A Dallas native, I was very fortunate to start traveling the world at the early age of 14. My first journey outside the U.S. was to Peru during a turbulent time of terrorism, bombings, and killings by the Shining Path, a Maoist rebel group. I did not know that what I witnessed would be preparing me for my life’s journey.
By the age of 21, I had traveled to all seven continents, including over thirty countries. I felt drawn to, and mostly focused on, third world, impoverished, and conflict-stricken areas. I was fascinated to see how people acted and reacted given their various environments, struggles, and beliefs. My paramount objective became to show others, who may never know, how vastly different the rest of the world lives and survives outside of America. I believe photography, as well as video, are the best mediums for capturing and conveying the quality of life of these people and their environments for the widest possible audience.
I decided to leave SMU before entering my senior year to take that leap of faith and go to Sierra Leone. This West African nation had only months prior to my arrival ended a brutal ten-year civil war and was still very fragile and volatile. This trip marked the beginning of a journey from which there was no return. I feel that I’m a witness, and my job is to accurately report through honest images the stories of those who are not able to speak out on their own; the stories that might otherwise go untold and unseen by the rest of this world.
