Fancy a trip to Nepal? or been and want to come again? Now's your chance for an armchair trip and to support Mitrataa at the same time!

Nepal is a naturally photogenic country; from majestic mountains to narrow, urban alleyways. Experience Nepal in all its glory through our exclusive new book, photographed and produced by Linda Jocelyn, the photographer who taught the girls photography through Project Snow Leopard.

In this limited edition of 100, 23cm x 23cm, individually numbered and autographed books,
you can marvel at the beauty of Nepal from the comfort of your home. For a preview, please see http://previews.onlineprogallery.com.au/gallery/?cpid=1232373&auth=51578034531396.41877661

The book costs A$100 (plus P&H depending on where you are - for Sydney, Blue Mountains, and a few other areas in NSW we will deliver it to you for free).

Please order now - once we reach 100, there will be no more! All profits from sale of the book go to directly to Mitrataa to support our work in Nepal.

To place an order or for more information, please contact email Emily - Emily@mitrataa.org - and she'll send you an order form. 

We guarantee you'll be inspired - and helping girls and women in Nepal at the same time. They make a wonderful gift too!

Thanks so much to Linda for her generous work in supporting Mitrataa's work in Nepal.

Don't miss out! Order your copy today!

 

Project Snow Leopard part 3

Once back in Kathmandu we had two more workshops with the Project Snow Leopard girls at Bal Mandir. Linda reviewed their photos from Pokhara and discussed some of the best ones with the group. The girls always love to see their work displayed on the big projector screen!

The last outing for the girls was a day trip to Panauti, a traditional old Newar village about an hour from Kathmandu. There we took the girls on a walk around the town to see the sights including some stunning old temples, pokey little cobbled alleyways, and lots of ducks, chickens and pigs. Panauti sits on the confluence of two rivers so there were lots of photo opportunities there too with many people bathing and doing their washing on the banks.

Throughout the course of this trip we had also assigned ‘official photographer’ positions to each of the girls at the various programs that were held. The last of these was the Daisy Chains Women’s Project conference and picnic, also held in Panauti. Three of the Snow Leopard girls joined us for the day and their brief was to take lots of photos that captured the mood of the day and ‘told the story’ of the women. In addition to this the girls did a fantastic job of assisting with translation work during the formal parts of the program.

That concluded phase two of Project Snow Leopard and it was fantastic to see not only the development of the girls’ photography skills but also their growth in confidence, communication and leadership. We are planning the next set of workshops for March/April next year and the girls are already excited about Linda’s next visit!

We are presently working with the assistance of John Wiley & Sons on gift cards using the girls’ photos which we will be selling as a fundraiser. Also, as the girls continue to amass a very impressive collection of photos we will be starting work on a book highlighting their achievements so look out for that late next year or early 2012.

Our thanks as always to Linda for all of the time and energy she has put into the project.

  

Project Snow Leopard part 2

Following an amazing morning of mountain views at Sarangkot, we took the Project Snow Leopard girls to the lake at Pokhara for an adventure they could never have imagined – catching a row boat to the other side of the lake! Swimming and water sports are not common leisure activities in Nepal so many of the girls were quite daunted by the prospect of venturing out onto the beautiful lake in a small wooden boat. However once out on the lake most of the girls were able to relax and enjoy the amazing views back to shore and to the hills and mountains behind. Pokhara is a popular adventure sport destination and from the lake we were also able to enjoy the views of some crazy people para-hawking and hang-gliding from nearby hills!

After around half an hour on the water all 4 boats landed on the opposite shore. It was then time for the real stress to begin as we had to trek up a fairly steep and rocky track for about an hour to reach the top of the hill. We were however, rewarded at the top with stunning views over the lake, the Pokhara township and surrounding hills. We could even see back across the valley to Sarangkot where we had been that morning!

In addition to the views, the top of this hill was home to the World Peace Pagoda – a beautiful big pagoda built by the Japanese a few years ago. It was the perfect location for more photos and some group shots to commemorate our trip.

By now the light was fading and it was time to return to our guest house for some well earned dinner and an early night. It had been a fantastic day both for the girls and for us.

