Renowned Castro Photographer Jose Goitia Delivers Timely Photos and Creates Image History Using Digital Railroad

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Jose Goitia is a famed French freelance photographer based in La Havana, Cuba. For over 20 years Jose was an AP staff photographer, also serving as AP’s bureau chief in Cuba for 13 years. Jose is one of Castro’s main photographers and owns an extensive and renowned photo archive on President Castro and Cuban society.

Jose uses a PC-based system and relies on his Canon cameras D1, 5D and 20D to shoot his ground-breaking photos that have been published all over the world, including: Time, Newsweek, Paris Match, Stern, Miami Herald, Chicago Tribune, El País, and Corriere Della Serra. His photos of Castro and Cuba have also been published in the Guardian Unlimited, Havana Journal, USA Today, Times Union, and the Washington Post.

"I started one year ago with Digital Railroad after I left the AP in April 2005. I needed to be able to show my work and I was also very isolated being in Cuba. Digital Railroad was the ideal solution."

Prior to joining Digital Railroad, Jose had only been utilizing classic photo agencies for distribution of his images. "The problem was traditional agencies with their overloaded archive systems are not a very friendly solution to sell photos."

When Castro fell ill in August 2006, the demand for photographs of the Cuban leader reached a fever pitch and Jose needed to be able to display and deliver his pictures expediently. With all the difficulties one faces as a freelance journalist, Jose depended exclusively on Digital Railroad to ensure his photos would be archived and displayed for sale in the most efficient and professional manner possible