2024, Atlanta, GA
2024, Atlanta, GA
2008, Hawler, Kurdistan
2020 With Bruce MacNair, the guy who sparked my journey by gifting me his canon TXI. 2020
Fall at Homeland, Shaqlawa, Kurdistan, 2023
Fall at Homeland, Safeen Mountain on the back. Shaqlawa, Kurdistan, 2023
2007, Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan. Left to right. Cousin(Shad Azad) - Cousin(Ahmed Nawzad) - Mom's Dad(Abdulkarim) - Brother(Hawdang)
at the peak of Safeen mountain. 2023
2 days in NYC. 2023
"Heck of a Diet" Charlotte Pier, 2024
2008, Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan
2025's Polar Plunge, boy it was cold that day. 2025
Another blizzard, another photo to remember. Rochester NY 2025
Mamadou and I, Class of 2023's Graduation with Rush Henriatta Senior High.
2007, Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan. Left to right. Mom's Mom(Nahiya) - Mom(Bahra) - Brother(Hawdang)
"Hands Off" protest, April 4th. Getty Images
I am a documentary photographer and a photojournalist based in Rochester, New York. My journey began in Erbil, Kurdistan, where my connection to memory, storytelling, and identity was first shaped. I’ve spent the last eight years navigating life in a new country, a shift I never planned for, one that changed everything. Photography became my way of grounding myself in that change.
I’m currently studying Graphic Design at Monroe Community College (MCC), where I also serve as the college’s staff photographer, documenting Community Relations and Student Life and Leadership. I’m the Chief Photographer for SLAL and a contributor to NDY Photos, Getty Images, SOPA Images, IMAGIA Photos, and Zuma Press. My work has been featured in various outlets including News 10 WHEC, Spectrum News, and The Tribune at MCC. My photography has been published across several platforms, including Getty Images, SOPA Images, MCC, C&K Magazine, The Guardian, and Innovatus Magazine, and Imagen.
In addition, I’m also a Captain photographer with IP, covering college commencements across New York State, including institutions such as Hamilton University, Nazareth University, SUNY Brockport, St. John Fisher, Monroe Community College, and others. I also worked with Cl!x Portrait Studios, where we handled media days and school portraits throughout Monroe County. Some of the districts and schools I've worked with include Rush-Henrietta, Greece, Hamlin, Hilton, and Andover Middle and High Schools.
I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with Nazareth University, covering a variety of campus events, as well as documenting events for RIT and MCCMSA (Monroe Community College Muslim Student Association).
My documentary work has also taken me into the field with local law enforcement. I’ve spent full overnight shifts embedded with the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office, Rochester Police Department, and New York State Troopers (Zone E), capturing the intensity, humanity, and complexity of their work.
For me, photojournalism is more than just a profession, it’s a calling rooted in human connection. I believe in documenting the world as it is, while elevating the voices of those who are often overlooked. I’m especially drawn to stories shaped by migration, resilience, displacement, memory, protest, and the intimate moments of everyday life.
My lens is guided by lived experience. I know what it means to carry غوربەت (ghurbat), a Kurdish word that goes beyond homesickness. It’s the feeling of being stuck between places, of not fully belonging anywhere. It’s a quiet ache that never really leaves, but it’s also a powerful motivator. It’s why I carry my camera the way others carry their pasts. Close to the chest, never too far away.
There are days I feel lost, days where the self-doubt is loud. But what keeps me going is curiosity, the part of me that keeps looking, asking, searching. I don’t always know what I’m chasing, but I know the process matters. I’ve come to realize that growth doesn’t mean forgetting where you came from. It just means learning to carry it differently. I still feel like that little kid from Erbil sometimes, whispering dreams into the dark. But now, I’m also the person living those dreams, lens in hand, chasing moments that matter.
Over the years, I’ve built a body of work that reflects both personal and collective experiences. I focus on character-driven stories, always putting people at the heart of what I do. Whether I’m covering student movements, community events, or global issues, my aim is to photograph with empathy and intentionality.
I don’t have all the answers, but maybe that’s the point. The not knowing, the searching, the trying. So, take a look at my work. Maybe something here speaks to you, or maybe it’s just another frozen moment in time.
Thanks for stopping by.
Thanks for stopping by.
Blnd was featured in a News10NBC, NewsBreak, Spectrum News, and MCC tribune segment highlighting his passion and dedication to photography.
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"Street photographer captures Rochester through his lens.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – If you’ve been on Rochester’s subreddit recently, there’s a good chance you’ve seen Blnd Abdullah Kurdi’s street photography.
The 20-year-old immigrant calls his pictures “a diary he can’t put into words,” capturing candid moments of Rochesterians going about their day.
“The community is amazing,” said Abdullah. “Every single person I’ve approached for photos, every photo I’ve taken, the people just have been really kind towards it…I just get smiles. Eighty percent of my photos are just people with smiling faces.”
Being able to connect with people at their most vulnerable is what Abdullah says connects him most with his adopted community.
“What I love is you will get the raw emotions every single time. And that’s what matters to me. I don’t care if you’re mad, if you’re happy, as long as you’re on your true and right emotion. This is what I love.”
Abdullah was born in Erbil, Kurdistan, where he was introduced to photography by his aunts, uncles, and friends of his father.
Now, he takes photos for Getty Images.
“Many photographers, when I started his photography, would give me cameras,” continued Abdullah. “I remember Mr. Ness from Rush-Henrietta. If you’re watching this, thank you very much. This guy told me to pick up a Canon 6D and this camera has been one of the best cameras I’ve had. And he even found one for me to buy. And thank you, Mr. Nash, if you’re seeing this, you are a part of my journey.”
Now, Abdullah hopes to pass on his passion for photography to the next generation.
“At the polar plunge, a little kid was like, ‘Oh, mister, this camera is beautiful.’ And I let the little guy take some photos. And I felt like I saw my childhood face again,” said Abdullah.
So what advice does Abdullah want to give to people just getting into street photography?
“Your camera might be smaller. Your camera might not be the best. Just pick it up aim it at somewhere and take some photos. it might not be the best camera, but you’re starting something. It’s just like weight loss. When you start tonight, it’s going to be the best decision.”
Abdullah says despite Rochester’s recent bout of frigid weather, it hasn’t stopped him from perfecting his craft.
“The motivation comes after I take the photo,” said Abdullah. “I usually stay in my car, right before I get out for any photos. I stay there for 15, 20 minutes. And I question my life. I’m like, what am I doing here? It’s cold. I open the window. It’s freezing. It’s a blizzard. What am I doing with my life? But I get reminded of the little kiddo that I told you about. I’m like, ‘Okay, this is how life is.’ Somebody created the memory, for me, and I want to create a memory for somebody else.”
Abdullah is currently studying graphic design at Monroe Community College and plans to either continue studying graphic design in the future or switch to photojournalism."