David Alan Harvey is a photojournalist's photojournalist. His work is in the tradition of Henri Cartier-Bresson and W. Eugene Smith. He never uses a press card or long lens. He never stands behind ropes at a "photo op." He tends to use a single Leica body with either a 35mm or 50mm lens. He has the eye of painter and the soul of a poet. He is the kind of photographer I would like to be.

I have known David for years. We always used to show up on "Day In the Life" book projects, whether in Australia, Spain, or Russia. I would be trying to figure out how to light some cave with my Balcars, and David would be spawled out on some beach, having a beer, and enjoying the sun. Yet, when the books were published, it was David who had the big pictures. To him, photography is about the art of seeing, and minimizing the distance between photographer and subject.

For the past 15 years, David has assembled an incredible body of work on Hispanic culture. Sponsored by his agency, Magnum Photos, and National Geographic, he has documented the Mayan culture, the trail of the conquistadors, Chile, Honduras, Belize and Spain. His work became a personal passion, yet the great mystery was right off our coast, the island of Cuba. In 1996, Magnum got him an assignment for TIME to photograph some Cuban medical scientists who had achieved a breakthrough in biomedical technology. He had no sooner arrived than the Cuban military shot down planes piloted by Free Cuba aviators, and anti-American riots broke out. Instead of dampening his spirits, the energy in the streets fed the beginning of a love affair with Cuba. In his words, it was "a love mixed with frustration, fear, passion, and paranoia...I was drawn to the ballet of street photography. I hung out with Cubans, listened to their music, drank with them, danced and ate with them. I visited schools and science labs. I rode buses, lived with the families, went to church, and in general, soaked it all up. I lived it, felt it, and photographed it."

Since then, David has made several trips to Cuba. The result of his odyssey has now been released as a hard cover coffee table book by National Geographic, and his exhibit is on display in the National Geographic's Explorers Hall. Other exhibits will be shown in Miami's Historical Museum of Southern Florida, and a third will open October 28th at the Leica Gallery in New York City. As we publish this issue of The Digital Journalist, David is in Havana, teaching a workshop in conjunction with the Maine Photo Workshop, and will proudly open the exhibit at Fotoeca in Old Havana.

We hope you enjoy this wonderful portofolio, and especially encourage you to listen to David's audio commentary on his photographs.

RealAudio: Introduction by David Alan Harvey RealAudio: David's personal connection to Cuba RealAudio: On being committed to the Cuba project RealAudio: Mixed feelings about the state of photojournalism