SAM Nzima, the photographer behind the famous Hector Pieterson image taken on June 16 1976 during the Soweto uprising, has returned from an international photo exhibition in Germany to which he had been invited as a VIP.

Nzima returned on Tuesday after a week-long visit to Berlin.

He said he was pleasantly surprised to find a school named after Pieterson in Berlin after the picture's worldwide circulation 34 years ago.

Nzima told Sowetan that it was a great experience for him to have been part of the exhibition that reminded him of his years as a photojournalist.

"I took the picture many years ago and I'm happy that the Germans saw the opportunity to name one of their high schools after Pieterson," Nzima said.

"This means the picture I took left its mark on them as well. I'm very impressed."

He said he was asked to address pupils at the Hector Pieterson school and had received a warm welcome during his stay.

The exhibition also examined apartheid and saw Denis Goldberg launch his autobiography, The Mission, at the South African embassy in Berlin.

Goldberg was active in the struggle against apartheid and was imprisoned along with other key members of the anti-apartheid movement, including Nelson Mandela.

Nzima also met the principal of the school, Dietmar Pagel, who invited him to speak about his experiences as a photographer under the yoke of apartheid in South Africa.