Fashion, Lifestyle, Glamour, Partys. We all love this kind of photography – the colors, the emotions, the girls, the luxury – and also many of us dream secretly of a career as fashion photographer in Paris, Milan or New York too. Working with top-models for the biggest magazines in the world, shooting the next cover-photo on the beach, in a huge loft around the corner… and so on. But then – one day – you meet somebody like Marielle van Uitert, who takes the camera and travels directly to the most dangerous places in the world. Not to shoot models or staged lifestyle… she only wants to capture the life of – often forgotten – people, their emotions and their daily, personal fight for a better future. And suddenly you’ll understand, that a simple image of a child between tanks can be harder than any high gloss cover-production…

First of all – the classical question – who are you and what’s your general job?
I’m Marielle van Uitert, born 1973 and I come from the Netherlands – and I am a war and socially engaged photographer with focus on human interest. Besides I do a lot of commercial assignments as well in order to pay for my “war-jobs”.

How do you get into photography – was this a dream for you like ” When I’m big enough I want to be a photographer” or something, that just happens and developed?
I graduated from Highschool and lived in France for a while. I discovered new ways of life and new people and wanted to explore the planet. I took my backpack and travelled around the world for tasting and smelling all kinds of cultures and to broaden my horizon. When I came to Vietnam the image of Kim Phuc, the girl who was shockingly mutilated by the American napalm-bomb, shocked me completely. Of course I already knew this strong image, but to actually read about the way this picture made the whole world tremble and even had quite a lot of political impact, it just opened a new view of life for me. At that moment, I knew that the truth has got to be told and that it could even change perspectives in a good way. By telling stories in a country at war… you can help in changing the public opinion and show people a glimpse of the lives out there.

You are not one of the usual photographers – some fashion there, lifestyle here, weddings on weekend, whatever… – I’ve seen in your biography countries like Afghanistan, Africa, West Bank, Iraq… this are not the easiest countries to make photos. So – the simple question: What are you doing there and what kind of images you’re shooting?
That’s right – even though I also do commercial assignments, because it is just too hard to be constantly in a war zone. What I am doing there is talking to these people who live in constant danger. I want to hear and visiualize what kind of world they are living in and am especially interested in the lives of the women, because I am a woman myself and want to cover both the fear, agony and strength of these women who lose their sons, daughters and relatives in these wars. I want to reduce the number of deaths, which you are reading in the newspapers to a story people can actually relate to or can understand the impact through these personal stories. My images are socially engaged portraits of – for example – the widows of Baghdad, all kinds of mothers who lost relatives during the war in Iraq but also the environment they are living in.

2009 – “embed in American 82nd Airborne – Iraq, Baghdad. How close are you in these countries to the real war, because most people think, that a somebody like you running from one wall to the other wall, hide from bullets – but how does the daily life of your work really look like? And do you have a familiy waiting for you at home?
First I am not hiding behind any walls because I have to tell the story. I even went dressed in burqa to Jalalabad (Afghanistan) and went undercover in order to tell my story. Taliban found out I was there making pictures of women who were beaten by their husbands and had already placed many bombs around the clinic. I nearly escaped and after 3 days I finally got help from the UN and caught a plane from Jalalabad back to Kabul. Also in the West Bank I encountered real gunfire but nevertheless made a realtime story which was published. I do NOT have a death wish at all but I am just so passionate about telling these stories that there is no time and place for fear. My family is proud but also scared at the same time. Normally I never call home so no news is good news but during the almost-attack in Jalalabad I called my friend because I just had to share what was going on. They know my ideals and my love for people so with positive energy they just pray and hope for the best.

In your actual project “The Heritage” you went to Afghanistan, which opens two main questions for me –  what was the reason for it to go there and how do you “work” there? Alone, in a team, can you speak the language,…? Is it difficult to get into the country as photographer?
The reason – for my documentary, which is also published as a book (you can get it here). “The Heritage” I wanted to go embedded, because I wanted to show how the Dutch coalition forces are leaving the country. Sunday the last Dutch soldier is leaving Afghanistan, so this was my opportunity to make the last images. I just asked the Dutch military if I could join them and they were very pleased. During my embed I go on foot patrols with the marines and just try to cover the story as it is. There is always an interpreter who both speaks English and Pashtun  - or another Afghan language. When I go without the army, I have to arrange everything by myself and sometimes have to sleep in the houses of the locals in order to capture the story. Sometimes I get an assignment from an NGO and then everything is already arranged for me (also security). I had some difficult entries and difficult returns when I got to Israel. I bought a press card in order to go to Gaza but the Government Press Office in Jerusalem denied my entry into the Palestinian zone so I decided to travel to the West Bank where I was shot at by the Israeli police. When I got back to the airport I was totally checked, even my notebook was opened with screwdrivers and they questioned me for hours. That’s when I decided to get a second passport to get fewer problems to enter a country. The stamps of Afghan and Pakistan stamps are sometimes not appreciated.