The following morning we had one more surprise in store for the girls. They thought they were getting on the bus and going straight back to Kathmandu but we planned a quick stop at another of Pokhara’s famous sights – Devi’s Falls. This is a waterfall with a small blow hole but made famous for the story that a Swiss couple were bathing in a rock pool on the edge only to be washed away during a sudden gush of water. The girls were thrilled to see it as they had been disappointed that they thought they had missed out.

With this final burst of excitement it was now really time to head back to Kathmandu.

More photos from the trip can be found on our facebook page.

  

Project Snow Leopard part 1

The beginning of November saw Linda join us in Kathmandu for phase 2 of Project Snow Leopard. The 10 girls from Bal Mandir were very excited to be expanding their knowledge of photography as well as getting numerous opportunities to refine their skills.

First up was a workshop in Kathmandu where Linda gave the girls a coffee table book she’d had made showcasing their photos. The girls were stunned to see their work in print! This workshop also gave the girls a chance to update all of us on the work they had been doing since last time. They had been given a number of guest photographer assignments for major festivals etc which they loved. We also spent some time planning the Pokhara trip which was already causing great excitement amongst the group.

Two days later it was off to Pokhara in a bus full of very excited girls. With almost a full day of traveling behind us, the first night was spent with Linda giving a workshop on the landscape setting on a camera and also use of tripods. These things were critical as we were leaving to go to Sarangkot, a high lookout point, first thing the next morning…

At 5am we headed off through the dark and quiet streets of Pokhara for the lookout point at Sarangkot. Walking up the trail to the lookout we were greeted with a few glimpses of some very close snow-capped mountains, the Himalayas. The girls were squealing with delight and any ill effects of the early rise quickly dissipated. We rushed on until we reached our final destination on the roof of a small café. The girls set up the tripods and we all eagerly waited for the first rays of sunlight to appear and land on the white snow of mountains including Annapurna I (8,091m and 10^th highest in the world), Machapuchare (6,993m and famously known as ‘fishtail’), Dhaulagiri (8,167m and 7^th highest in the world) and Manaslu (8,163m and 8^th highest in the world).

Well as anyone who has seen this view will tell you, it is truly breathtaking. Although there was a little cloud blocking some of the mountains we still had some amazing scenes of them as well as the lake and neighbouring hills. The girls went into photo overdrive and their enthusiasm and excitement was contagious. As the sun rose and the air warmed up the clouds moved around revealing different peaks and aspects of the range, presenting even more opportunities for some great shots.

We were back at our guest house by 8:30am, ready for some breakfast and invigorated and wide awake from our morning experience. After breakfast the girls spent some quiet time in the garden writing in their journals. We then spent a fun filled hour playing some crazy team games with them, their energy was limitless!

To be continued…

Visit our facebook page for more photos taken by our director, Sarah Johnstone.

Project Snow Leopard - Part 2

The final two days of Project Snow Leopard (Sunday, 25th and Monday, 26th April) were spent back at Bal Mandir with Linda reviewing all of the girls' images taken from their field trips to Boudha and Bhaktapur. Linda shortlisted the best shots for each girl and then reviewed them one-by-one to allow all of the students to gain as much feedback as possible. It was amazing to see the improvements from all of the girls in such a short time - there are some real budding young photographers in the group! Bec brought a photo printer on the final day so each girl was allowed to select their favourite two photos to be printed so they could keep them.


We conducted a quick feedback session with the girls in which they had to let us know the things they enjoyed form the project, the things they would like done differently, and the places they would most like to visit for phase 2 of the project in October. Pokhara was a popular choice here so we will have to see what can be arranged along those lines...

All the photos taken by each girl have been put onto an external hard disk so that they can look at them on computer whenever they want to. Also, Chetana will be visiting Bal Mandir once a month with the cameras to allow the girls to continue to develop the skills they have been taught. All of this will help them as they work towards the next stage of the project when Linda returns in October.


It has been a pleasure to watch these girls develop a new skill but it has also been inspiring to watch their confidence and self esteem grow as they begin to realise their own abilities and the potential each of them hold inside. We look forward to more of this come October.

Enormous thanks must of course go to Linda for her time and dedication to this project. The results so far are testament to her hard work and commitment.


We will be showcasing some of the photos from the girls and the girls' profiles on our website soon so watch this space...

