James Tamba-Martha is a prize-winning documentary photographer, and multimedia producer based in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Originally from Kailahun District in the east of the country, he grew up listening to elders recount stories of Kissi warriors; oral traditions that planted in him a lifelong hunger to document, preserve, and share the stories of his people.

His photography centres on identity, heritage, and human impact, capturing everyday life through intimate, people-centred storytelling. James brings a restrained and dignified lens to ordinary moments – transforming them into visual records that speak long after the shutter closes.

In 2024, he was named the Photojournalism Prize winner of the prestigious Vickie Remoe Prize for Journalism and New Media, one of Sierra Leone’s most celebrated honours for excellence in media and creative practice.

A professional member of the Sierra Leone Reporters Union (SLRU), he has contributed to leading outlets including the Africa Young Voices Media Empire (AYV) and the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC).

His collaborative work with internationally recognised practitioners – including Spanish documentary photographer and filmmaker Judith Prat, Vlad Potapov, a Russian street and documentary photographer; and Dutch artist-educator Andrea Stultiens, has deepened his practice and sharpened his visual language.

He currently serves as a multimedia producer at VR&C Marketing Company, strategic communications, brand management, and content marketing company that is working across West Africa; primarily in Sierra Leone and Ghana, as well as serving clients in the diaspora.

James’s work engages critical questions of social life, environmental change, and cultural heritage, not through declaration, but through presence.
He believes photography is not merely an art form. It is life itself.