What kind of camera and equipment do you use and how much baggage do you have during a trip? Do you also wear a vest for protection – or what do you “make” to be safe?
I use the Canon EOS 1D mark III and the Canon 5D. Besides I usually take my notebook also with me and all kinds of batteries and lenses. I normally travel as light as possible but sometimes just need my body armor and helmet. To be safe is just to feel safe, follow your instinct and talk to people you can trust.

How long do you prepare yourself, before travelling to countries like Afghanistan – or just take the camera and let’s go? Can you even plan these trips and projects?
I normally prepare for a couple of weeks, but sometimes I cannot prepare and just take a plane. It is hard to plan a trip and even harder to plan a project because in a war nothing is sure until it is sure. I have to be creative and patient in order to get what I want.

Is it difficult to make images in countries like Afghanistan – or are the people open for it? Are there any restriction in  areas or situations to photograph?
It is easier to make a snapshot in the Amsterdam scene than in countries like Afghanistan. Especially women and young girls are very hard to capture so you have to be honest and be straightforward with them. If I get a ‘no’ I respect that. The women of Afghanistan are just so lovely and there is a lot of love from my sight to these strong mothers who try to survive in harsh conditions. You should read about their culture and know which can and cannot be done. There are restrictions, but when you respect that and gain their trust, a lot is possible. I even captured the birth of an Afghan child.

Are the people ask you, what you’re are doing with the images, did they want to see them too?
Yes, most of the time they want to see themselves at the back of the camera and especially the Afghan men love to be photographed. Sometimes I cannot use my pictures because it is dangerous to publish them. I was for example at a ramp ceremony in Uruzgan where the Afghan interpreters carried the coffin of a collegue who got killed by a roadbomb. These pictures I do not publish because it is too dangerous for the interpreters to be captured on film. I also had to promise not to publish in Eastern countries.

Do you also make photos and don’t use them later in e.g. exhibitions, because they are, for example, too shocking? How much pictures you make during a trip?
I have a lot of exhibitions and I always look at the country where the exhibition takes place  if the pictures are not too shocking or can become dangerous for the persons in the image. I normally take no pictures of death bodies because I want to draw attention by esthetically nice pictures to look at, but telling the anger or fear through a second level. People are scared off sometimes by cruel pictures and then you lose your audience who should hear what is going on there. Sometimes it is better to tell a cruel story by nice images. I make a couple of thousand pictures during a trip.

In your work you see also  situations like wounded people, weapons, poorness, illness – how do  you deal with that? Many photographers are shocked, when they see and make  photographs of – let’s say – a car-accident. In your travels, i guess, you will see much more of “unforgettable” impressions…
It helps a lot to see all these cruel situations through a lens. At the time of the shoot I think about composition but I also FEEL what these people are feeling  - or at least I try to – and this combination makes, that I am at work and try to catch the emotion in a nice frame. When I get “home” and look back at the images, I have to take some time for myself to deal with everything and mostly wait a couple of weeks before looking at my images. After the almost attack in Jalalabad I had some bad nightmares, but that’s part of the job and I deal with it quite good. The unforgettable impressions help me understand, that we are all people and are all capable of choosing the “right” or “wrong” side, depending on the circumstances. I learn a lot about making choices and about how much a human being can bear just because they want to live and make the best of the situation.

What is one of the most magnificent experience for you in the last years?
That was in Iraq, where it was terror every day. I visited some refugees who first escaped the terror of Saddam Hussein and then escaped the terror of the local insurgents. They bought a house on a trash belt made of board and old metal and wood. Even though their sheep were dying on the trash and the children did not dare to go to school and they were as poor as no one can imagine, they offered me tea and got to their neighbours to get some sugar and cookies for me. This is unheard of in most European countries. The hospitality is something we can learn from.

Can you imagine to make a other kind of photography, let’s say staged beauty-shootings?
No – because I do not like unreal photography. Photography is the mirror of live for me, harsh, hopeful, loving and real. I am not at ease in a studio, because that stage is just not me.

If somebody took away your camera – what would you do? Is there a second dreamjob, a complete different Marielle?
Yes, than I would love to get my own old fashioned chocolate & bread or Italian food restaurant. You know… a cosy environment with beautiful war pictures (black and white) on the wall and some bloody good literature on the table.

Marielle  - thanks for your time and all the best for the next adventure!

Website: www.paralleluniversum.nl

Interview by Emanuel Sprosec