To practise what you preach is a constant challenge, but to that end, KIKI Outreach is a perfect example of “learning, sharing and loving” people. KIKI partnered with the Kuyasa Film School in Kayamandi to bring a basic photography class to students aged 14 to 25, to teach them basic camera skills that they can use to express themselves.

The course ran for 2 months, where the students (armed with Kodak Easy Share cameras) worked through a course that covered concepts like shapes, shadows, patterns, behaviour and people. After these specific classes, we would head out into Kayamandi in smaller groups where the students would scout for pictures on the subject of the day. The instructors would go with the students to make the learning experience even more practical – making suggestions concerning composition, angles, light and focus.

The skills of the students varied depending on their interest in photography but, I can confidently say, that being part of the class made a difference in their lives. In order for a student to graduate, we measured attendance rather than skills, This is because commitment is one of the life skills that we aimed at teaching the students (an important personal attribute to run your own sucessful business). Out of the 8 that started, only 5 of them graduated. And their results shows amazing growth from the first happy snaps they took.

Working through all of the photos taken by the students to prepare them for the exhibition was in itself a labour of love. I was however so surprised at the amazing photos that was taken with a basic little camera. Kurt Sunkel (a KIKI member) of Studio22 was so kind to sponsor the printing of the photos – a valuable contribution to keep the costs down.

To see more go to Inarie Photography‘s post on the KIKI Outreach project and exhibition.