摄影师亚米·维塔尔的行摄人生

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.

亚米·维塔尔常被称为旅行摄影师，原因是她用18年时间到访过近百个国家。总的来说，她拍摄的照片画面精美，充满异域风情，但却不是一般的旅游照片。她的照片反映了她所关注的社会重点问题。

“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.”

维塔尔说：“我每到一个地方旅行，都会发现许多令人惊奇的事物。而真正奇妙之处在于用数年的时间待在同一个地方，去发掘事物的本质，谈论与我们息息相关的问题。”

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.

維塔尔获提名竞逐今年世界新闻摄影奖，入选的作品是她在肯尼亚北部一个集体运营的Reteti大象保护区拍摄的照片。

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.

维塔尔的拍摄生涯，始于20世纪90年代初，她在北卡罗来纳州首府罗利的一家当地报社当实习生，之后转至美联社当编辑。直至有一天，她鼓起勇气辞掉工作，为的是要实现当驻外记者的梦想。

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.

她在捷克一家报社工作一段时间后，转至科索沃，报道当地的冲突。就是在那儿，她发现自己对发掘新闻标题背后人们共同关注的以及反映现实生活的问题更有兴趣。她认为，不论到哪里，发掘人类的感情总是有趣的。而最令她印象深刻的是大自然对她的采访所产生的影响。

“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. ”

“每当被要求用摄影师的身份去记录其他人和发生在他们身上的故事时，我发现自己其实是在记录大自然。而当我记录大自然时，我又发现其实自己是在记录人类。”

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.”

很多时候，维塔尔都会花上数年时间拍摄和撰写自己感兴趣的故事。她说：“用数年的时间去发掘一个故事，能让我明白故事背后复杂的人物和事件，而这些事件往往不是看一眼就能明白的。发掘这些故事的窍门是要比谁都要更了解自己的拍摄对象，因为這能让自己到访其他人无法到访的地方。”

“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，我对梦想做这份职业的人的提议是：找一个你身边的故事（或许这个故事就发生在你的后院），把它变成自己的故事。你不一定要到国外去，最重要的是在讲述故事的时候，要用自己的角度把故事说出来，而且要比谁都要讲得好。”

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.

维塔尔承认，如何资助自己的拍摄是一个挑战。她有时候会当教师，或替公司拍广告照片赚钱。但收入并不是最大的挑战。心理上承受的危险才最令她感到害怕。作为一名女性，她需要考虑自己工作的环境和方法。

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.

尽管在旅程中遇到诸多困难，她仍尽全力纪录这些故事。因为它们反映了当地人排除万难，尝试做出改变的过程。

Word Study

witness /'w?tn?s/ v. 当场看到，目击

spell /spel/ n.（干某事或在某处工作的）一段时间

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

undertake /?nd?'te?k/ v. 承担，从事

University professors both teach and undertake research.

commission /k?'m??n/ n.佣金；正式委托