Claus Bjørn Larsen (born 1963) is a Danish press photographer, now working as a freelance. He gained special recognition in 2000 when he won the

World Press Photo of the Year The World Press Photo of the Year award is part of the World Press Photo Awards, organized by the Dutch foundation World Press Photo. Considered one of the most prestigious and coveted awards in photojournalism, the World Press Photo of the Ye ...

competition for his work in

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

Early life

Born in 1963 in

Holbæk Holbæk () is a town in Denmark and the County seat, seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 30,903 (1 January 2025).Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

, Larsen graduated from high school in 1983 and started freelancing as a photographer. In 1984, he was already volunteering in the darkroom at ''

Ekstra Bladet is a Danish tabloid newspaper, published by JP/Politikens Hus in Copenhagen.About
(in Danish) . Retrieved 22 Se ...

,'' a Danish tabloid. From 1986, he apprenticed with '' BT'' and in 1989 he attended the Danish School of Journalism in

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...

, specializing in

photojournalism Photojournalism is journalism that uses images to tell a news story. It usually only refers to still images, but can also refer to video used in broadcast journalism. Photojournalism is distinguished from other close branches of photography (such ...

Career

He became a staff photographer for ''Ekstra Bladet'' in 1989. In 1996, he joined the Danish daily ''

Berlingske Tidende ''Berlingske'', previously known as ''Berlingske Tidende'' (, 'Berling's Times'), is a Danish national daily newspaper based in Copenhagen. It is considered a newspaper of record for Denmark. First published on 3 January 1749, ''Berlingske'' is ...

'' where, in 1999, he was appointed head photographer. In 2009, he left the newspaper to open his own firm, ''Photobyclausbjoern aps'', serving newspapers, magazines and businesses on a freelance basis. His work has centred on wars and conflicts in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

, the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

and

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

as well as on stories from the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. In 2000, in connection with his World Press Photo of the Year award, ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' commented: "The latter award, one of the most sought after in camera journalism, is one of which Larsen is especially proud. His photograph of a wounded Kosovar Albanian refugee, his head swathed in bandages, his eyes fixed in a thousand-mile stare, was among 44,000 entries submitted by shooters around the world. 'I tried to talk to him,' Claus recalled of the day he made the picture, in April of '99, 'but he was in kind of a trance. I took four or five frames, and then he just disappeared.'"

Awards

*1989: Danish Photographer of the Year "Claus Bjørn Larsen", ''Presse Fotograf Forbundet''
. Retrieved on 3 March 2010. *1999: Fuji Photographer Denmark *1999: World Press Photo of the Year"1999, Claus Bjørn Larsen, World Press Photo of the Year" ''World Press Photo''
Retrieved 3 March 2010. *2002: Danish Photographer of the Year

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Larsen, Claus Bjorn 1963 births Living people People from Holbæk Municipality 20th-century Danish photographers 21st-century Danish photographers Danish photojournalists

Early life

Career

Awards

See also

References