Yuan Yongjie was born in 1954 in Liaoning. He is a senior engineer with an in-service graduate degree. He completed a course offered by China Photography Correspondence Academy in 2015 and later joined the China Photographers Association in 2017. Many of his photography works have won awards such as gold, silver, and bronze medals in competitions at different levels.

He is Vice Chairman and Secretary of the Anshan Photographers Association and joined the membership of several photo associations, including China Photographers Association, Chinese Art Photography Society, Images Copyright Society of China, China Industrial Photography Association, Liaoning Provincial Photographers Association,  Global Photographic Union （GPU）, Royal Photographic Society, and New York Institute of Photography.