Eric Grigorian was born to Armenian parents in Iran in 1969. At the start of the Iranian revolution in 1979, he left with his family for the United States. While completing a degree in photojournalism at the San Jose State University, he spent a semester abroad studying under Ed Kashi in London. After graduating, he freelanced for the Los Angeles Daily News, later moving on to magazines before joining the new Polaris Images agency in 2002.
