Biography

Born 1971, Peter Harris spent his childhood in western Massachusetts. It was during his youth that images from the Vietnam War, through to the Gulf War, had a haunting effect on him and were instrumental in his resolve to become a photographer.
In 1994, previously a self-taught photographer, Peter began working as an assistant to commercial photographers in Boston. Although promising, the photo business began to lose its glamorous appeal and after several years, it was time to take a break.
Harris worked for eight years as an IT specialist for computer giants like Hewlett Packard in France, an experience that has provided vital computer skills, an asset in the digital age of photography and web design.
After 5 years in Paris, he moved to Rome to re-launch a career as a freelance photographer with a reportage-flair. Peter’s first foreign assignment was to cover emergency earthquake relief efforts in northern Pakistan conducted by the UN World Food Programme in 2005.
In recent years Harris has covered the international mourning at the passing of Pope John Paul II at the Vatican, revisited, a year later, the devastating earthquake affected areas that left millions homeless in Pakistan, the forced evictions and relocation of poor communities in Cambodia, and the border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia.
Peter has been a freelance photographer since late 2005, devoting himself to documenting the development work of non-governmental organisations and wider social issues. He has worked on a number of photographic projects in Thailand, China, Mongolia, France, Italy, Tunisia, and the United States.
On his way to Cambodia in 2007, he attended the much talked about Bangkok Photo Workshop. A “motivating” experience led by photography celebrities David A. Harvey and James A. Nachtwey.
Since basing himself in Cambodia, Harris has had several solo and group exhibitions. In November 2008, Peter became one of the founding photographers to join Asia Motion. In addition, he is initiating an educational program for NGO staff and is currently continuing his efforts to document the affects of development in Cambodia.
http://fotojournalism.net