Capturing the haunting photo of the 'Afghan Girl'

Since the birth of cameras in the late 1800’s there have been only few photographs taken that are universally recognisable; whether they were capturing a historic moment, or a famous person. But there is one which is neither of the two. Published in June 1985 on the cover of the National Geographic magazine, which would eventually become the most recognised photo in the history of the magazine, ‘The Afghan Girl’ put a face to the millions of refugees displaced from their homes because of the growing conflict between the Soviets and the Mujahideen in Afghanistan. The image was praised widely as the ‘Modern Mona Lisa’, still has influence to this day, and is considered one of the most famous photographs ever taken. Steve McCurry, the photographer behind this photo was a photojournalist who became famous for documenting the Soviet-Afghan war. In 1979 at the age of 29, McCurry met with two Mujahideen fighters in Northern Pakistan who secretly took him across the border to document the developing civil war in the region. The photos he took would launch his career as a documentary photographer. He remained in the region for several years after, continuing to document the war as well as the Indian railways, and the 1983 monsoon in India. He had grown a reputation as ‘the’ photographer to go to, to capture the war. In 1984 when National Geographic wanted to feature the ever growing refugee problem growing along the Afghan-Pakistan border, they tasked McCurry to capture it. McCurry, over a 4 month period, travelled to the 30 or so refugee camps that had been set up along the border in the North West region of Pakistan. The camps had been there for years, since the conflict first began in 1979. Despite this, the people living in the camps still had little provisions or protection from the elements. Temporary classrooms had been set up for the children in the camps and this is where McCurry would take his iconic photo. While walking around the Nasir Bagh refugee camp he had heard the sound of children coming from one of the tents. He discovered one of the tents being used as a temporary girls school, filled with a class of students. He asked the teacher for permission to observe and take photos, that’s when he noticed a shy girl sitting off in a corner of the tent - “I spotted this young girl, whose name I learned years later was Sharbat Gula. She had an intense, haunted look, a really penetrating gaze - and yet she was only about twelve years old. She was very shy, and I thought if I photographed other children first she would be more likely to agree because at some point she wouldn’t want to be left out.” McCurry took photos in the meantime while waiting for the perfect moment to shoot the girl. “There must have been about fifteen girls there. They were all very young, and they were doing what school children do all over the world - running around, making noise, and stirring up a lot of dust. But in that brief moment when I photographed Gula, I didn’t hear the noise or see the other kids. It was very powerful.” It was an instant connection to this girl, a connection that would be shared worldwide when the photo was shared, “I guess she was as curious about me as I was about her, because she had never been photographed and had probably never seen a camera. After a few moments she got up and walked away, but for an instant everything was right - the light, the background, and the expression in her eyes.” Check out this ‘Mini-Doc’ by National Geographic about Steve McCurry and the ‘Afghan Girl’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciXIaCF80ao&t

Steve McCurry suffered many different environments during his time as a photojournalist in the years during his documenting of the Afghan-Soviet conflict, around his neck from the early 80’s was the Nikon FM2, a camera that could be operated entirely mechanically, which only had electronic input of light meter assistance. He took his camera into floodwaters, active war zones, and arid environments, before finally using it to take the iconic photo. He credited the camera for its ‘handle anything’ nature because of its rugged durability. The FM2 would not only become famous for its mechanical achievements such as its super-fast 1/4000s shutter speed but also for taking one of the most iconic and widely recognised photos in history. On today's offer is a limited edition 1 of only 100 examples ever made - Nikon FM2. It was made especially for a men's magazine in Japan called ‘Lapita’, which could only be ordered through the magazine, in Japan. It is one of only a few FM2 limited editions, and one of the smallest batches of a limited edition camera ever made by Nikon.

K7655 - Nikon FM2n ‘Lapita’ 1 of only 100    Nikon FM2n body with - unique to this model - brown leather trim 35mm SLR  Nikon F mount Mechanical shutter - up to 1/4000 1 of only 100 made Sold in 2000. Plastic shutter protection still in place Comes with original box and papers. Overall condition: 9.9/10 - close to unused.