| Joe Petersburger |
 © István Polónyi
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| Hungary |
Growing up in a small village in Hungary, Joe Petersburger spent his early years fishing and traveling on the land with his parents and two siblings, during which he developed field skills and a keen interest in observing wildlife. He went to high school in the town of Debrecen, which had a special biology program. This was the time when Petersburger started wildlife photography. He earned his Master of Science at the University of Debrecen as a biologist researcher specialized in ecology.
After university, he received a scholarship to Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the United States. This was the time Petersburger developed significant contacts in photography, including National Geographic magazine. Petersburger returned to Hungary after a year and started to develop stories for National Geographic magazine. He also started his Ph.D. studies at the University of Pecs.
With his first coverage on endangered long-tailed Mayflies, Petersburger became the first Hungarian citizen to publish a story in National Geographic. To date, he has three feature articles published in the magazine.
As a photographer, Petersburger concentrates on endangered and threatened species and habitats in Eastern Europe. His photographic and research activity has taken him to the rainforests of Taiwan and Panama, the deserts of Egypt, the wetlands of Danube Delta or the mountains of Carpathians, Iceland and Transylvania.
Petersburger has received recognition at numerous international photographic competitions, such as: Focus on Your World 1999-2000, a World Press Photo award, BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2004, Nature's Best 2004, Pictures of the Year International 2009, Windland Smith Rice International Awards 2009.
He photographed and wrote his first book on endangered long-tailed mayflies, which was published in 2004. His filmography career started with Sir David Attenborough's major film series entitled ‘Life in the Undergrowth', for which Petersburger was hired as a scientist and fixer for filming mayflies and dragonflies in Hungary.
Petersburger received his Ph.D. in 2006. He is involved in pharmacy industry, but still works as a wildlife photojournalist, biologist and teacher. Currently, Petersburger lives in Pecs, Hungary with his wife.
www.joepetersburger.com
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