Priit Vesilind was born in Tallinn, Estonia, on January 4, 1943, and emigrated to the United States when he was six years old. He has a bachelor of arts degree in English from Colgate University in Hamilton, New York, and a master's in photography from Syracuse University's Newhouse School of Communications.
He served on active duty as a lieutenant in the United States Navy, and he is the recipient of the Third Order of the White Cross from the government of Estonia for his professional contributions to Estonian independence.
Vesilind started in journalism as a sports reporter and outdoor editor for the Atlanta Journal and has worked for the Syracuse Herald as well as the Providence Journal as writer, editor, and photographer.
He joined the staff of National Geographic in 1973 as a writer of photographic legends and rose to become Senior Writer and Senior Assistant Editor for Adventure and Expeditions. He has written close to 40 articles for National Geographic and photographed one, on subjects that include Brazil, Antarctica, the Baltics, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Sonoran Desert, Sri Lanka, Roman shipwrecks, Vikings, Pearl Harbor, and many others.
Now a freelance writer, Vesilind lives with his wife in Manassas, Virginia.
