World Nomads 2010 Scholarship

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

Worldwide | Saturday, October 16, 2010 | flickr photos

There are now more ways than ever to communicate with the world around us. Whether it be through email, telephone or another medium, there is always some form of communication one feels is most connected with. For me it is photography because of its ability to speak volumes without even speaking.

I am the first generation of my family born in the United States. I have relatives scattered around Taiwan who don’t know English. There was always a language gap between us that made it very difficult for me to get to know them. Not only because they were half a world away, but because I could not verbally speak or understand them. But I learned to get to know them through the photographs they mailed me. They helped me see the world through their eyes and to really understand their life, even when I didn’t understand their words. Those photos were the priceless bridge of communication that brought me and the rest of my family together and that is why I have the passion that I have for photography.

Photographs are such a powerful tool because they can be understood by anyone around the world regardless of any cultural barriers. I want to learn to capture photos with meaning and to use them to share with the world the places and stories that are behind them. Some say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but to me it is worth much more.

The place I chose to photograph is my neighborhood because everywhere I look, I see evidence that the way we communicate is always changing. It is a gentle reminder that when I take a photograph, I have to take one that has meaning if I want it’s message to last forever.