Luke Smith’s photographs of members at a Cornish Social Club provide a welcome glimpse of our common humanity from a rare perspective. They are at once familiar and other worldly.

Luke Smith describes himself as a photography of life as it happens. He shoots strictly in black and white with film, no flash, and doesn’t crop his images.

He  lives in Clevedon, U.K. and works as a photographer at Aardman Animations in Bristol, UK.

Luke Smith (at Flickr)

Introduction

Morten Svenningsen is an award-winning Danish freelance photojournalist who has been based in Nepal since 2005. His work is mainly in the socio-political field, covering news, development work and other subjects, always with a strong focus on the human perspective.

Homepage (MSMediaService.com)
Profile at Lightstalkers

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Normally I publish photos in sets of 9 or 12, but I couldn’t bear to cut a single photo from this one. The result is a lone 13th photo at the bottom. All together these photographs really deliver on the promise of an introduction to Nepal though the children. I appreciate these images more and more with time.

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Now I want to shift gears and call attention to a comment on last week’s gallery. The commenter (Annie) expressed concern about marginalized people being exploited by having their photographs included here. I think her concerns are legitimate, and I will work to address them. I’d like to hear from others as well. I don’t want to cut and paste her comments and my response, but you can read the ongoing thread below last week’s gallery.

People have strong and varying opinions about taking photographs of people who are suffering, living in poverty, marginalized, powerless, etc. The photographer comes from another world, with power and wealth, pointing his or her camera here and there, taking photos to be “consumed” by curious people far away. Most sensitive photographers struggle with questions about the right way to go about such work, if at all, but few can agree on guidelines or where to draw the lines.

Sebastiao Salgado is one of the greatest living photographers, and he has traveled the world photographing people at the extreme margins. Critics say that Salgado crosses lines by taking beautiful pictures of people in horrendous circumstances and turning them into objects of art. (They would prefer if the pictures were grittier and uglier to match the content.) Salgado, on the other hand, considers his work a serious vocation for the benefit of humanity. He says, “I believe there is no person in the world that must be protected from pictures. Everything that happens in the world must be shown and people around the world must have an idea of what’s happening to the other people of the world” (Ken Light, Witness in Our Time, p111).

Then there is Dayanita Singh, who took one of the most moving documentary photographs I have ever seen entitled, Maria, daughter of a sex worker. It shows a beautiful young girl dressed in white. Her father is standing to the side looking sternly in another direction. The caption says Marie will be put on the job within days. After this photograph was published people from all over the world wanted to adopt Marie, but Singh said that “no one wanted to help the thousands of other such girls in Bombay.” (Ken Light, Witness in Our Time, p150). By the time the photo was published and the response rolled in, Marie was already hardened in her role and not interested in being saved. Today it’s very difficult to find this photograph of Marie online or in print. Dayanita Singh herself stopped taking documentary photographs to change the world. Now she takes photographs showing the lives of middle and upper class Indian society, and still lifes with no people at all. She gives reasons for the change here and in the quote below (from an exhibition):

Twelve year old girl Marie, the daughter of a sex worker, had just attained puberty and begged me to take her away from her destiny, but I could not. In India the highest price paid is for the first time, usually around 12 or 13 years. Once the spirit is broken, then it’s just a job. When this ran in TIME magazine, many families wanted to adopt her, so I went back to look for here in Bombay, but she had long been working and was not interested in me. My photograph did not make any difference to sex workers´ children, because finally all the people that contacted us only wanted Marie and not any sex workers´ child. That was the hardest bit to come to terms with. It is still traumatic to write about it. Later I got beaten up by Marie’s pimps because a regional magazine had taken the image from TIME and customers brought the issue in, attracted by the porn story that accompanied Marie’s photo. I could not explain to the pimps that I had not given them the image. That brought to an end my three years work with sex workers and HIV in the early 90s in Bombay… Since the work was widely published, I believe I helped create the HIV stigma that still plagues HIV, of HIV as a result from having sex with a sex worker. I realized I could not change a thing with photos and if I was so concerned, I should become an activist, but photography was in my blood. source

I don’t mean to hijack the wonderful gallery above to start a debate about documentary photography. I chose Morten Svenningsen’s set today, because his work is sensitive, masterful, and clearly reveals the human story of life in Nepal. But please don’t judge his work according to the can of worms I just opened. Feel free, however, to put Singh and Salgado in the spotlight and consider the choices they have made. In the process I’d love to have your input about the direction of this website.

Now have at it. And while you’re here sign up for our email list so you won’t miss future exhibitions!

Samantha Oulavong started a non-profit called LOVE. LOVE stands for “Lens Of Vision & Expression.” Through LOVE Samantha provides digital photography workshops for non-profit organizations working with marginalized children. Last week I showed a set of photographs taken by her students, who are children of the La Chureca landfill outside Managua, Nicaragua. This week I’d like to show a set of Samantha’s photographs taken at the same time.

