WHO: The Gift of an Image is an ongoing social awareness project that aims to stimulate and cultivate our future generation by using the power of photography and creativity.
HOW: We sought to Combine our passion for photography with our other passion - giving back to the community. This marked the beginning of the gift of an image. We are based in Miami, U.S.A but with a worldwide vision. We started by interacting with 34 children of the Siyaphambili Orphan Village outside of Cape Town, South Africa and with the support of love to Langa. We provided the children with disposable Kodak cameras, aiming to stimulate their creativity, identity and perspective of their environment, their world and reality. The cameras were assigned to each child for a couple of days after a basic photography introduction and instructions. Afterwards we collected the cameras, developed the film locally and printed their selected images for an exclusive exhibition at the orphanage.
WHY: Our mission is to help children realize their potential, see beyond their boundaries, help build self-esteem, decision-making abilities, photography and communication skills by engaging in their creativity, identity and the unique perspective of their immediate environment.
The following are some printed samples of the intimate pictures taken by the young artists, which are included in the upcoming "The Gift of an Image" book.
CHALLENGES/ WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? Our main challenge is funding. We are now bringing The Gift of an Image to our local community, Miami. We are joining forces with blind kids. We will teach them the basic photographic techniques, cameras will be assigned to each child for a couple of days where afterwards we will collect the cameras, develop their film and print the curated photographs with Braille language for the kids to feel, read and see their creations.
HOW YOU CAN HELP? This is not only a project, it is also a story, providing creative expression for social change. To make this happen, we need your help.
• Pledge. We’ve invested our own money into the project, but your pledges will help us make The Gift of an Image succeed.
• Join. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, instagram. Don’t forget to Share your thoughts. We LOVE to hear from you!
• Talk. Do you have a blog? Or a friend who might find The Gift of an Image interesting? Tweet it. Facebook it. Smoke signal it. Let the world know.
...because the only thing we really have is what we give away, thanks for your support!
-- Camilo & Valerie --
