Matthieu Paley

Matthieu Paley (born May 18, 1973, in Rouen, France) is a French photographer and regular contributor for National Geographic. He is best known for his work documenting communities in the western region of the greater Himalaya: the Karakoram, the Hindukush, and the Pamir Mountains. He is most interested in documenting communities that are misrepresented and misunderstood with a particular focus on those that are isolated within geopolitically sensitive areas. More recently, he has been working on stories relating to the environment and pollution.

Paley has received numerous awards, which have recently included a 2017 World Press Photo award and Pictures of the Year International award (2016). Additionally, he is a National Geographic Explorer (2020) and was accordingly awarded a grant by the National Geographic Society to document issues surrounding water pollution and spirituality in South Asia.

He has lived in many countries, including his birth country of France, Asia (Hong Kong, Pakistan, Turkey), Germany, the United States, and Portugal, where he moved in 2018 with his wife, Mareile, and two sons Iluka and Timoté. He speaks fluently in French, English, and German as well as conversationally in Urdu (Hindi), Turkish and Wakhi.

In 2000, Paley settled in Skardu, a town situated in the mountains of northern Pakistan where he taught English and worked on various media projects for the Aga Khan Foundation related to education, tourism, and culture. In 2002, Paley moved to Hong Kong, where he had his first son Iluka. In 2011, Paley moved to Turkey, where his youngest son Timoté was born. In 2012, Paley led two expeditions to the Afghan Pamir on his first assignment for National Geographic Magazine.

In 2014, Paley worked on the project The Evolution of Diet for National Geographic Magazine, during which he visited seven self-sufficient communities to document their long-endured diets and the geographic environments that support them. This project also resulted in a seven-part Nat Geo Live video series, We Are What We Eat.

In 2017, he traveled with writer Paul Salopek and guided him for five weeks on his Out of Eden Walk. Together, they crossed the Wakhan Corridor in Afghanistan to enter Pakistan's Karakoram mountains.

Since 2016, Paley's work has begun to cover the topic of air and water pollution, specifically in South Asia. Paley was recently awarded a 2020 National Geographic Explorer grant to continue to document the water crisis and spirituality in south Asia. 2016: Picture of the Year International (POYi), Feature Picture Story, Third place 2014: The Museum Photo Prize: Professional Scholarship 2011: Winner of the "Festival de la mer" professional grant for his project on Nauru, the smallest republic in the world. 2009: Banff Mountain Photography Competition New York Photo Festival, Editorial Photographic Series, Honorable mention 2009: Photo District News, 30 Under 30 2005: Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Gold Award 2002: Banff Mountain Photography Competition (Canada), Best Landscape