...was born in Düsseldorf on October 18, 1932. After an apprenticeship as a machinist, he worked as a mechanical engineer. He studied Photography with Otto Steinert at the Folkwangschule from 1963 to 1968. After he graduated, he became a freelance photojournalist in Düsseldorf. In 1954, he acquired a Leica IIf, though an M2 was later to become his preferred reportage camera. A Leicaflex SL2, Leicaflex SL2 MOT and a Leica M5 further expanded his equipment. His work was first published in newspapers, as early as 1954; and, in 1964, he received a World Press Photo Award. His atelier was in Frankfurt from 1977 to 2002, after which he returned to Düsseldorf. Vogel gave most of his estate to the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation in 2016, where it is cared for by the bpk, Bildagentur für Kunst, Kultur und Geschichte (Picture Agency for Art, Culture and History). The photographer was honoured with the Leica Hall of Fame Award in 2019.
