Don't Escape Reality. Change It.

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

Worldwide | Thursday, August 26, 2010 | flickr photos

What an exciting opportunity this travel scholarship offers! My photo submissions tell the story of Cairo's famed Camel Market. The first sets the scene, noting the feeling of distance that Egypt emotes. The second carries the viewer into the controlled bustle of the overwhelmingly tan marketplace. It's as if the whole world is covered in sand - the ground, the buildings, the clothes, and even the camels. The third and fourth offer insight into the two competing elements within this world - man and animal. While the man is intensely focused, the animal chews loudly, entirely unaware of its impending fate. The final image merges these two forces. As man rides the camel, he asserts his dominance in a way that camel sellers have done for literally thousands of years. These images could almost have been taken on any day of the last 3,000 years - a story in and of itself.

I have loved telling stories through pictures my entire life. As a child I used to flip open National Geographic at the library and imagine I was there - in the photos. For a young kid in Southern California from a family that never had the means to travel, it was this idea of a distant other becoming familiar through the lens of a camera. There were other children like me doing things kids do, and I loved that sense of togetherness.

I got my very own camera when I was eleven and I've been snapping shots of people and places ever since. Thanks to scholarships and fellowships I have been fortunate enough to explore many places on our beautiful planet and I feel it is my duty to bring these other "Worlds" back to my family and friends who have not had the same chances that I've had.

Still, I have so much to learn so I can tell even better stories! Thank you again for this wonderful opportunity.