Help-Portrait Shares Stories of Hope

By Cara Davis | October 26, 2011 at 8:47 am

On Dec. 10, photographers around the world will come together for the third annual Help-Portrait event.

Celebrity photographer Jeremy Cowart created the movement with a simple premise: Find someone in need, take their portrait, print it and deliver it to them. Help-Portrait is open to anyone who wouldn’t otherwise have access to professional photos.

To date, more than 100,000 portraits have been given in 54 countries. And until now, those photos and the stories behind them have been kept under wraps. This year, for the first time, subjects have the option of sharing their stories and photos online.

“We’ve seen in years past that many people WANT to tell their story and share their photos,” Cowart said. “For the first time, they’ve seen themselves in a new light. They’re proud and WANT to let the world know how far they’ve come. We want to allow them to do that!”

Cowart conducted a preliminary Help-Portrait event this past Sunday on Skid Row, where he printed an extra photo for each participant so they could write their stories on their photos (see photo gallery below). “I told them to write anything. Literally anything,” Cowart said. “Whatever the day meant to them, or whatever they wanted to say to the world or about themselves. This was their chance to speak their minds.”

Cowart was pleased with the results and feels sharing these stories will allow the movement to grow even wider. “It made it very clear that this year is going to be more special than ever.”