One of the things I love the most is discovering how one idea, one thought, one picture can turn into positive change for thousands. That is exactly what this story is about……a simple idea and the power of a photograph.
In 2008, four girlfriends living in NYC had an idea. What if they could give cameras to impoverished children all over the globe to document their lives through photography? Their plan was to then sell the children’s photos to raise funds and awareness that would go back into the children’s’ communities.
Their belief was simply that a camera could be a tool for change. By 2009, that little idea became the non-profit 100 cameras.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__lDxLyWX3Y&feature=plcp]
The girls began their first photography project in Sudan. They then held photography exhibit inside a tiny apartment on the Upper East Side. What started with 80 people attending an exhibit, to purchase the photographs taken by children in the Sudan, has morphed into events across the country and projects helping children around the globe.
100 cameras allows us to see the world through the perspective of a child, through purchasing their photos or sponsoring a “child photographer.” When these young photographers are taught how to capture and tell their story, they develop a better view of themselves and the opportunity to share and record their story.
Ansel Adams said, “You don’t take a photograph, you make it.” I would say the same goes for these four girlfriends and founders, they didn’t just take an idea and a photograph, they made it….. into something powerful for thousands all over the world.
Charity Matters.
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