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‘Burst of Joy’ photographer Sal Veder dies

By Sohail Khan 27 August 2026, 8:56 am

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Business News›News›International›Global Trends›'Burst of Joy' photographer Sal Veder, who captured Vietnam War's most iconic homecoming, dies at 99

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'Burst of Joy' photographer Sal Veder, who captured Vietnam War's most iconic homecoming, dies at 99
Synopsis

Pulitzer Prize winner Slava Veder, renowned for his Vietnam War photo, has died. His iconic image captured a soldier's reunion with his children after captivity. Veder, an Associated Press photographer, passed away peacefully at his California home. He was celebrated for his dedication to capturing compelling human moments. His legacy includes mentoring younger photographers and documenting significant historical events.

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Obit Sal Veder — 'Burst of Joy' photographer Sal Veder, who captured Vietnam War's most iconic homecoming, dies at 99

Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Slava "Sal" Veder, whose photograph of a US Air Force officer reuniting with his family after years as a prisoner of war became one of the defining images of the Vietnam era, has died at the age of 99.

His family confirmed on Wednesday that Veder, a retired Associated Press photographer, passed away in his sleep at his home in El Dorado County, California, near Sacramento. He died on August 22, just eight days before he would have turned 100.

'Burst of Joy' photographer Sal Veder

Born Slava J Veder on August 30, 1926, in Berkeley, California, he was the only child of Russian immigrants Ivan and Anka Veder, who anglicised their names to John and Ann after settling in the US. He began his career as a sports writer and news editor before joining the Associated Press as a staff photographer at its Sacramento bureau in 1961. He later moved to the AP's San Francisco office, where he was based at the time he shot "Burst of Joy."

His daughter, Kathleen Daly, said journalism was central to who he was rather than simply a job, adding that the AP had given him a place where his work was valued. Former colleagues and friends described him as modest and warm, with a fondness for ice skating and sailing, who made a habit of mentoring younger photographers and checking in on the people around him. Freelance photographer Brad Mangin recalled him as the first Pulitzer winner he ever met and remembered him as an unusually kind man, while retired AP photographer Eric Risberg credited Veder with teaching him to look for the story behind a picture rather than the image alone.

Over a long career, Veder photographed former California governor Ronald Reagan, campus protests against the Vietnam War, the bank robbery trial of Patty Hearst, and the 1978 assassinations of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk.

Veder, who raised five children, retired from the AP in 1993 and settled in the small El Dorado County community of Camino. He is survived by three children, eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

(With inputs from AP)

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Sal VederBurst of Joy photographVietnam War homecomingRobert L StirmAssociated Press photographerVietnam era photographyCalifornia photographer

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