FotoEvidence Press was founded in 2010 by Bulgarian photojournalist Svetlana Bahchevanova and David Stuart to continue the tradition of using photography to draw attention to human rights violations, injustice, oppression and assaults on human dignity wherever they may occur. Photographs have not only changed people’s perception but, in some cases, altered the course of history.

FotoEvidence works at the intersection of photography and human rights. Images alone will not change the world but photographs can provide indisputable evidence and human stories that serve to make issues salient and inspire response. To this end, FotoEvidence has partnered on projects with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and The Open Society Foundation among several other advocacy groups.

In three cases FotoEvidence has witnessed the photography books we published to promote directly influence governments and begin a process of social change.

FotoEvidence Book Award

For eight years, the FotoEvidence Book Award recognized one photographer whose work demonstrates courage and commitment in the pursuit of social justice and, in 2017, FotoEvidence partnered with World Press Photo. The book award was renamed the FotoEvidence Book Award with World Press Photo. The selected project is published by FotoEvidence as part of a series of photo books dedicated to the work of photographers, whose commitment and courage deliver painful truths, creating awareness and intolerance towards violations of human dignity.

To this day FotoEvidence has published 22 books to draw attention to human rights violations, oppression and assaults on human dignity wherever they may occur. Several FotoEvidence books have found their way on to “best-photo-books-of-the-year”lists at TIME, The New York Times, Smithsonian Magazine, Mother Jones, Vogue and Photo-eye.

Svetlana Bahchevanova became a photojournalist during the democratic transition in Bulgaria. She served as the chief photographer of the first democratic newspaper, documenting the end of a long lasting Communist regime. In this role she covered the democratic movements in Romania, former Yugoslavia, the Baltic region and the wars in the Balkans. For four years Svetlana served as chief photographer for the Bulgarian News Agency. Her work focuses on issues of social justice and political change.

In 2001 Svetlana emigrated to the United States, where she founded FotoEvidence with fellow human rights activist David Stuart. Since 2011, Ms. Bahchevanova has managed the development of the FotoEvidence Book Award, FotoEvidence.com and the production of 22 books of documentary photography focused on human rights.