Michael Yamashita is a Japanese-American photographer.

Early life and education

Born in 1949 in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, and raised in

Montclair, New Jersey Montclair is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a commercial and cultural hub of North Jersey and a diverse ...

. Yamashita graduated from Montclair Academy in 1967.

Photography career

After college in 1971, he traveled to Japan to teach English. After joining a photo club to work on his Japanese, he was inspired to pursue photography professionally. After living and shooting throughout Asia for seven years, he returned to the US where he started working for the ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

'' in 1979, photographing in various countries.

Personal life

Yamashita lives and works in

Chester Township, New Jersey Chester Township is a township in southwestern Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 7,713, a decrease of 125 (−1.6%) from the 2010 census count of 7,838, which ...

, with his wife and frequent collaborator, Elizabeth Bibb, where he also serves as a volunteer fireman.

Publications

Books by Yamashita

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Contributions

* * * * * United States Postage stamp: 90 cents, Hagatna Bay, Guam single, 2007.

Filmography

*''Marco Polo: The China Mystery Revealed'' – Finnigan, Jonathan (director) Jennifer Lee (writer). Produced by Yamashita, Craig Leeson and Farland Chang. United States. *''Ghost Fleet – The Epic Voyage of Zheng He'' – Finnigan, Jonathan (director) (2005). (Motion picture). Produced by Yamashita. United States: National Geographic, Channel Asia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yamashita, Michael Living people 1949 births American artists of Japanese descent Montclair Kimberley Academy alumni People from Chester Township, New Jersey People from Montclair, New Jersey Artists from San Francisco Photographers from New Jersey Wesleyan University alumni