Prior to World War II, a teenaged Phil Drell snapped brilliant photographs at a boys camp in northern Illinois. When he was drafted in 1942, his camp photos caught the eye of Army personnel, who assigned him to be a motion picture photographer in Europe. Soon, Drell teamed with such artists as George Stevens (future Oscar-winning director) and Irwin Shaw (best-selling novelist). After filming and documenting the invasion of Normandy, Drell’s unit moved through France and into the heart of Germany. When they arrived at the Dachau concentration camp on April 29, 1945, they captured the horrors. Drell also took still photos of his experiences. What follows is a slide show of his photography, complete with his memoirs.

Drell is seen above at Dachau in 1945, on the occasion of the camp’s first-ever Jewish religious service, which bolstered the survivors’ spirits immensely.
©Phil Drell