Last updated: 7 November 2026
Saiyna Bashir is a Pakistani photojournalist based in Islamabad, Pakistan. Her work documents migration, gender, healthcare and climate change, and she has contributed to The New York Times, The Washington Post, National Geographic, The Telegraph and the Wall Street Journal. Her work can be seen on her official website, saiynabashirphoto.com.
She serves as a consultant photographer to UNICEF, UNHCR, WHO, IMF and the World Food Programme, and is a National Geographic Explorer. Like the Lahore-based photographers Nida Mehboob and Umaima Tanweer Khan, her work has been recognised internationally.
Biography
Saiyna Bashir is a Pakistani photojournalist currently based in Islamabad, Pakistan. She works on international assignments for The New York Times, The Washington Post, National Geographic, The Telegraph and the Wall Street Journal, and serves as a consultant photographer to UNICEF, UNHCR, WHO, IMF and the World Food Programme, among other international NGOs. Her photography focuses on migration, gender, healthcare and climate change. Her Instagram profile describes her as a National Geographic Explorer and a frequent contributor to The New York Times, with 6,505 followers as of November 2026. She has also directed the documentary short Ustad, a cinematic biopic of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, made with Zakir Thaver and shown in the Divvy Film Festival 2024.
Education
- MA Journalism — Columbia College Chicago, 2015
- BA Journalism — Beaconhouse National University, Lahore, 2013
Life Events
- 2015 – Earned a Master of Arts in Journalism from Columbia College Chicago.
Work Experience
Bashir studied journalism at Beaconhouse National University, Lahore, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism in 2013, and a Master of Arts in Journalism from Columbia College Chicago in 2015. Her assignments have taken her across Pakistan and South Asia for news, feature, portrait and video work. She is available for assignments in Pakistan and South Asia. In 2018 she was a TEDx speaker in Pakistan.
Achievements
- National Geographic Society Grants in 2019 and for her Covid-19 project in 2020
- member of the selection committee for World Press Photo 6x6 Asia
- named one of Artsy's 20 Best Emerging Women Photographers in 2019
- 100 Pictures of the Year by Women Photograph in 2019
- First Place, 'Rookie' Reporter of the Year, Wisconsin Newspaper Association, 2017
- Honourable Mention for the photo essay 'We Have the Same Heart' say Muslims in Madison, Wisconsin Newspaper Association, 2017
References
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This page was created only to pay tribute to their work. We respect their work and contribution to Pakistan, and in their honour we have created this profile. If you are the person this profile is about, you can claim this page or apply for its removal — we respect your decision. — Wikipedia Pakistan Team
