José Azel received a BA from Cornell University in 1976. There he began shooting pictures for the annual. After completing his Masters in Journalism at the University of Missouri, he joined the staff of the Miami Herald, where he worked for four years. From 1981, until 1997, Azel freelanced as a photographer for international magazines such as, National Geographic, Smithsonian, Life, Time Magazine, Sports Illustrated, and GEO Magazine, as well as shooting corporate assignments for the outdoor industry. In 1993, he co-founded Aurora and Quanta Productions, a stock photography company that merges traditional photography and digital media.  The technology revolution has allowed Aurora to establish itself as a company of the future, helping define the interactive, visual narrative of the digital age. Aurora new media clients cross the commercial and editorial boundaries with brands such as, Eastern Mountain Sports, Hathaway Shirts, Kodak, the Washington Post Digital Inc., SI Kids Online, MSNBC and PDN Magazine. Click here to visit www.auroraphotos.com.

AWARDS: Marion Scubin "Sports Award" (1988); World Press Photo Foundation: "Amsterdam Olympic Award" (1984); 1st Prize/News Feature Series - Pictures of the Year 1983. 1st Prize/Feature Story and 1st Prize/Pictorial Pictures of the Year 1982, 1st Prize/Pictorial - Pictures of the Year 1988, 1st Prize/Pictorial Pictures of the Year 1994. Several Honorable Mentions in Communication Arts Photography Annual.

EXHIBITS: "The Dogon People of Mali, "Visa pour l'Image, single photographer exhibit, Perpignan, France 1993; "Photojournalism - 10 Years After Vietnam," ICP Mid-town Gallery, New York City; "Odyssey, 100 Years of National Geographic Society," Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; "Thirty Years of World Press Photo," ICP Uptown Gallery, New York City; "Visions of Victory, a Century of Sports Photography," Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, Georgia.