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He was born March 20, 1938, in Argentina, to American parents. His father, a chemical engineer, worked in South America, in addition to many other international locations.
Eppridge attended the University of Missouri School of Journalism, graduating in photojournalism, 1960. As a college student, he won the National Press Photographer's Award, First Prize Pictorial, for a picture of a lone white horse under tornadic skies. His next stop was an internship at LIFE magazine, where he would work under the magazine's celebrated photo director, Roy Rowan.
After college, Eppridge embarked on a nearly year-long assignment for National Geographic. Roughly a year later, a chance encounter with Rowan in New York City, would lead to regular shooting assignments at LIFE. He joined the magazine as a staff photographer in the early 1960s - joining the ranks of prominent photojournalists such as Alfred Eisenstadt, Carl Mydans and Gordon Parks - and stayed until the magazine folded in 1972.
That same year, Eppridge joined Sports Illustrated as a staff photographer, where he covered nearly every Winter Olympics since Lake Placid in 1980. His collective assignments read like a list of the most important historical and cultural events from the latter half of the 20th Century.
Eppridge recorded the Beatles' first momentous visit to the United States. He photographed a young Barbra Streisand on the verge of super stardom. He was the only photographer admitted into Marilyn Lovell's home as her husband, Jim, made his nail-biting re-entry into the atmosphere in the crippled Apollo 13 spacecraft.
He captured Clint Eastwood on the set of Dirty Harry. He was at Woodstock. And he was in Vietnam. He covered the funeral of civil rights activist James Chaney in Mississippi.
He photographed the aftermath of the explosion of Mount St. Helen's in Washington. His landmark photographic essay on Needle Park heroin addiction won the National Headliner Award and inspired the motion picture Panic in Needle Park, starring Al Pacino.
Eppridge spent much of 1966 and 1968 on the road with Robert F. Kennedy, covering the presidential campaign for LIFE magazine. It was Eppridge who took one of the decade's most poignant and iconic photographs: a stunned Los Angeles busboy, Juan Romero, cradling Kennedy in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel, just seconds after the candidate was shot.
Throughout his career Eppridge has been a respected force in training a new generation of photojournalists as a faculty member at photography workshops, including the University of Missouri Photojournalism Workshop. When Eppridge is not shooting, he's often flyfishing. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, Adrienne Aurichio.
James A. Finley
James A. Finley served as a photographer for the Associated Press for more than 25 years in the St. Louis AP Bureau.
He is a graduate of Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, IL, receiving a bachelor's degree in math studies, 1959, and a master's degree in education, 1976.
Finley fell in love with photography at an early age while sneaking out to make pictures with his uncle's camera. He later was able to get his hands wet (learning to print black and white photos) while serving as a U.S. Marine.
Years of other photo experience with various newspapers, including the East St. Louis Crusader and the East St. Louis Monitor, prepared him for an introduction to AP's Fred Waters in St. Louis, where Finley worked as a freelance photographer covering many assignments including St. Louis Cardinals baseball and Cardinals football, University of Missouri football and visits of U.S. Presidents, while learning from Waters. Finley worked five years as a freelancer with Waters.
Then, while covering a cargo plane crash along I-70 in the dead of winter, with the hands of Finley's mentor swollen, Waters passed his film to Finley and said, "I'm done." (Waters was inducted into the Missouri Photojournalism Hall of Fame in 2008.)
Paul Stevens, AP Bureau chief, had the opportunity to hire two new photographers in Missouri: Cliff Schiappa in Kansas City and Finley in St. Louis. Finley joined the AP in May 1984.
During his years as the staff photographer in St. Louis, Finley worked Super Bowls as part of the AP staff, covered baseball playoffs and World Series, other news and sports events, and memorable assignments such as the Times Beach environmental disaster and the Great Floods of 1993.
Finley retired from the AP in 2006, and today he sees "Everyday as Saturday." He enjoys traveling and seeing some of the places where he worked, including Oklahoma City's Federal Building explosion site. Finley lives in St. Louis, takes photos for himself and attempts to encourage young photographers during a difficult time for the wire service and newspapers in general.
Ival Lawhon Jr.
Ival Lawhon Jr., the late staff photographer for the St. Joseph News-Press, was a sterling example for anyone considering what it means to practice local journalism and to be committed to your community.
Born Feb. 1, 1948, in St. Joseph, he was raised in the community, graduating from St. Joseph Central High School in 1966. Lawhon joined the U.S. Army in October 1966.
He served as an infantryman and with a mortar platoon in Vietnam, and was awarded the Purple Heart for burns suffered in a mortar attack. While in Vietnam, he bought his first 35mm camera and took many rolls of Kodachrome slide film.
He had no training as a photographer, but his father always had encouraged the taking of photos. His early work primarily amounted to photos of what he saw from an infantryman's point of view.
After nearly three years in the Army, he returned to the U.S. and attended college at St. Joseph and then at Arizona State University, where he received a bachelor's degree in journalism with an emphasis in television production.
He later earned three lifetime Missouri teaching certificates through Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph. Lawhon made his home in St. Joseph. After a time working for a camera store, he joined the staff of the St. Joseph News-Press, where he remained a valued employee for more than 31 years, retiring in July 2008.
Day after day, decade upon decade, Lawhon brought readers of the News-Press a glimpse of life on the streets of St. Joseph. He was a spot news junky who often beat the fire department to the scene, and he knew each fireman working it.
During his tenure on staff, he was both a photographer and photo chief for the newspaper. He also taught photography at Missouri Western State University, retiring there in December 2008 after teaching for 62 consecutive semesters, mentoring to a generation of aspiring photographers in the community.
Lawhon's photographs have been published around the world through news agencies and in numerous photo and reference books. He has received many local, state and national photography awards. He's the only photographer to have worked for the News-Press to receive three national awards - all for spot news - from the National Press Photographers Association.
Lawhon and his wife, Renee, also a proficient photographer, continue to pursue their passion through studio and freelance photography until his recent death. His other interests have included reading military history, collecting U.S. Army crests, wildlife photography and bird watching.
