for National Geographic News
Based on the success of last year's pilot program in Washington, D.C., National Geographic's Photo Camp expanded this year to New York and San Francisco (see students' photos). Plans are also underway to add Miami, Chicago, St. Paul, and Seattle in 2005.
Sponsored by the Contributing Photographers-in-Residence (CPIR) program and the Education Foundation, Photo Camp works to provide young participants from underserved areas with individual attention from mentors at National Geographic magazine and other media partners.
The 11 to 15 students chosen to attend each camp team up with top photographers and editors in newspaper and magazine journalism. This year those pros included staff from the New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, and National Geographic.
At each camp, students produced a photo-essay based on the popular National Geographic department, ZipUSA, with camera equipment donated by Nikon. Each month, ZipUSA focuses on a different U.S. zip code.
Former New York Times photographer Kirsten Elstner, director of the Photo Camp program and founder of Annapolis-based youth photography and writing program VisionWorkshops, believes showing students how to photograph their communities directly matches the National Geographic Society's mission.
"They're learning geography education," said Elstner of the participants. And, better yet, adds Elstner, students are doing so in their home cities. "They're being educated about their own neighborhoods … [and] being asked to show things from their own perspectives."
New York Assignment: Times Square
National Geographic Photo Camp New York participants were selected from the public High School for Fashion Industries (HSFI), based on the school's partnership with New York's International Center of Photography (ICP).
Working with National Geographic and New York Times staff, students set out to document the zip code 10036, encompassing Times Square, which recently marked its hundredth anniversary. Their photographs were displayed at the ICP in June.
Stephen Crowley, a Washington-based New York Times staff photographer now covering the John Kerry's campaign for the U.S. Presidency, was highly impressed with the students' dedication and passion. "They were an absolute joy, these kids."
Crowley, who also teaches in Washington with the Corcoran College of Art and Design's photojournalism program, told his Photo Camp students to believe in their own visual instincts. "We're there to … guide them technically and to help them—not only find their voice, but remain confident in their own voice," said Crowley of his and other instructors' roles.
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