Carolyn Cole – from Conflict to the Environment

Question

While writing a blog about Carolyn Cole—the next photographer featured in the exhibition ‘Women at the Frontline’ —a new question occurred to me, especially after exploring the documentary work of Susan Meiselas, who, like Carolyn Cole, has documented many armed conflicts.

What exactly is the difference between documentary photography and photojournalism—what sets these two apart? Traditionally, that distinction did exist. However, this distinction is historically determined and not absolute. Classic photojournalism was tied to news and current events. It operates within media such as newspapers and magazines, in collaboration with editorial teams and according to journalistic rules. Speed and publication are central.

Documentary photography, on the other hand, is often slower and more in-depth. There is room for interpretation and context, and the photographer is usually involved for a longer period of time. This work is less dependent on news media. Over time, however, that distinction has shifted. Whereas there used to be clearer categories, they are now increasingly overlapping. Photographers work in multiple ways simultaneously, labels are used more loosely, and new forms are emerging. The terms ‘photojournalism’ and ‘documentary photography’ still exist, but their boundaries are less clearly defined.

The system through which images circulate has also changed. The linear process of photographer → editor → publication → audience barely exists anymore. Anyone can take and publish photos; social media function as news platforms, and the audience has simultaneously become a creator. This affects photojournalism in particular. Control and selection are diminishing, speed is becoming more important, and professional standards are coming under pressure. Added to this is the rise of the ‘citizen photographer’: people without a journalistic background who capture events and share them directly online. Their images are often perceived as more authentic. At the same time, financial constraints and limited access to conflict zones are forcing media outlets to rely more frequently on this type of imagery. This is radically changing the role of the professional photographer.

The difference between documentary photography and photojournalism thus lies less in the image itself and increasingly in the context in which it is created, distributed, and interpreted. With that in mind, it becomes interesting to examine the path Carolyn Cole has taken. How has her perspective been shaped? Where does her story begin, and how does her work develop within—and perhaps also beyond—the boundaries of photojournalism?

How It All Began

Carolyn Cole was born on April 24, 1961, in Boulder, Colorado (USA). Her fascination with photography began at a young age, when she spent hours looking through her father’s family photo albums. From an early age, images became a way for her to read stories—and perhaps to understand them as well.

After high school, she received a Pentax K1000, which she took with her on a summer trip through Europe. That camera changed her place in the world. Where words sometimes failed, photography offered a different form of connection. It allowed her to get closer to people, despite her shyness and without speaking the language. It was her first experience of what photography could do: bridge the distance.

Not long after, she decided to pursue that path further and graduated in 1983 from the University of Texas with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in photojournalism, and subsequently earned a Master of Arts from the School of Visual Communication at the Scripps College of Communication at Ohio University.

Professional Career

After completing her studies, Carolyn Cole began working as a photojournalist for publications including the El Paso Herald-Post, the San Francisco Examiner, and the Sacramento Bee. She also worked as a freelance photographer in Mexico City for newspapers such as the Los Angeles Times, the Detroit Free Press, and Business Week. During this period, she further developed her visual perspective and learned to work in diverse and often unpredictable conditions.

She has been with the Los Angeles Times since 1994. Over the years, her work has brought her closer and closer to conflict zones. What began as reporting under diverse circumstances evolved into photography in situations that are not only physically, but also morally and emotionally complex.

Recognition and visibility

Carolyn Cole first gained widespread recognition in 1994, the year she joined the Los Angeles Times. She received the newspaper’s editorial award for her photographs of the crisis in Haiti. A year later, she was honored again, this time for her work in Russia.

From Conflict to Disaster

In 1997, she gained national attention with her photographs of the dying bank robber Emil Matasareanu, who had been shot following a live-broadcast shootout with the police. The images played an exceptional role: they were used as evidence in the wrongful death lawsuit filed by his family.

Her photos told a story that words could not convey and contributed to the Los Angeles Times’ Pulitzer Prize for reporting. That year, Carolyn Cole was named Journalist of the Year by the Times Mirror Corporation.

In 1999, she was in Kosovo during the crisis, and in 2001, she spent two months in Afghanistan.

Bethlehem, 2002

In early April 2002, Israeli troops surrounded the city of Bethlehem during Operation Defensive Shield. Palestinian militants, civilians, and police officers sought refuge in the Church of the Nativity, a sealed-off enclave of tension and fear that held out for 39 days.

