Gates Ajar: through a child's eyes

Since being away from home, I've been trying to read some online news about once a day just to keep up on happenings back in the US. Lately, as many of you know, it hasn't been pretty. This morning, I scrolled through the distressing headlines on CNN, reading stories here and there, when this headline caught my eye.

Josephine \\ Sudan

The story was about a fairly new nonprofit called 100cameras, which operates under the motto "Give photography. Change a community." The 100cameras staff members go into an area with about five cameras, teach the kids how to shoot aesthetically pleasing photographs, and then set them loose. The kids then upload their photographs, 100cameras sells them, and the money returns to the child's community.

Amiri \\ Cuba

Of course, I'm always slightly skeptical of nonprofits. I feel kind of terrible being so cynical, but I feel it's important to really investigate, find out where your money is going, and decide if that's something you want to support. Upon a quick comb through the 100cameras website, I found an organization with a genuine passion for photography. Photography is not a cheap hobby, as my bank account discovered while renting cameras and buying tons of B+W film for my photography class last semester. However, with digital photography, the cost is almost totally upfront. Once you have the camera and access to a computer to upload the pictures, that's it!

Kiden \\ Sudan

Since I enjoy photography myself, I thought this was just a wonderful idea. It's great to give kids both joy and a technical skill, not only in taking the photographs, but working with computers to upload the pictures. Plus, as co-founder Angela Francine Bullock stated: "If you could give a child a camera, they could tell a reality in a way that a foreigner, or even an adult, could not."

Josephine \\ Sudan

Since the organization is still fairly new, I think it will be interesting to see how they continue. While I understand the need to branch out and reach kids in different communities, I think it would be great if a portion of the profits from each community could be re-invested to buy more cameras for even more local kids. Who knows? Maybe even classes in entrepreneurship or scholarships to local schools to further hone their photography skills could be added. As a journalism major, I could even see the potential for news agencies to hire these kids in the future to be field photojournalists. What better way to report on an event than through the eyes of a witness who knows the area and culture?

Jackson \\ Sudan

Regardless, I love the simplicity of this organization. Sometimes the world's problems seem too scary and insurmountable, but one camera can, if anything, simply bring more joy to a child's life. To me, that's worth it.