( CNN ) -- Julian Cardona is a photojournalist who works in the `` murder capital of the world '' -- Juarez , Mexico . He takes pictures of bodies and survivors , migrants and countrymen , violence and vigils . The 51-year-old photographer puts his life on the line for such photography because he wants the world to know of a patch of earth that many American journalists -- even those in Mexico , too -- fear to tread and often avoid . That 's because the violence by Mexican cartels and other criminals who control swaths of the borderlands have secured a reputation for ferocious violence and carnage , including to those who dare to chronicle the death toll . To capture the human suffering and endurance , often in the powerful imagery of black-and-white photographs , Cardona does n't venture out alone anymore . He partners with other photographers -- who had been competitors under less dark times -- because they believe there 's greater safety in numbers . `` When you work as a local journalist , it 's more frequent that you ( are ) facing more risks , '' he said in an interview at California State University , Northridge , where he spoke to students about cartel violence and where his photos are on display this month . Cardona has observed how the Mexican side of the border has been a landscape of change , beginning with the North American Free Trade Agreement in the early 1990s to the massive movement of Mexicans to the United States and elsewhere . Many parts of Juarez are now a `` ghost town , '' he says . Last year , Juarez recorded 1,933 violent deaths , according to the Chihuahua state attorney 's office . That figure is considered exorbitant , especially when compared with the 209 homicides in New York City last year , even though that U.S. city 's population is six times greater than Juarez 's . Even so , that figure represented a 38 % decline in violent deaths from the year before , when the city counted 3,117 killings . The number of violent deaths was 2,643 in 2009 and 1,607 in 2008 . A mere 300 killings were reported in 2007 . Juarez also is known for its high `` femicide '' rate , the unsolved murders of hundreds of girls and women . `` During my childhood , Juarez was a very calm place , very secure place , '' Cardona told CNN . `` It 's changed to be very insecure and has become for four years the most violent city on the earth , '' he added . `` You are covering one massacre as another massacre is happening in another district of the city , '' Cardona said . `` We have disappearances of women , we have disappearances of men , we have execution of women , execution of men , bodies of women left in the desert . People who do n't pay extortion are assassinated . People who are kidnapped are assassinated , also . People who refuse to give their cars are killed , also . It is a wide spectrum of where you can be killed in Juarez . `` According to some of my colleagues , '' he continued , `` 90 % of the cases are never investigated . That can give you the idea of the role of the state and this terrible situation . '' Before Juarez became synonymous with homicide , the city used to be a party town , with a robust nightlife . But a University of Juarez study shows that the bloodshed since the early 1990s has displaced 250,000 people , Cardona said . `` In many places it looks like a ghost town , a ghost district , '' he said . Cardona dares to enter these haunted places -- as well as populated neighborhoods . `` Most of the time the people I meet are going into turning points of their lives . It 's very often I 'm a witness to these changes in their lives , '' he said . `` Under these circumstances , it is incredible how people are still open to talk to a journalist and tell their stories , and how their communities have been devastated by the economy , and how they can not sustain their lives and families ' educations -- they have to migrate to the U.S. -- and also how people struggle to survive and make a living in the U.S. doing very dangerous jobs . '' Cardona lives in Juarez , but his parents and siblings live across the border in El Paso , Texas , and do n't visit him because of the violence , he said . CNN 's Jade Biesboer contributed to this report .
Julian Cardona , 51 , visits California to display his photos of Juarez , Mexico . Hide Caption 1 of 10 Photos:Photos: Mexico's drug war in pictures Mexico's drug war in pictures – The 51-year-old photographer does n't venture out alone any more because of the violence . Cartel carnage has turned parts of his one-time `` calm '' hometown into a `` ghost town , '' he says .