The Many Faces of Orphaned Souls

My Photo scholarship 2011 entry

Worldwide | Monday, October 3, 2011 | 5 photos

“Come on! Rach…” This is a line that I have become used to hearing from anyone that I am walking with. Down on one knee to get a unique perspective of the dog in front of my camera, I take my shots and run to catch up with my friends. This has become what they consider my bad habit, but what I consider my passion. Last year, I gave myself the opportunity of a lifetime. I pushed college to the side and traveled to New Zealand, Australia, Costa Rica and Brazil, emerging myself in different cultures through internships and volunteer work. My camera was attached to me, documenting nearly everything I did, everything I saw. I am a true believer of educating others that might not have the opportunity to travel about different cultures and human wrongs that co-exist amongst people. My photography is unique in that it is as much about educating others as it is about art. When I photograph a lonely boy in an orphanage it is not to hang up in a local museum or to show my mother so she can say, “Oh how cute” or “You were so lucky to be able to play with him every day for two months!” That photograph that looks the boy dead in the eye is to allow the reader of the photograph to see into the boy and understand how he is truly feeling. So why do I have a passion for photography? I believe it is one of the most powerful ways to deliver a story and I am ready to use my passion to be the voice for those in Brazil or the Democratic Republic of Congo that want nothing more than to be heard.