https://jeffbender.com https://jeffbender.com/PRINTS/1 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/1/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9032.jpgIdomeni_9032April 2016 - The Idomeni refugee camp in Greece where there are approximately 12,000 people, 4000-5000 of which are children, many under the age of 8. There are areas of stagnant water around the camp which become breeding grounds for bacteria and disease, fires burning constantly that are needed for cooking and warmth and are fueled by wood, paper, plastic and the smoke is suffocating at times even outdoors. There is a lot of coughing and respiratory problems because of it. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/2/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8639.jpgIdomeni_8639A young boy with a box on his head walking along the road that runs through the refugee camp at Idomeni. April 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/3/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8560.jpgIdomeni_8560A young Syrian boy with a new haircut and a "new" toy donated by the friend of a volunteer. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/4/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8590.jpgIdomeni_8590March 2016 - Greek police in riot gear guarding the border fence. They seem as stuck in the middle of this situation as the refugees. They don't want to be there either. The ones I spoke to were all very nice and sympathetic towards the people stranded there. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/5/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8670.jpgIdomeni_8670Idomeni, Greece. Refugees, primarily from Syria hang their clothes to dry on the barbed wire and razor wire fence that separates Greece from Macedonia. March 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/6/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9036.jpgIdomeni_9036An elderly man sitting alone watching life at Idomeni. The people there are all ages from newborns to people well into their 80s. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/7/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9834.jpgIdomeni_9834Idomeni - April 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/8/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9118.jpgIdomeni_9118A man carries a plastic container of water, possibly to cook or bathe with. Behind him and on the right side of the frame is a filthy swamp full of polluted water, trash, snakes, frogs, human urine, etc.. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/9/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9247.jpgIdomeni_9247This young boy was struck by a bullet a few weeks before this photo was taken. It went through his brother's leg and then through his. Here Dr. Alison Thompson is putting a fresh bandage on him and making sure the wound is healing well. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/10/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9475.jpgIdomeni_9475This is Hassan ALkhateeb with his wife Lama, daughters Doha, Sham, little Fatima, his son Muhammad and their friend Yusof. They are from Palmyra. Hassan is an artist and was an arts professor at the university in Damascus before they had to flee their home and country. They traveled by boat along with three other families/friends and at the time of this photo, had been at Idomeni for two months. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/11/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-0208.jpgIdomeni_0208Rana (left) and Doha - friends. April 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/12/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9017.jpgIdomeni_9017This boy was sitting inside this toppled shopping cart. and where this shopping cart came from is a mystery. There isn't a grocery anywhere near the camp. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/13/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8635.jpgIdomeni_8635When it rains, all that dirt becomes mud. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/14/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8723.jpgIdomeni_8723Idomeni - 28 March 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/15/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9074.jpgIdomeni_9074Playing soccer or football is one of the ways the kids pass the time at the camp. They'll play anywhere they can - dirt, grass, gravel. It doesn't matter. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/16/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9055.jpgIdomeni_9055This group of boys was playing football/soccer and someone got angry about something and they started to fight. I broke this up because just after taking this photo, fists and rocks were thrown. Luckily no one got seriously hurt. The boy on the right kept coming back. I broke them up 2-3 times before another adult finally helped out. Being stuck at this camp is getting to adults and children alike. You can see the rock in the hand of the boy in the left of the frame. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/17/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9046.jpgIdomeni_9046This little girl was sitting outside her family's tent just staring blankly, looking about as sad as anyone I've ever seen. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/18/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9760.jpgIdomeni_9760This boy was watching some of the older kids playing soccer and was sitting on this ball when I approached him. He turned towards the camera and just stared completely stone faced, almost angry but probably mostly sad and hurt and confused at what he and his family are going through. He never even cracked a smile when one of the other boys close to his age used my camera to take some photos of him. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/19/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9763.jpgIdomeni_9763April 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/20/pf-media/IDO_JB_Site-9847.jpgNadia Murad 2016Nadia Murad - 3 April 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/21/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8903.jpgIdomeni_8903Fires are vital for warmth and cooking. