Dudley M. Brooks facts for kids

Dudley M. Brooks is a famous photographer. He helped create a special photo project called Songs of My People African Americans: A Self-Portrait. This project showed the lives of African Americans through pictures. Today, he works as a top photography leader at The Washington Post newspaper. He also helps choose photos for The Washington Post Magazine.

About Dudley M. Brooks

Dudley M. Brooks was born in Baltimore, Maryland. His birthday is on December 26, 1957. He went to Morgan State University in Baltimore. He finished his studies there in 1980.

His Photography Career

Brooks started working for The Washington Post in 1983. He worked there for many years. In 2005, he left to work at The Baltimore Sun. There, he became an Assistant Managing Editor for Photography.

Later, in 2007, he became the Photo Director for two popular magazines. These were Jet (magazine) and Ebony (magazine). While at Ebony, he took pictures of famous people. He photographed Michael Jackson in 2007. He also helped create a special tribute for Michael Jackson on the magazine's cover.

Brooks also took pictures of Barack Obama. This was the first photo shoot with Obama as the newly elected president of the United States. Brooks returned to work at The Washington Post in 2014. He also helped lead the "Songs of My People" project.

Awards for His Work

Dudley M. Brooks has won many awards for his photography. He has won several World Press Photo awards. These awards are very important in the world of photography.

In 1998, he won third prize in the sports stories category. His pictures showed the Silver Gloves boxing competition. This event took place in Lennea, Kansas.

In 1999, he won third prize in the general news stories category. His photos showed the damage in Nicaragua from Hurricane Mitch. The judges liked that his pictures helped people understand the problem.

Books and Photo Exhibitions

Dudley M. Brooks's photos have been shown in many places. The Addis Foto Fest in Addis Ababa showed his pictures. These photos were about the Haiti earthquake and its effects. This exhibition happened in 2010.

He also helped create "Songs of My People." This was a big photo project. He worked on it with Eric Easter and D. Michael Cheers. In 1990, 53 photographers from all over the country took part. They took pictures of different parts of black American life.

The best photos were chosen for a book. The book was published in 1992 (ISBN: 0316109819). Some photos were also chosen for a traveling exhibition. This exhibition was shown at the Museum of the City of New York. The pictures were special because they showed everyday life in African-American culture. They did not just show urban problems often seen in the news.