The Future through a Lens

Uganda, 28 May 2022

In 2022, I travelled to Uganda to mentor a group of students as they trained to become professional photographers. What began as a teaching project became one of the most transformative experiences of my life, reinforcing my belief that photography can be a powerful tool for expression, dignity, and change.

As part of this project, I edited and published a book featuring a selection of my students’ best photographs. The book is still available. If you would like to purchase a copy and support these young photographers, please feel free to get in touch.

Below you can read the text I wrote for the book:

Uganda, 28 May 2022

I stand in front of one of the most beautiful challenges I have ever had in my life, both personal and professional; guiding a group of 15 young adults to become professional photographers in Kimya, a small village in a forgotten area of western Uganda. The pearl of Africa.
The future through a lens is a project that started in December 2021. That is when I received a phone call from Eva at Kelele Africa who asked me if I would be interested in setting up a photo course at Kelele in Kimya Uganda. Of course I couldn’t say no, eventhough it wasn’t the best timing for me. Things just started to get on track after the pandemic and I had quit my job at a gallery. I was doing okay but still didn’t earn enough money to be able to make a comfortable living. I felt this was a once in a lifetime opportunity, it’s now or never. My age as well may have influenced my decision, I now know how quick life passes by and some changes are unique.
I left Spain more than two months ago and I am here in Uganda. My students are eager to learn and such a wonderful people and we are in a beautiful yet very poor area. I have built a very deep relationships with each of them.
As a teacher, who learns more, the students or the teacher?
In this trip I have taken less pictures than I normally would have done. I have taken the pictures through the eyes of my students and it is a wonderful and fulfilling experience.
So this is their book, about their lives. These are their pictures. The only pictures I took for the book are the portraits of each one of them.
Each student is presented with a short story about his or her life, the portrait I made and the 10 best pictures of their personal project. As you will read their stories you will notice that life hasn’t been at all easy for them and that they still have many challenges to face.
The earnings from this book will go directly to the students. I want to help them building a future so they can invest in a camera, computer, smartphone , etc.
The pictures will also be available on www.thefuturethroughalens.com and I plan to organize expositions.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for buying this book and thus helping the students of the photography course.
Enjoy the book with your heart and eyes.

Portraits of My Students