On May 2, Carolyn Cole decided at the last minute to join a group of peace activists entering the building. During the final nine days of the siege, she was the only photojournalist inside the walls. With minimal resources, barely any food or water, and amid snipers and constant threat, she documented the desperate situation. Her images, often bathed in warm, golden light, conveyed the intensity and humanity of the moment. These photos earned her a nomination for the 2003 Pulitzer Prize, as well as first prize in the World Press Photo Awards and the Robert Capa Gold Medal from the Overseas Press Club.

Liberia and Iraq, 2003–2004

In mid-2003, Carolyn Cole traveled to Liberia, where rebels had surrounded the capital, Monrovia, and were demanding the resignation of President Charles Taylor. During that same period, she reported on the war in Iraq. Everywhere she went, she faced chaos and danger.

In this short interview, she discusses one of the photos she took in Iraq and its impact as a symbol of the mistreatment of prisoners of war by the U.S. military. 

For this work, Carolyn Cole received the Pulitzer Prize in 2004, second prize from the World Press Photo Awards for Iraq, third prize for Liberia, and the Robert Capa Gold Medal from the Overseas Press Club. Her series ‘Covering Conflict: Iraq and Liberia’ was praised for its intensity and the risks involved. With these achievements, she became the first photographer to win the three most prestigious American photojournalism awards in the same year. Carolyn Cole has been named American Newspaper Photographer of the Year multiple times.

Natural Disasters and Environmental Crises

After her intensive work in conflict zones, Carolyn Cole turned her attention to natural disasters and environmental crises, maintaining her characteristic commitment and eye for human stories.

Immediately after the tsunami of December 26, 2004, she traveled to Asia to document the devastation for the Los Angeles Times. Her work focused on the massive humanitarian crisis in hard-hit areas such as Atjeh in Indonesia, where she photographed the total devastation in Banda Atjeh—entire neighborhoods had been wiped out. Her images show survivors searching for belongings amid the rubble and the massive recovery of bodies.

She not only highlighted the physical damage but also emphasized the personal suffering: grieving families, chaotic conditions in emergency hospitals, and life in refugee camps. In addition, she visited other affected regions in South Asia to illustrate the scale of the disaster—which affected more than a dozen countries.

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the United States. This extremely powerful tropical cyclone devastated large parts of New Orleans and the surrounding area, claimed 1,392 lives, and caused approximately $125 billion in damage. Carolyn Cole was there to document the chaos and human tragedy. Her photos, along with those of other photographers, are included in the book Katrina. They show not only the scale of the destruction but also the resilience and despair of the people affected.

 

Five years later, in April 2010, Carolyn Cole covered the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, one of the worst environmental disasters in recent American history.

Her photography captured the scale and severity of the disaster: from oil-covered beaches and marine life to fishermen and coastal communities watching their livelihoods disappear. Often, the places where you can take the most important photos are where the authorities don’t want you to be and where they don’t want to be seen. That was also true of this oil spill, where the areas where the oil washed ashore had been cordoned off by the police. Because the disaster had occurred more than 80 kilometers offshore, it was difficult to get there. One photo of an oil-soaked pelican affected Carolyn Cole so deeply that she has since focused more frequently on environmental issues.

Behind the Scenes – Pioneering and Process

In addition to the visible events and iconic photos, Carolyn Cole herself recounts the challenges behind the camera. In a recent interview, she described how often improvisation was necessary: equipment didn’t always work as planned, conditions were extreme, and she had to learn to make quick decisions.

Her first job was at a small newspaper in El Paso, Texas. Back then, they still used a darkroom to develop black-and-white film. According to Carolyn Cole, that was a fun but labor-intensive process. She explains: ‘First, you had to take the film out of the roll container and wind it onto the reels, then each steel reel went into a steel drum. You poured the developer in and put the lid on, while continuing to turn it for minutes on end. It was very labor-intensive.’

When she was traveling in conflict zones, things got really complicated. In the early ’90s, while working in Haiti, she had to bring the entire darkroom with her. She described the process: ‘We had to bring all the dry chemicals and liquids, and we set up a bathroom with a hair dryer and black plastic sheeting, taping everything down. You hung the film on the shower curtain rod. Once that was done, you had to send the images via a device called a Leafax transmitter. Not every small newspaper could afford such a device, so we took our film to another hotel where AP, Reuters, or AFP likely had one. There, we paid a fee to use it to send the photos to the newspaper.’

