Sam Tata was born in 1911 in Shanghai China, of Parsee parents from India. His initial interest in photography began in 1936 with street photography. He spent the next decade in pursuit of pictorial work with a emphasis on portraiture. In 1947-48 he travelled throughout India, the country of his origins, rediscovering the trend of photographing in the streets and in the countryside. This trip marked the beginning of his interest in photo-journalism and reportage, with frequent contributions to magazines in Bombay such as Trend and Flashlight. He emigrated to Canada in July, 1956, and practised photo-reportage full-time. He became a regular contributor to: Macleans`s, Chatelaine (both English and French publications), The Montrealer, Week-End magazine, the Star Weekly,Perspectives, the Globe Magazine, Canadian Art, and Time Canada. In 1976, Sam was elected to the Royal Canadian Academy of the Arts and awarded the special jury prize at the Triennale internationale de la photographie, in Fribourg, in 1981. Sam had numerous exhibitions across Canada, throughout the United States and in the Far East. His photographs are part of many collections, including the National Art Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, the Musee D`Art Contemporain in Montreal, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Sam Tata died in 2005.