Ashley Gilbertson is a photographer with the VII Photo Agency known for his images of the Iraq war and the effects of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq on returning veterans and their families. Born in Melbourne, Australia, he started his career at thirteen taking pictures of skateboarders. After graduating secondary school, he was mentored by Filipino photographer Emmanuel Santos, and later Masao Endo in the Japanese highlands. While he was based in Australia, Gilbertson worked on socially driven photo essays ranging from drug addiction in Melbourne to war zones in Southeast Asia and the South Pacific. In 1999 he photographed Kosovar refugees in Australia. For the next three years Gilbertson's work focused on refugee issues around the world. In 2002, Gilbertson travelled to the Kurdish enclave of Northern Iraq. Shortly thereafter, President George W. Bush made a case for war in Iraq, and Gilbertson travelled back to cover the story at the beginning of 2003. His work was published widely, and one of his images from the invasion was included in Time Magazine's 'Pictures of the Year'. 

January 22nd, 1978 in Melbourne (Age 46)