Amir Aziz is an award-winning photojournalist and documentary filmmaker based in Oakland, California. He is dedicated to the intersection of social impact and community-driven storytelling. In his youth, his father put a camera in the hands of him and is siblings, and there began his interest in documenting his family and society around him with the intent to inform and archive his environment. Grounded in his upbringing in Oakland, Amir utilizes photography and documentary filmmaking as tools for truth-telling, seeking to raise awareness within and beyond his community.

Currently, he is the Co-Founder of COYOTE Media Collective, a recently launched cooperative newsroom free from corporate control. He also contributes photographs and builds digital asset management systems as the first Documentary Photography Fellow at Bay Nature Magazine, a print magazine and online publication focusing on the ecology of the Bay Area and inspiring curiosity from residents. He recently returned from Saint-Denis, France, after completing a photography residency of teaching photojournalism and creating a documentary project as part of the cooperation project called Oakland/Saint-Denis, which aims to center the artistic and cultural contributions of the two cities. Formerly, Amir led visual journalism and photography at The Oaklandside, an Oakland-based online publication, as the publication’s first staff photojournalist while simultaneously completing a photojournalism fellowship with CatchLight as a Local Fellow. His editorial contributions have been featured in publications including The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, CalMatters, KQED, The Globe & Mail, among others.

In 2023, Amir co-produced and served as Director of Photography on the poetic short film, “Tales of the Town,” a heartfelt tribute to generations of Oaklanders. In 2022, he journeyed through East Africa as the cinematographer for the docu-series “Into The Archives,” a six-episode exploration of Black art and culture with a mission to prevent redlining in the metaverse. And in 2021, he co-produced and served as Director of Photography on ‘TY4FW: The Documentary’, a profile of Oakland artist with a global audience, ALLBLACK. Amir has also managed the rental production soundstages at the City of Oakland’s KTOP-TV, where he honed his skills in set production, filmmaking equipment, and logistics.

Amir’s mission transcends the lens; he aspires to forge connections between African diaspora communities and oppressed groups globally through the compelling medium of multimedia storytelling, such as photography, filmmaking and creative campaigns. As he collaborates with marginalized voices and institutions committed to this vision, Amir remains a believer in the idea that storytelling serves as a bridge for understanding and solidarity.

In his free time, Amir can be found taking nature walks with his wife, photographing landscapes for leisure, and a growing hobby of long road trips.

Portfolio is where my photo and video work live. There, you can see the range of media that I’ve produced, shot and worked on.

Archive is where the lifetime storage of work that I’ve worked on for clients, archived projects, and where you can license images will live.

Stay tuned!

Yes! Write me an email for collaborations, assignments or other creative ideas you may have.