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/22/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8951.jpgIdomeni_8951An elderly woman holds a Solar Puff solar-powered light that was given to her by Dr. Alison Thompson's Third Wave Volunteers team. The solar lights are incredibly useful because without them, there would be very little light at night in the camp. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/23/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8541.jpgIdomeni_8541Idomeni, Greece. Men try to keep warm around a fire - 28 March 2016. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/24/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8610.jpgIdomeni_8610I was walking along the road that runs through the camp and a man called me over. He said his name was Muhammad Ali, just like the boxer. He asked if I saw the weeping woman at the next tent over and that I should take a photo of her. I looked over and she was very upset and I said it didn't seem right. I didn't want to invade this woman's privacy. Muhammad told me she was crying because she lost two children in the war and the world needed to see her grief. I still said I didn't want to. He spoke to the woman and she shook her head No but he persisted and she agreed. Then he insisted I take the photo. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/25/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8763.jpgIdomeni_8763Firewood is distributed every few days but am not sure where it comes from. Everyone gathers up whatever they can carry and brings it back to their tent. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/26/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9924.jpgIdomeni_9924Children playing the leftover rubble of something at Idomeni - 3 April 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/27/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8798.jpgIdomeni_8798Kids being kids inside of what is now an abandoned train terminal. Tents line the platforms on either side - 29 March 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/28/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-8810.jpgIdomeni_8810Idomeni - 29 March 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/29/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9096.jpgIdomeni_9096This little girl was thrilled to have a toy to play with - 30 March 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/30/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9083.jpgIdomeni_9083Laundry drying on a line just inches above the ground - 30 March 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/31/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9863.jpgIdomeni_9863This little girl showed me her book of drawings which contained about 25 or so. Every single one was full of bombs, blood, violence and people drowning. She's 9 years old. https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/32/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9146.jpgIdomeni_9146There is a tremendous amount of trash and debris and a lot of it accumulates at the border fence. Here, a Greek volunteer rakes and cleans some of it up - 31 March 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/33/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9882.jpgIdomeni_9882Mustapha (right) and his brother play a game of checkers with plastic bottle caps on a piece of cardboard - 2 April 2016 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/34/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-9743.jpgIdomeni_9743 https://jeffbender.com/IDOMENI/35/pf-media/IDO_JB_site-0124.jpgIdomeni_0124This Rana. She has a twin sister named Lama and they, like the other children and teens want to go back to school. Rana wants to be a journalist and Lama wants to be an eye doctor.Each day I spent here at #Idomeni #Eidomeni it was and still is hard to believe what I saw and heard. And just like Lesvos, there's such a disconnect between the beauty of the location and the horrible situation and conditions at the location. What is different is that when they arrived on Lesvos, Chios, Samos, etc, they had hopes and dreams for a better future. At Idomeni, I saw in the eyes of many people that they have lost hope. These people are no different than you or I. I've spent a lot of time speaking with different individuals of all ages, drank tea and was served meals by people who have lost nearly everything yet are still willing to share what little they have. Just open the f'n borders and help these humans regain their dignity. Their cities and towns and homes have been destroyed and they have nothing to go back to. #ThinkAboutThat https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/1/pf-media/LESVOS-7501.jpgLESVOS-7501In November 2015 I went to the island of Lesvos in Greece to volunteer and help out with the refugee crisis that had been going on there. Refugees have been landing there from Turkey, which is only about 4.5 miles away from Lesvos, for years but people have really been fleeing Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and other countries much more desperately since the summer of 2015 due to ISIS. A little more than half my time there was spent helping people off of boats, delivering supplies where needed, helping out in the kitchen in one of the camps or lending a hand wherever it was needed. These are some of the photos. #refugeeswelcome https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/2/pf-media/LESVOS-7698.jpgLESVOS-7698Two Greek volunteers in Skala Sikamineas waving at a boat to help guide them as they are arriving from Turkey. https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/3/pf-media/LESVOS-7217.jpgLESVOS-7217A boat arriving overloaded to four times the intended capacity is normal.© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/4/pf-media/LESVOS-7017.jpgLESVOS-7017Men, women, children of all ages pay upwards of $1200-$1500 per person to smugglers to come across the Aegean in a rubber boat steered by someone who has never steered a boat before.© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/5/pf-media/LESVOS-7031.jpgLESVOS-7031As the boats near the shore, you begin to hear the children and babies crying, the men and women calling out for help. Many, if not all of the passengers don't know how to swim and they're outfitted with lifejackets that are pretty close to useless. It must be terrifying for some of these people. The young girl in this photo is being carried by a man named Abdul, who is a volunteer.© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/6/pf-media/LESVOS-7011.jpgLESVOS-7011Dr. Alison Thompson (left) founded an org called Third Wave Volunteers and is who I was loosely working with. This baby I believe arrived with an upper respiratory infection. http://www.thirdwavevolunteers.com© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/7/pf-media/LESVOS-7861.jpgLESVOS-7861This was Thursday the 26th, Thanksgiving Day in the United States. Christian is a volunteer from Norway, such a good spirit, always said hello with a smile on his face, a real saint. He was looking for this girl's parents/family. The children and babies get taken off the boat first and for a few or several minutes or even hours the families are separated and in a new land. You can’t tell from a still photo but this little girl’s crying was gut-wrenching.© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/8/pf-media/LESVOS-7653.jpgLESVOS-7653© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/9/pf-media/LESVOS-7021.jpgLESVOS-7021© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/10/pf-media/LESVOS-7013.jpgLESVOS-7013A Syrian family. I might have stated this already but most of these refugees don’t know how to swim so coming across on a rubber boat made for 12-15 passenger but packed with 50-60 passengers must be terrifying. Factor in that each passenger must pay a minimum of about $1200 to come shows you how desperate these people are for a better life away from their war-torn country.© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/11/pf-media/LESVOS-7047.jpgLESVOS-7047An Afghani mother and her baby who looks to be only a couple of months old, just off a boat, still wet. I watched her just step away from everyone to have a few moments of space after being on an overcrowded rubber boat.© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/12/pf-media/LESVOS-7045.jpgLESVOS-7045© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/13/pf-media/LESVOS-7098.jpgLESVOS-7098Since coming home I sometimes stare at this photo of a big Afghani family wondering where they are, what they were thinking while I took the picture. It’s sinking in more and more that what they’re holding in the photo is all they have now. They aren’t on their way to a storage space where they can pick up their car, sofa, 55” television and Vitamix. This is it. They were walking to the Stage 2 camp after getting into dry clothes.© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/14/pf-media/LESVOS-7090.jpgLESVOS-7090© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/15/pf-media/LESVOS-7868.jpgLESVOS-7868© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/16/pf-media/LESVOS-7313.jpgLESVOS-7313© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/17/pf-media/LESVOS-7007.jpgLESVOS-7007© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/18/pf-media/LESVOS-7326.jpgLESVOS-7326© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/19/pf-media/LESVOS-7616.jpgLESVOS-7616© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/20/pf-media/LESVOS-7879.jpgLESVOS-7879© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/21/pf-media/LESVOS-7601.jpgLESVOS-7601© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/22/pf-media/LESVOS-7588.jpgLESVOS-7588© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/23/pf-media/LESVOS-7535.jpgLESVOS-7535© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/24/pf-media/LESVOS-6992.jpgLESVOS-6992© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/25/pf-media/LESVOS-6995.jpgLESVOS-6995© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/26/pf-media/LESVOS-7034.jpgLESVOS-7034© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/27/pf-media/LESVOS-7441.jpgLESVOS-7441© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/28/pf-media/LESVOS-7636.jpgLESVOS-7636© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/29/pf-media/LESVOS-7493.jpgLESVOS-7493© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/30/pf-media/LESVOS-7694.jpgLESVOS-7694© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/LESVOS/31/pf-media/LESVOS-7149.jpgLESVOS-7149© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/1/pf-media/17AUG2023_9.jpg17AUG2023_9April in August. 2023 https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/2/pf-media/MCHALL_grain.jpgMichael C. HallMichael C. Hall https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/3/pf-media/Dev18208_5CLEAN.jpgRobin https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/4/pf-media/Dev18211_6CLEAN.jpgRobin https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/5/pf-media/BiancaV_8211.jpg© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/6/pf-media/EDITHCRASH_site-9393.jpgEDITH CRASHEdith Crash - November 2017© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/7/pf-media/ZOE_1_12_HR.jpgZOE https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/8/pf-media/Marlena_2017_44.jpgMarlena_2017_44© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/9/pf-media/AD665_2RT.jpgAD665_2RT https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/10/pf-media/Desiree68536_25.jpgDesiree68536_25 https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/11/pf-media/Desiree665Pol_1.jpgDesiree665Pol_1 https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/12/pf-media/MARLENA_5_8.jpgMARLENA_5_8.jpg https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/13/pf-media/AMB_0072BW.jpgA https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/14/pf-media/ParisMicStand.jpgParisMicStand.jpgParis Hilton https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/15/pf-media/Algo31A.jpgAlgo31A.jpg https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/16/pf-media/Algo1.jpgAlgo1.jpg