Project Snow Leopard - Part 1

We have just completed the most amazing 5 days with Linda Jocelyn and the start of Project Snow Leopard. The project started last week when 10 girls from the orphanage at Bal Mandir were selected. Each girl had submitted an application to join the project that included answers to questions such as what they wanted to do with their lives, why they wanted to learn photography, what did they believe would make a better future for Nepal etc. The quality of their answers suggested we had found a great group of girls to start this journey.

The first workshop with Linda was last Wednesday, 21st April and involved a basic introduction to the use of the cameras as well as some theory on some of the basics of photography including use of light, composition, rule of thirds etc. A quote from Linda on Day 1 is below:


Today I started teaching and it was wonderful. We started at 11am and talked about photography and what outputs there were from photography and I showed them some picture books of Australia and some slide shows to music. Then we handed out the cameras. Well...only about three of the girls had ever used a camera before but within no more than 15 minutes they had figured them out!

We then let them loose around the orphanage for about an hour taking photos before having lunch. After lunch it was time for some serious theory for about an hour on light and composition and the mechanics of how a camera works. 

On Thursday (22nd April) in addition to reviewing the photos from the day before, we took the girls on their first field trip to Boudha. By now they were growing in confidence and some amazing shots and ideas for shots were being developed. We were all looking forward to seeing the results that night!

Friday was a rest day and then on Saturday, 24th April we headed off early in the morning for the old town of Bhaktapur. This town is a major tourist attraction in Nepal for foreigners and locals alike as it has retained a strong sense of traditional culture which flows through all aspects of daily life. After some much needed breakfast a few hours of walking and photo taking ensued and as Linda's comments attest, the girls were really getting into the swing of things by now:

One of the especially amusing things was the girls asking tourists if they could take their photos. It was interesting watching their reactions, some thought it was a hoot and one woman looked totally flummoxed but then relaxed and got into the spirit of it. It was good seeing the tables turned as the tourists take all these photos rarely asking permission and this time it was the kids taking their photos!

It was also interesting seeing the reaction of the locals when the girls asked if they could take their photos. Mostly there were huge grins but the girls' confidence was growing such that when they got a knockback they bounced back and asked someone else.

Stay tuned for the summary of the last two days of what has been an exciting and fun-filled new project!

New Project starting in April - need cameras!

During our last trip to Kathmandu in November we were joined for a week by our friend and amateur photographer, Linda Jocelyn. We had been discussing with Linda for some time the idea of running a program to teach photography to some of the teenage girls we support, the idea being that the program would give the girls a useful skill as well as teaching them about creativity, self-expression and interpretation of the environment around them.

In November Linda spent some time familiarising herself with Nepal and its quirks as well as meeting some of the girls from the orphanage at Bal Mandir. It is from here that we will be selecting around 10 girls to take part in the project which will be run over the next 2 years. You can read more about the project at our website.

Linda has committed to 3 to 4 trips to Nepal in the next 2 years, the first coming in April this year and as a result, Project Snow Leopard has been born! In April Linda will be meeting the girls and the first workshops on photography basics will take place. This first stage of the program will be run over 5 days and will include some field trips for the girls to have a chance to explore some of the more popular destinations in their country.

Having done photo essay exchanges before with kids from the Model School and schools in Australia, I am really looking forward to seeing what the girls come up with as a child's view on things is often quite different to ours. We will be asking the girls to keep a journal of their work including explanations and background to why they took certain shots. It promises to be an exciting journey for everyone involved!

By the end of the project we aim to have collected sufficient photos to compile a coffee table book which will be a wonderful memento of the project for the girls and will be a useful fundraising tool for Mitrataa.

How YOU Can Help...

In the lead up to the project we need to collect 12 'point and click' digital cameras for the girls to use. If anyone has an old digital camera they could spare please get in touch. Of course as always, financial contributions will also help with purchasing memory cards, batteries, notebooks etc.

To set the scene for the project we will be holding a photo exhibition in Sydney in mid-April. Linda will be showing a range of shots from her first trip to Kathmandu, providing a wonderful insight into the people and daily life of Nepal. Larger prints will be available to purchase through a silent auction and we will also be providing smaller and postcard-size prints to purchase too, with all funds going to this and Mitrataa's other work in Nepal. Stay tuned for updates on when/where this will happen...

Our sincere thanks goes to Linda for the dedication and commitment she has shown to this fantastic new initiative!