Finding Joy in the Dust

My Scholarship entry - A 'place' I have visited

Philippines | Monday, December 31, 2012 | 5 photos

My name is Jacinta (or Jazza, as everyone calls me) and I'm an 18 year old from Queensland, Australia.

The days where I wake up early and go to sleep exhausted are the times that I feel most alive.

I discovered this when I traveled to the Philippines for the first time. I knew from then on that I wanted to use photography to help those people that aren't able to help themselves, to discover more of the world and to show people in creative and moving ways what is really happening on this planet, the things that the news doesn't show us.

I have always wanted to be a photo-journalist, and this opportunity would quite literally make my dreams come true. I've never believed in excessive photo-shopping, so learning more about capturing the truth, the untainted and natural image would be a priceless experience.

Over the years I realised that photography wasn't just about documenting your environment or capturing a moment, even though those are still huge parts to what I love about it.

I realised that photography was as much about those things as it is about learning more about yourself. Learning more about the world, about people, about culture, about you.