https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/17/pf-media/AprilG-8497.jpgAprilG-8497© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/18/pf-media/LIFE_BW-55.jpgDebra https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/19/pf-media/MS_BedBass009.jpgMarlenaA girl and her bass. https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/20/pf-media/MP2.jpgMP https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/21/pf-media/KnoxTazers.jpgJohnny KnoxvilleJohnny Knoxville just after getting pepper-sprayed, stun-gunned and tasered for a story on self-defense equipment for Big Brother Magazine. Los Angeles - March 1998 https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/22/pf-media/Knox08639_25RT.jpgKnox08639_25RTJohnny Knoxville - Grand Central Market, Downtown Los Angeles - 25 November 1999 https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/23/pf-media/MariaMcKee-.jpgMaria McKeeMaria McKee for Spin Magazine. Early 1989. https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/24/pf-media/Luchresha.jpgLuchresha.jpg https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/25/pf-media/GioRib.jpgGiovanni RibisiGiovanni Ribisi https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/26/pf-media/OscarDDUO.jpgOscarDDUO https://jeffbender.com/PEOPLE/27/pf-media/DitaVonT.jpgDita Von Teese Dita Von Teese https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/1/pf-media/FS_Iggy1982.jpgIggy Pop 1982Iggy Pop at the Country Club in Reseda, California - November 1982 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/2/pf-media/FS_LordsNewChurch1983.jpgLords of the New Church - March 1983Lords of the New Church at the Cuckoo's Nest - March 1983. I was still in high school and had a photography assignment that required using on-camera flash and this is what I turned in. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/3/pf-media/FS_Bono1983.jpgBono/U2 - May 1983Bono with U2 at the US Festival - May 30, 1983 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/4/pf-media/FS_NewOrder1985.jpgBernard Sumner/New Order - 1985New Order/Bernard Sumner at the Santa Monica Civic - 1985 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/5/pf-media/DEVOTO.jpgHoward DevotoHoward Devoto - 1986 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/6/pf-media/JESUSandMARYCHAIN.jpgJesus and Mary ChainJesus and Mary Chain - 1989.This was shot for a little college magazine and I had only about 15 minutes with them and photographed them in the courtyard at Warner Brothers Records in Burbank. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/7/pf-media/ElmBrnstein_DUO.jpgElmrBrnstein_DUOElmer Bernstein - 1988 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/8/pf-media/FS_Iggy1988.jpgIggy Pop - July 1988Iggy Pop at the Whiskey in Los Angeles - 8 July 1988 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/9/pf-media/MariaMcKee-.jpgMaria McKeeMaria McKee for Spin Magazine. Early 1989. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/10/pf-media/Music9_Keith-Richards.jpgKeith Richards 1992Keith Richards on the set of his "As Wicked As It Seems" video directed by Mark Romanek. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/11/pf-media/Tina_sequence.jpgTina TurnerTina Turner in between takes on the set of her "I Don't Wanna Fight" video in Palmdale, CA. 1993 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/12/pf-media/Tina4845_4.jpgTina4845_4Tina Turner https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/13/pf-media/Iggy93.jpgIggy PopIggy Pop on the set of his "Beside You" video directed by Mark Romanek in October 1993. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/14/pf-media/Verlaines_30.jpgVerlaines_30The Verlaines - Cabazon, CA , 1993 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/15/pf-media/MSWEET100PRCNT.jpgMatthew SweetMatthew Sweet - 100% Fun album package shoot. Late 1994 or early 1995. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/16/pf-media/MSWEET_PAYPHONE.jpgMatthew SweetMatthew Sweet somewhere in Illinois - 28 March 1995. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/17/pf-media/Verve.jpgThe VerveThe Verve https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/18/pf-media/Verve_BW.jpgThe VerveThe Verve - Beverly Hills - May 1995 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/19/pf-media/Music17_The-Verve-Simon.jpgThe Verve/Simon JonesSimon Jones/The Verve - Beverly Hills, May 1995 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/20/pf-media/ND_1997_12v2.jpgND_1997_12v2No Doubt 1997 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/21/pf-media/FS_Gwen1999.jpgGwen Stefani/No Doubt 1999Gwen Stefani - January 1999 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/22/pf-media/karl_distort.jpgkarl_distort https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/23/pf-media/karl_subway.jpgkarl_subway https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/24/pf-media/ShakBullring.jpgShakiraShakira somewhere outside of Madrid at about 4 AM. January 2002. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/25/pf-media/RHCP.jpgRed Hot Chili Peppers https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/26/pf-media/NoDoubt_SKOL_2000.jpgNoDoubt_SKOL_2000No Doubt on the set of their "Simple Kind of Life" video shoot in 2000. https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/27/pf-media/JB_48724_62V2.jpgGreg Adams Greg Adams - 2004 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/28/pf-media/JB_45198_68V2.jpgGreg Adams Greg Adams - 2004 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/29/pf-media/Pretenders_18953.jpgPretenders https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/30/pf-media/EC_cropped-0230.jpgEdith CrashEdith Crash cooking up some new music - Los Angeles. 8 February 2018 https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/31/pf-media/EDITHCRASH_site-9393.jpgEDITH CRASHEdith Crash - November 2017© Jeff Bender https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/32/pf-media/MarlenaGretsch-2552-copy1.jpgMarlena https://jeffbender.com/MUSICARCHIVE/33/pf-media/NickCave_Fonda_11.jpgNick Cave and the Bad SeedsNick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Hollywood, CA, 21 February 2013 https://jeffbender.com/ABOUT%26sol;CONTACT/1