đ Share this article Esteemed Photographer Brian Harris Obituary: A Life Through the Lens The photojournalist B. Harris, who passed away aged 73 from cancer, ended his schooling at 16 to become a messenger boy, and went on to become one of the most respected British documentary photographers of his generation. A Global Professional Journey He travelled the world as a freelance or a staffer for major British titles, covering major happenings including the fall of the Berlin Wall, drought and hunger in Ethiopia and Sudan, the conflict in Northern Ireland, battlefields in the Balkan region and throughout Africa, the consequences of the Falklands war and four US presidential campaigns. He also created poetic scenic views of the rural areas around his Essex home. By his own calculation he took over 2m photographs, taking an average of 100 a day, but he made that count some years back. He continued posting archive and new images each day on social media up to a few weeks before his passing, and had been planning to give a talk on his career and experiences. Notable Projects Tales from a turbulent career featured an costly business class flight in 1991 to attend the funeral in India of the assassinated leader Rajiv Gandhi, where he collapsed from sunstroke and pneumonia and was treated with ice that had been employed to cool the body. His 1983âs images of the then Labour party leader Neil Kinnock with his wife, Glenys, toppling into the sea on Brighton beach were carried across eight columns of a front page, and are often reprinted as a hideous example of staged photo hubris. His 2016âs memoir, ... And Then the Prime Minister Hit Me, took the title from an irritated John Major striking him with a folded briefing paper. Career Highlights He was appointed as the a major newspaperâs most youthful staff photographer when he started there in 1976, at the age of 26, and was based around the world for almost ten years, including coverage of the end of the civil war in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). He eventually resigned over what he saw as editing of his strongest images of famine in Africa. In 1986 Harris became chief photographer as the team was put together to launch a new newspaper. He played a key role in forming the style of editorial photography that the paper became known for, helping set new standards for press images and newspaper design, in dramatic images covering multiple pages. Among many awards, he was named the What the Papers Say photographer of the year in 1990 for his work in eastern Europe documenting the collapse of communism. He worked as a freelance after being made redundant in 1999, and significant projects after that included a year spent capturing cemeteries across the world in 2006 for the war memorial organisation, which resulted in an exhibition launched in London â where he gave a private viewing to Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh â and a moving book, Remembered. Early Life and Beginnings Harris was raised in east London, to Dorothy and Leonard Harris, an electrician who later assisted him construct a photo lab in the garage. In the mid 1950s, the family relocated eastwards â and to a better area â to the Rise Park housing estate in Romford, Essex. Brian went to Chase Cross secondary modern school, acquiring practical skills in woodwork and metalwork, before leaving at 16. At a central London agency, he quickly advanced from delivery boy to photographer, and launched his professional career at east London local papers before moving on to national publications. Colleagues and Impact Other photographers, often scooped by him, remembered his work as remarkable. Nick Turpin, who worked with him in the initial stages, described him as âa superb and fearless photographerâ, an inspiration to a generation of junior colleagues. Tim Dawson, a union representative, said he âtransformed the possibilities of news photography during newspapersâ peak eraâ. Private World In 2001 Harris reconnected through a online service with Nikki Bertroya, whom he had initially encountered as a toddler in infant school, and they became close companions through his final decades. After learning of his illness, they went on a driving tour in Europe, posting sunny images of good meals and good wine, and revisiting important sites including Dresden and Ypres. His last task, finished a short time before his demise, was to transfer his vast archive of five decades of work to a long-term repository. Among his preferred historical photos he commented on a youthful Harris consuming large glasses of wine with the actor Helen Mirren: âWhat a fortunate life Iâve had â no regrets and no âMust Doâsââ. He was married twice, each union concluded with divorce. He is survived by Nikki, his son Jacob, from his later union, Nikkiâs daughter, Holly, and by his sister, Jan.