What is Alfred Aizenstat's experience?

Alfred Eisenstaedt (1898 ~1995) is a witness and recorder of many important historical events. During his nearly 70-year photojournalism career, he shot more than/kloc-0.0 million negatives, and was praised as "the pioneer of photojournalism" and "the father of modern photojournalism".

(1) Kiss to celebrate victory

1992, 94-year-old Aizenstat said with emotion when talking about "Kiss to Celebrate Victory" filmed 47 years ago:

Even if I go to heaven, people will remember me. Maybe they won't remember my name, but they all know that a photographer took such a picture that a nurse was kissed by a sailor at the end of World War II. Everyone will remember.

It was1August, 945 15, and the news of the unconditional surrender of the Japanese army came. Aizenstat, who boarded Life magazine, immediately picked up his camera and ran several blocks to new york Times Square to shoot the celebration. There, he found a sailor who couldn't restrain the joy of winning the war and was kissing everyone he saw one by one. Aizenstat immediately took several photos, and the kiss to celebrate victory was one of them.

This photo of sailors kissing unknown nurses expresses people's longing for the end of the war and is famous all over the world.

So, who is this sailor and nurse photographed by Aizenstat? In the following decades, more than 40 men and at least 6 nurses claimed to be "dramatists" of that year, and some even brought their own lawyers. Aizenstat himself can't tell the truth from the false, because he can't remember the name of the subject when he is busy in the bustling crowd.

1988, Aizenstat finally found two heroes of the year-sailor George and girl Levi. He and an old man over 60 came to new york Times Square again, and ingeniously asked the heroine to wear a white dress similar to that of that year and take photos in the same posture, adding a much-told story to the work Kiss to Celebrate Victory.

1995, in order to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II, the American stamp company launched a set of commemorative stamps. One of them is printed with a kiss to celebrate the victory.

(2) People who witness history

Aizenstat was born in Germany. He studied at the Law Department of Berlin University from 19 13 to 19 16, and taught himself photography after school. In the 1920s, he began to shoot news reports.

From 65438 to 0936, Aizenstat was hired as a photojournalist by the newly founded Life magazine. His film "American West Point Military Academy Students" was used as the cover of the second issue of Life. As one of the founders of Life magazine, he accompanied Life for nearly half a century, from its birth to its closure in 1972.

Aizenstat completed thousands of shooting tasks in his life and reported many important historical events. His subjects are very wide, including artists, military and political dignitaries, movie stars and ordinary people. His photos emphasize objectivity and truth, and are called "eyes of love", which are adopted by many photography magazines and photography anthologies. Life magazine alone published more than 2,500 photos, of which 86 were used as the cover. In addition, he has published 13 books.

Aizenstat is just over 5 feet tall and is called "the little giant with a camera". He is short and insists on taking pictures with a small camera and live light, which is not easy to attract people's attention during the interview, which brings him a lot of convenience in capturing the expressions and gestures of characters in public places.

In his later years, Aizenstat still insisted on photography and had great enthusiasm for photography. He once said this:

I like photography. I live to take pictures. In my photography career, I never wanted to retire. If one day, I am too old to walk, I can still sit in a chair, hold a tripod, wear a long lens and pat the birds in the sky!