David Peinado Romero

Photographer

Where the North Begins

Follow Hire

At the border between Ciudad Ju...ween Mexico and the other side.

1 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

At the border between Ciudad Juárez and the United States, a Venezuelan migrant girl screams as she is helped down toward the water. Her family moves with her, crossing the river that marks the boundary between Mexico and the other side.

A woman carries a child throug... in search of safety and hope.

2 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

A woman carries a child through the darkness, illuminated only by artificial lights, as a group of migrants move through a dense, smoke-filled area near the U.S.–Mexico border. The image captures the physical and emotional weight of migration, highlighting the resilience of those who travel with children in search of safety and hope.

Two migrants rest beside a fre... move through northern Mexico.

3 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

Two migrants rest beside a freight train at night, standing near a small fire built on the tracks to provide warmth and light. The graffiti-covered train looms behind them, while shadows and firelight underscore the tension and resilience of life on the move through northern Mexico.

A migrant hides in the tall gr...id heightened border security.

4 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

A migrant hides in the tall grass near the U.S.–Mexico border wall, partially lit by the glow of surveillance lights that stretch into the distance. The photo captures a tense moment of waiting and uncertainty amid heightened border security.

Layers of concertina wire form...ce in their attempts to cross.

5 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

Layers of concertina wire form a dense barrier at the U.S.–Mexico border, where armed personnel stand watch behind floodlights. The scene captures the militarization of the border and the physical obstacles migrants face in their attempts to cross.

A migrant crawls beneath layer...ortunity in the United States.

6 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

A migrant crawls beneath layers of concertina wire near the U.S.–Mexico border as a uniformed officer stands guard. The image reflects the physical and psychological barriers faced by people seeking safety and opportunity in the United States.

A group of migrants, including...creasingly militarized border.

7 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

A group of migrants, including women and children, navigate through a breach in the concertina wire near the U.S.–Mexico border while a U.S. federal vehicle stands in the background. The image captures the human scale of migration amid an increasingly militarized border.

Migrants climb aboard a northb...he journey to the U.S. border.

8 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

Migrants climb aboard a northbound freight train—known as “La Bestia”—during the night in northern Mexico. A man lifts a dog wrapped in a blanket onto the train, highlighting the bonds and solidarity formed on the journey to the U.S. border.

Migrants arrive in Ciudad Ju&a...ourney toward the U.S. border.

9 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

Migrants arrive in Ciudad Juárez aboard a freight train. A man jumps between railcars in search of a ladder to climb down, while others walk alongside the tracks after completing another leg of their journey toward the U.S. border.

A migrant woman carries her yo... families in search of safety.

10 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

A migrant woman carries her young daughter on her shoulders after getting off a freight train in northern Mexico. In the distance, others rest by the tracks as evening falls. The scene reflects the quiet resilience of those crossing borders with their families in search of safety.

Migrants rest beneath a stoppe...ourney toward the U.S. border.

11 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

Migrants rest beneath a stopped freight train in northern Mexico. Lying on gravel and sleeping between rails and machinery, they pause to recover before continuing their journey toward the U.S. border.

Dozens of migrants walk along ... north toward the U.S. border.

12 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

Dozens of migrants walk along train tracks through the desert toward Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. Captured from a high vantage point, the image reveals the quiet and collective scale of the journey north toward the U.S. border.

Migrants climb the U.S.&nd...surveillance, and desperation.

13 of 13 © 2025 David Peinado Romero

Migrants climb the U.S.–Mexico border wall using an improvised ladder. The scene captures one of the most perilous moments of the migration journey, where a physical barrier becomes a symbol of inequality, surveillance, and desperation.

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Public Project

Where the North Begins

Copyright David Peinado Romero 2025

Date of Work Sep 2023 - Ongoing

Updated Sep 2023

Location Ciudad Juarez, Mexico

Topics Breaking News, Documentary, Editorial, Journalism, Migration, News, Personal Projects, Photography, Photojournalism

Summary

A documentary series capturing the journey of migrants through northern Mexico, focusing on their arrival in Ciudad Juárez. The images follow them along freight trains, resting near the tracks, and attempting to cross the border. The project highlights both the harsh conditions and the enduring dignity of those moving through an increasingly hostile system.

This project documents the movement of migrants through northern Mexico, focusing on their arrival in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua—one of the final points before crossing into the United States. The images capture moments of waiting, movement, exhaustion, surveillance, and resistance along railroad tracks, under freight trains, in makeshift camps, and at the border wall itself. Through a close and respectful lens, the series seeks to portray not only the harsh conditions of the migrant journey, but also the persistent dignity of those who continue despite a system designed to exclude. In the face of increasingly hostile migration policies, this work bears witness to a collective body moving forward—against physical, political, and symbolic barriers.

Este proyecto documenta el tránsito de personas migrantes a través del norte de México, con especial énfasis en su llegada a Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, uno de los últimos puntos antes de cruzar hacia Estados Unidos. Las imágenes capturan momentos de espera, desplazamiento, descanso, vigilancia y resistencia a lo largo de las vías del tren, en campamentos improvisados, debajo de vagones, o frente al muro fronterizo. A través de una mirada cercana y respetuosa, la serie busca retratar no solo las condiciones extremas del viaje migrante, sino también la dignidad persistente en medio de un sistema que deshumaniza. En un contexto marcado por políticas cada vez más restrictivas, el trabajo da testimonio del cuerpo colectivo que atraviesa fronteras a pesar de los obstáculos físicos, políticos y simbólicos.

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