Help-Portrait initiative
One of the great things for me about doing photography as a hobby is the great people that one meets along the way. I’ve really been lucky to have met many togs, both professional and amateur, that are very gracious with their knowledge. A recent blog post by the amazing wedding photographer Christine Meintjes reminded me again how important it is to give back to the community, and if one can do it through photographs that’s even better!
So I’ve decided to put in a bit of effort and get involved with the Help-Portrait initiative. The idea behind this initiative is fairly simple:
The brainchild of celebrity photographer Jeremy Cowart, Help-Portrait is a movement of photographers, coming together in every major city, to use their photography skills to give back to the community. On December 12th, photographers around the world will be grabbing their cameras, finding people in need, and taking their picture.When the prints are ready, the photographs get delivered. Yep. It really is that easy.
I’m planning something in Cape Town and at this stage I’m looking for fellow photographers, make-up artists and anybody else that wants to lend a hand. You don’t need to be a professional photographer (I’m certainly not!) or make-up artist to assist – any help would be welcome! Please drop me a line on the contact page if you’re interested in helping.
I’ve already read some amazing stories that came about as a result of this initiative, e.g. the story of Heather, an 11 year old girl who’s portrait was taken only a few weeks before she passed away. I’m pretty sure that the need in our local communities are as big, if not bigger and hence we’ve got a great opportunity to assist.