LOVE’s Website is coming soon: www.lensofvisionexpression.org
LOVE on Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/love-love

Samantha is currently in Phom Penh, through mid-August, conducting a workshop for children whose lives are affected by the HIV virus.

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Are you interested in empowering marginalized people to document their own lives through photography? The reality is hard work and hard questions and a chance to make a difference. If you want to learn more, then Photovoice (www.photovoice.org) is a great place to get started. The website is loaded with information. You can partner with PhotoVoice directly, join the PhotoVoice forum, or purchase their detailed manual to help you start a project on your own.

Thanks for visiting. Now please leave a comment with your thoughts and observations. While you’re here sign up for our email list so you won’t miss future exhibitions!

Introduction

LOVE stands for “Lens Of Vision & Expression.” LOVE is a fledgling non-profit created by Samantha Oulavong to provide digital photography workshops for non-profit organizations working with marginalized children.

All of these photos were taken by her students. They are children whose lives revolve around La Chureca, the landfill outside of Managua, Nicaragua.

Here is a statement provided by Samantha Oulavang.

The children from LOVE’s workshop have documented their lives photographically and the issues surrounding them: their living conditions, environment, work situations, as well as their dreams for the future. LOVE is addressing these issues by empowering marginalized children to escape the cycle of poverty. Against this background of poverty, the children’s photographs illustrates the dignity and sensitivity of the community and of each other.

By allowing these children the freedom to use their creativity, it gives them a voice that otherwise goes unheard. Because the future of humanity is dependent on children, LOVE is committed to helping marginalized children to be witnesses to their world and to challenge those who have seen their stories unfold through their body of work to take actions.

LOVE partners with non-profit organizations who represents children whose voices need to be heard. We come to them with the necessary materials to lead photography workshops. Students meet with an instructor/mentor who provides comprehensive training on the basics of photography to begin their creative journeys. The experience culminates the student’s body of work being publicized through online galleries and art exhibitions. Proceeds from the sales of the student’s work are used to further their education and realization of their dreams.

LOVE’s Website is coming soon: www.lensofvisionexpression.org
LOVE on Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/love-love

Samantha is currently in Phom Penh, through mid-August, conducting a workshop for children whose lives are affected by the HIV virus.

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Samantha Oulavong herself is a gifted photographer. I’m planning to feature a set of her photographs next week. Later I hope to show photos from her students in Cambodia.

I don’t have the words to express how I feel about photos like these. Skillful photographers enter among the poorest of the poor and take breath-taking images of beauty, suffering, and simple life. In many cases (perhaps I’m being generous), they undertake the work with good hearts and worthy purposes, but not always (and the noblest of intentions can go awry). As pure as their motives may be, they are not completely innocent, nor are they insiders (with exceptions, of course). But when a camera is in the hands of a child, we give a kind of power to him or her, and then we see what an innocent eye observes and records. And even if they are not innocent eyes, because innocence is lost early in some places, at least they are insiders who see up close what we perceive through layers from a distance.

Today I was contacted by another photographer who is training marginalized people to document their lives and vanishing culture photographically. I’m looking forward to showing her students’ work as well. This is a natural direction for GlobalCompassion.com, and I’m looking forward to working with others in the same vein. Feel free to refer them here.

Now what is your reaction to these images? Leave a comment with your thoughts and observations. Then sign up for our email list here so you won’t miss any future exhibitions. Thanks.

Introduction

Joe Wigfall is based in New York. He is a talented street photographer with a wonderful sense of the theater of life as you can see for yourself.

You can see more of his work at: http://joewimages.blogspot.com/

Also, check out his work on Flickr and this online interview.

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What is your reaction to these images? Leave a comment and start a conversation. Sign up for our email list here so you won’t miss future exhibitions. Thanks.

Introduction

Sumaryanto Bronto is a freelance photographer based in Yogyakarta and Jakarta, Indonesia. He is currently participating in the World Press Photo Course at the Panna Institute of Photography, and he is studying archeology at Gadjah Mada University.

Bronto started his career in photography as a contributing photographer for the Associated Press. His photos have been published in international and national publications including: Stern, ABC News, Folha, Ewoss News, USA Today, The Washington Post, etc.

His work has been exhibited in numerous national and international exhibitions, and he has published in a photography book entitled “Fifty Seven Second” (in collaboration with other Indonesian photojournalists). The book is a documentary of the earthquake the hit Yoyakarta in 2006 killing more than 6000 people.

Mobile (Indonesia):
+62 815 885 2258

Email:
sumaryantobronto [a-t] gmail [d-o-t] com

Gallery Website:
http://www.bronto.smugmug.com

Photography blog:
http://sumaryantobronto.blogspot.com/

Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sumaryanto-bronto/

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When I see Sumaryanto Bronto’s photography I’m reminded that talented and well trained photographers are emerging all over the world, and they are documenting their own cultures as insiders with skill and passion. We need to see their work, and I hope this website will be a place where that happens.

What is your reaction to these images? Leave a comment with your thoughts and observations. Sign up for our email list here so you won’t miss any future exhibitions. Thanks.