Justin Merriman is a Pittsburgh-based photojournalist and filmmaker whose work focuses on community storytelling, politics, and the American landscape.

He began his career in Southwestern Pennsylvania as a newspaper photographer documenting local communities. His work has since been widely published and recognized with regional, national, and international awards.

After covering the crash of United Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, on September 11, 2001, Merriman committed to documenting the U.S. military’s War on Terror, reporting from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, and across the United States.

His international assignments have included documenting life in Fidel Castro’s Cuba, India’s polio eradication campaign, and the aftermath of Haiti’s 2010 earthquake; covering Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to Cuba, the 2013 conclave that elected Pope Francis in Rome, and the second anniversary of Egypt’s revolution; and reporting on Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea and detention operations at Guantanamo Bay. In 2015, he traveled the full U.S.–Mexico border to document immigration.

In recent years, he has expanded into filmmaking, directing commercial projects on refugee communities in Turkey, Jordan, India, South Africa, and across the United States.

Closer to home, Merriman continues to document life across Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, focusing on the intersections of industry, environment, and politics, including coverage of the Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

He is a founding member of the Argo Collective and lives outside Pittsburgh with his wife, photojournalist Stephanie Strasburg.

Available for editorial and commercial assignments.