Ford's presidency ended, Kennerly left the White House and his position as the official photographer. He resumed working extensively with 'Time' and throughout his career, he created more than 35 covers for 'Time' and 'Newsweek', and traveled to 130 countries on assignments. Although he wasn't the official White House photographer, Kennerly photographed every American president. He also authored several books, including the renowned album 'Photo du Jour: A Picture-a-Day Journey through the First Year of the New Millennium'. In 2006, his photographs began appearing on NBC news programs.
Kennerly has received numerous awards in the world of photography, with the Pulitzer Prize in 1972 being the most notable. He firmly believes that photojournalism will never die and that there will always be someone with a camera capturing everything happening in the world around us.