攝影師亞米·維塔爾的行攝人生

Ami Vitale is often described as a travel photographer for she has worked in nearly 100 countries over the past 18 years. Yet though her pictures are exquisitely beautiful and come from many exotic locations they go far deeper than traditional travel pictures， connecting the viewer to issues that are dear to her and of importance to society as a whole.

亞米·維塔爾常被稱(chēng)為旅行攝影師，原因是她用18年時(shí)間到訪(fǎng)過(guò)近百個(gè)國(guó)家。總的來(lái)說(shuō)，她拍攝的照片畫(huà)面精美，充滿(mǎn)異域風(fēng)情，但卻不是一般的旅游照片。她的照片反映了她所關(guān)注的社會(huì)重點(diǎn)問(wèn)題。

“While I do travel at a place， I witness extraordinary things，” says Vitale. “The magic really begins when I stay in one place， often for years， to get beyond the surface and talk about the things that connect us.”

維塔爾說(shuō)：“我每到一個(gè)地方旅行，都會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)許多令人驚奇的事物。而真正奇妙之處在于用數(shù)年的時(shí)間待在同一個(gè)地方，去發(fā)掘事物的本質(zhì)，談?wù)撆c我們息息相關(guān)的問(wèn)題。”

This year Vitale is a nominee in the World Press Photo Awards for her pictures of the community-owned Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in northern Kenya.

維塔爾獲提名競(jìng)逐今年世界新聞攝影獎(jiǎng)，入選的作品是她在肯尼亞北部一個(gè)集體運(yùn)營(yíng)的Reteti大象保護(hù)區(qū)拍攝的照片。

But her first step into the world of photography came when she gained an internship at a small newspaper in Raleigh， North Carolina， in the early 1990s. Later she worked as an editor for Associated Press and， as she puts it， one day built up the courage to quit and pursue her dream to be a foreign correspondent.

維塔爾的拍攝生涯，始于20世紀(jì)90年代初，她在北卡羅來(lái)納州首府羅利的一家當(dāng)?shù)貓?bào)社當(dāng)實(shí)習(xí)生，之后轉(zhuǎn)至美聯(lián)社當(dāng)編輯。直至有一天，她鼓起勇氣辭掉工作，為的是要實(shí)現(xiàn)當(dāng)駐外記者的夢(mèng)想。

After a spell on a newspaper in the Czech Republic， Vitale set off to cover the conflict in Kosovo. It was here she found the desire to turn her attention to stories that bring people together and reflect life beyond the latest headline. She thinks wherever she goes， uncovering the feeling of people is the interesting part. And what impressed her most is the influence of nature for her interview.

她在捷克一家報(bào)社工作一段時(shí)間后，轉(zhuǎn)至科索沃，報(bào)道當(dāng)?shù)氐臎_突。就是在那兒，她發(fā)現(xiàn)自己對(duì)發(fā)掘新聞標(biāo)題背后人們共同關(guān)注的以及反映現(xiàn)實(shí)生活的問(wèn)題更有興趣。她認(rèn)為，不論到哪里，發(fā)掘人類(lèi)的感情總是有趣的。而最令她印象深刻的是大自然對(duì)她的采訪(fǎng)所產(chǎn)生的影響。

“As a photographer the more Im asked to document people and their issues， I realise Im documenting nature， and the more I get asked to document nature， I realise Im photographing peoples lives. Its one and the same. ”

“每當(dāng)被要求用攝影師的身份去記錄其他人和發(fā)生在他們身上的故事時(shí)，我發(fā)現(xiàn)自己其實(shí)是在記錄大自然。而當(dāng)我記錄大自然時(shí)，我又發(fā)現(xiàn)其實(shí)自己是在記錄人類(lèi)。”

Vitale often spends many years working on stories that are important to her. “Sticking with a story for years helps you understand the complexities， characters and issues that are not always immediately obvious，” she says. “The trick is to get access to places that no one else can get to， and the secret to this is to know your subject better than anyone else.”

很多時(shí)候，維塔爾都會(huì)花上數(shù)年時(shí)間拍攝和撰寫(xiě)自己感興趣的故事。她說(shuō)：“用數(shù)年的時(shí)間去發(fā)掘一個(gè)故事，能讓我明白故事背后復(fù)雜的人物和事件，而這些事件往往不是看一眼就能明白的。發(fā)掘這些故事的竅門(mén)是要比誰(shuí)都要更了解自己的拍攝對(duì)象，因?yàn)檫@能讓自己到訪(fǎng)其他人無(wú)法到訪(fǎng)的地方。”

“So my advice to those who dream about this job is to find a story close to you—maybe even in your backyard—and make it yours. You dont need to travel abroad. What you do need to do， however， is tell a story better than anyone else can， using your own unique perspective. ”

“因此，我對(duì)夢(mèng)想做這份職業(yè)的人的提議是：找一個(gè)你身邊的故事（或許這個(gè)故事就發(fā)生在你的后院），把它變成自己的故事。你不一定要到國(guó)外去，最重要的是在講述故事的時(shí)候，要用自己的角度把故事說(shuō)出來(lái)，而且要比誰(shuí)都要講得好。”

She admits funding is a big challenge and she often funds the projects herself， by undertaking some teaching work or advertising commissions. But the income is not the biggest challenge. Its the psychological dangers that scare her most. As a woman， she has to be thoughtful about how and where she works.

維塔爾承認(rèn)，如何資助自己的拍攝是一個(gè)挑戰(zhàn)。她有時(shí)候會(huì)當(dāng)教師，或替公司拍廣告照片賺錢(qián)。但收入并不是最大的挑戰(zhàn)。心理上承受的危險(xiǎn)才最令她感到害怕。作為一名女性，她需要考慮自己工作的環(huán)境和方法。

Though she encounters difficulties during her travel， she still does her best to record those stories as they reflect changing process of local people who try their best to make a difference.

盡管在旅程中遇到諸多困難，她仍盡全力紀(jì)錄這些故事。因?yàn)樗鼈兎从沉水?dāng)?shù)厝伺懦f(wàn)難，嘗試做出改變的過(guò)程。

Word Study

witness /'w?tn?s/ v. 當(dāng)場(chǎng)看到，目擊

spell /spel/ n.（干某事或在某處工作的）一段時(shí)間

He had a spell as a singer before becoming an actor.

undertake /?nd?'te?k/ v. 承擔(dān)，從事

University professors both teach and undertake research.

commission /k?'m??n/ n.傭金；正式委托