In 1984, during the height of the Soviet-Afghan war, American photojournalist Steve McCurry took what is considered by many to be the most famous photo in the world. The photo, entitled Afghan Girl, depicts a then-12-year-old girl, identified in 2002 as Sharbat Gula, while she and her family were living in Nasir Bagh, an Afghan refugee camp in the Pakistani city of Peshawar.
New research has revealed the most famous photographs of all time -- with NASA's iconic "Man on the Moon" photo from 1969’s Apollo 11 mission topping the list.
Sharbat Gula, the Afghan woman made famous by photographer Steve McCurry's iconic Afghan Girl photo, has escaped the Taliban in Afghanistan and has been evacuated to Italy.
The woman known as "Afghan Girl" has been arrested in Pakistan for using a fake identity card and living in the country illegally.
I will begin by saying that my intention is not to attack Steve McCurry or defame him in any manner. It is only an attempt to clear certain facts that have come to light regarding his work and to also raise certain questions on aspects that may or may not have been missed, but certainly have not been expressed till now... at least not publicly.
Want to hear the story of how the iconic Afghan Girl photo was shot? NPR's All Things Considered interviewed renowned photojournalist Steve McCurry to find out the background behind the famous National Geographic cover picture.
There are few photographers out there as well-known as the iconic Steve McCurry. His Afghan Girl portrait earned him world-wide fame and recognition, but all of his work -- from the most iconic to the largely unseen -- speaks to his uncanny eye for capturing emotion and composing portraits that are second to none.
And now, four decades of the great man's work is being summed up in a 150-portrait retrospective called Oltre lo Sguardo, on display at the beautiful Villa Reale di Monza in Italy until April 6, 2015.
Update on 12/16/21: This video embed has been removed by its owner. You can still watch it here.
It might be hard to believe in retrospect, but it turns out that Steve McCurry's most famous photograph, the iconic 'Afghan Girl,' was almost passed over for the cover of National Geographic in 1985.
In 1984, photographer Steve McCurry shot a portrait titled "Afghan Girl" that would become the defining image of his career and one of the most famous National Geographic covers ever published. In 2002, McCurry was able to locate the subject, Sharbat Gula, and learn her story.
Today's dose of inspiration comes in the form of two videos for the price of one. Both videos feature well-known and well-respected photographer and photojournalist Steve McCurry -- the man behind the unforgettable Afghan Girl photo that graced the cover of NatGeo -- but each offer a different sort of insight into his world.