Josef Koudelka
PhotographerKnown for: Gypsies (1975) and his clandestine photographs of the 1968 Prague invasion
Josef Koudelka photographed the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia in August 1968 from the streets of Prague, smuggling the negatives out of the country; the images were distributed internationally under the initials P.P. to protect his identity. He defected to the West in 1970 and joined Magnum Photos in 1974. His book Gypsies (1975), made over eight years traveling through Eastern Europe, is among the most sustained and formally rigorous documentary projects in the medium's history.
Gear & Materials(2)
Leica
Introduced in 1954, the M3 was Leitz's first camera to use the M bayonet mount. Its combined viewfinder and rangefinder, with 0.91x magnification, set a standard for 35mm rangefinder design that every subsequent Leica M followed.
“Koudelka used a Leica rangefinder for his work in Eastern Europe, including the Prague 1968 photographs; his use of the M3 is documented in Magnum Photos interviews and retrospective accounts of his practice.”
Kodak
In production since 1954, Tri-X 400 is a black-and-white film whose grain structure, broad exposure latitude, and response to push processing made it the dominant film in photojournalism and street photography for decades.
“"Gypsies" (1975) and the Prague 1968 work were shot on Tri-X; the film's latitude allowed for the available-light conditions and rapid, unplanned shooting that characterize his documentary work.”
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