In the mid-1990s, Carolyn Cole wanted to be one of the first photographers to use a digital camera. These early digital hybrids from Nikon and Kodak were enormous, heavy, and cumbersome: ‘They were gigantic, very large, and hard to hold, which made your wrist hurt. The batteries were weak and the memory cards were small. Each photo was about one megapixel… Around the early 2000s, digital photography wasn’t working optimally yet; it was a struggle.’

Unchanged

Yet, as Carolyn Cole emphasizes, the essential process of photojournalism has remained unchanged: ‘You look for newsworthiness, emotion, good lighting, a special moment. You look for action and reaction, and hope that everything comes together in a single image. The act of photography itself remains difficult: bringing all those elements together in a single photo that stands the test of time. What has changed is the speed of the news and the increasing demand to deliver images faster, and the sheer number of photographers doing this work.’

Carolyn Cole still vividly remembers the frustrations of early technology, but appreciates today’s improvements: good Wi-Fi, digital workflows, and safer equipment. At the same time, there remains a certain nostalgia for the old methods, when she worked with chemical solutions and literally got the chemicals on her hands by blowing on the photos. She notes that while this nostalgia is fun, it’s also less environmentally friendly, which is why she appreciates the new technology.

Her Motivation

For Carolyn Cole, photography is a universal language through which she seeks to foster understanding, compassion, and ultimately, change. Despite the physical risks she has faced in her work, she considers it her journalistic duty to bring the truth to light.

Between assignments, she often retreated to nature, for which she has a deep love. In recent years, she has consciously distanced herself from reporting in conflict zones.

The Environment

The environment has now become an important new area of focus for Carolyn Cole. Although this is less immediately dangerous than working in war zones, it presents different, more complex challenges. It requires a different way of looking at things and a different visual language.

In conflicts, it is often clear what is happening and what needs to be documented. With environmental issues, it is different. The problems are well-known—we know that plastic pollution and air pollution are harmful—but how do you translate that knowledge into images that truly move people and inspire change?

Whereas Carolyn Cole used to instinctively know what to photograph, she now has to consciously consider how an image gains meaning. How do you ensure that someone feels connected to something abstract, such as a plastic bottle or the impact of a gasoline-powered car?

This form of reporting is therefore of a completely different order: less immediately visible, but just as urgent. To do this as effectively as possible, she has obtained her drone license and works with underwater equipment. Yet Carolyn Cole finds it difficult to reach the same level as in her conflict photography. However, she is committed to doing everything she can to raise awareness about what is happening to the Earth, as she believes it is in a critical phase. While her earlier work focused on conflicts, she now sees how these often stem from struggles over natural resources—water, land, and oil. In that sense, these themes are inextricably linked.

Whether underwater or on land, Carolyn Cole uses every means at her disposal to make the environmental crisis visible and tangible. In a way, this brings her full circle: she originally wanted to become a marine biologist, and now she’s returning to the ocean to focus on how she can use her photography to help the environment. As she herself says: ‘I may be more of a journalist than a photographer, but it’s just another side of the same coin.’

As part of Women’s History Month, the Los Angeles Times honored Carolyn Cole on March 31, 2021, with an online article and the publication of several of her photographs. You can find them here.

Conclusion

Although Carolyn Cole’s work often appears in anthologies, her complete archive is held at the Briscoe Center for American History.

What ultimately makes her work so interesting is how it straddles the line between photojournalism and documentary photography. In Carolyn Cole’s early work—in conflict zones—she seems to operate primarily within the logic of photojournalism: being present, reacting, capturing. But in her later work on the environment and nature, that process shifts. There, the image becomes less self-evident. She has to reflect, search, construct—how do you make visible what isn’t immediately visible?

It is precisely in this shift that it becomes clear that the distinction between documentary photography and photojournalism does not lie in the image itself, but in the way it is created. In Carolyn Cole’s current work, both forms coexist—and ultimately merge into one another.

What continues to fascinate me personally about the female war photographers in the exhibition is that they constantly keep asking questions about the conditions of humanity, the earth, and the consequences of our actions. All their work reveals a profound commitment and passion—a dedication to making visible what happens to people, both in conflict and in the wider world. These are photographers who not only create images but tell stories that challenge us to reflect on reality and our role within it.

Johanna, 12 April 2026