Video of Presentation at CCC

This is a portion of the Shutterbug's presentation last night at the Cheltenham Camera Club. You can really tell a lot about how amazing they are by how well they speak about photography. Great job Shutterbugs! I am so proud of you!

Shutterbugs present at Cheltenham Camera Club

The Shutterbugs presented themselves and their work last night to members of the Cheltenham Camera Club (CCC), who have been ardent supporters of our project. The students got to talk about their work and answered questions by the CCC members. Many thanks to the club and it's members for inviting us  and donating over $100, as well as hundreds of $$$ worth of photo supplies and equipment last night!

Joselyn talks about her photos

Franchesca talks about the Colombia trip last summer and why she enjoys photography

The Shutterbugs and some Cheltenham Camera Club members

Shutterbugs and PWB get $2000 Grant!

Shutterbug Familia out in Full Force poses with big check and Tom Kaiden from Phila. Cultural Alliance

Photography Without Borders (PWB), which runs the Stetson Shutterbug program in Philly as well as projects in Colombia, has received a $2000 Project Stream grant from the PA Council for the Arts, Phila. Cultural Alliance and PECO! This money will go a long way in helping support our programs next year, specifically by helping bring students from La Florida, Colombia, to Philly next summer as part 2 of our cultural exchange. Click here to check out more photos from the check ceremony.

Nature Is Beautiful By: Jashira

I took this picture when I was running in a park near my house. I honestly don't know why I picked this tree but it just caught my attention. I loved how the the tree was so tall and didn't have many leaves. It was one of the only tress that didn't have even one green leaf! I think that is why I took this picture. :)

Flowers by Stephanie Vidal

I took this picture because I love these flowers and colors. Fellow Shutterbug Ivelisse was so interested in the flowers, so I decided to take pictures of them. I focused the camera on the flowers so the gate and the background ended up blurry. Also, I set up at the perfect angle to take this picture through the fence. 

The Gate by Ivelisse

In this picture I was trying to focus the camera on the girl but I messed up and focused on the gate instead. This accident turned out pretty good I think!  I like how the background looks nice but kind of blurry.

God is Happy By Jonathan Gonzalez

I named this picture God is Happy because when I saw the sky and it seemed likely that god was like the sun and smiling at everyone, like everyone did something good in the world.

Reflections and Confusion By: Christopher

I named this photo reflections and confusion because of the way this photo was taken. It has reflections of everything in the street and the building, and I named it confusion also because it confuses the person looking at the photo because of the reflections.  

Angel Sent Away By: Rashawn

The reason why I picked this picture to be on the blog is because it brings me special memories. To start off, it reminds me about all the people in my family who are in heaven. Also, because it reminds me of Colombia and how everyone was together. Everyone was a family even though we were two groups, as time passed we became one. Finally, it reminds me of all the times everyone ate together in Colombia and and how everyone shed tears when we said goodbye.  Until this day I look back and wish I was still there.

Flowers in Colombia By: Jashira :)

                                                                                           

I took this picture because one thing  I love from Colombia other than the people are the flowers. I took this picture when the Shutterbugs and the Flormorado were walking around to see more of Colombia. around this pink flower was a whole bunch of different colored flowers like pink, purple, yellow, and even blue but since my favorite color is pink this flower caught my attention the most.  Also while I was in Colombia Mr.Rocco told us that Colombia is known for their flowers. 

Alone By: Christopher Javier

Alone, is what this lonely bird is. I decided to take the picture because of the way the photo looks and the way it was taken. I also took it because of the only bird that was on the wire that's why I called the picture ''alone''. This picture in the intersection of B and Allegheny.  
   

Sign-ing In by Janommys Bodden

This picture I took in Colombia, although it was a coincidence, actually turned out how I wanted.  I was walking and happened to notice this sign on the floor.  At first I just wanted a picture of the sign and then had the idea of letting someone walk by it again so I could get my point of view and felt as if the left side was empty so I waited. This turned out to be a great picture just because of the irony of the sign.

Mornings in Colombia by Joselyn

This morning in Colombia was interesting because it was a foggy light day and Franchesca was in the middle of the view and I thought it would be interesting to take a shot of her enjoying herself. This was day 4 and we were scared to be up in the mountains.

JOSELYN'S FIRST COLOMBIA PICTURES

This picture means a lot to me because it's not every day you get to go to Colombia and I am very thankful that I got to go. I am thankful to Mr. Rocco for taking me because without Mr. Rocco we wouldn't be known as the Stetson Shutterbugs. This picture means a lot to me because this flower was given to me by Eric in Colombia. This flower is the definition of beauty because the color is so unique for a flower, tell me one day you've been strolling down the street and found a flower like this one and thats why it's unique in all the ways possible.

Train man BY Jonathan Gonzalez

This picture was taken while we were walking from Stetson to the Feria del Barrio last week. I took this picture because I saw a man walking down the tracks and we didn't know what he was doing down there but it seemed like he had a bag so I was thinking that it looked nice with the trees looking different colors. 

Foggy day in Colombia By: Jashira :)

I took this picture when we were walking back from having a fun day with the kids from La Florida. We walked to the river and we took so many pictures. When we walked back I was scared because it got really foggy and I looked close enough to see a tree in the distance. I really love how it looks like compared to the tree that has color.

Sunny Moments In Colombia ^__^

I  love this picture  (the first one)because the whole day before we left to Mr.Rocco's  aunt's house
it was rainy and foggy and it felt all sticky and i was getting mad and frustrated because their wasn't enough light  to take the  types of pictures I wanted to and then finally after sitting outside for hours
waiting to catch some sun  it finally came and it made my day ^__^



The reason why i chose the second picture
is because   all of the different colors  & different textures
in the picture really caught my eye & it's also the biggest reason  why i took this picture


~
Franchesca Robles

Rashawn Jamming in Bogota

Here is an entertaining clip of Shutterbug Rashawn jamming to a street musician playing the harmonica at the famous Mercado de las Pulgas (Flea Market) in Bogota.

Musical Interlude in Bogota

This is a video clip of a beautiful classical musical interlude in Bogota during our bike tour there this summer. It amazes me how captivated the kids were by the music.

History of Bogota Video

This is a very informative video clip of Mike and Miguel from Bogota Bike Tours talking about the history of Bogota (wait for translation). Thanks so much to Mike for giving a free tour to all our kids!

Pinky's Thoughts on our Colombia Trip

Everyone has been asking about the trip and what the experience was like for these North Philly kids to spend 10 days in Colombia. Well, here is a short video clip of Shutterbug Franchesca summing it up much better than I ever could.

Villa del Leyva

Both Grupo Flormorado and the Shutterbugs got to enjoy three incredible days in the historic colonial town of Villa del Leyva. The town was founded in 1572 and is famous in Colombia for its architecture and connections to the past, much in the same way as the Old City section is known in Philadelphia. In order to accommodate our group of 40 (yes 40!) we needed to charter a tour bus and we all stayed with my gracious aunt Jenny, who owns a house in the town. Not everyone fit inside so we brought along tents and some camped on the grounds in front of the house. One of the highlights of our time here was going horseback riding which was the first time most of my students have ridden one.

The whole gang in front of titi Jenny's house including our Colombia mascot Lucas!

Rashawn in the plaza of Villa del Leyva

Janet and her daughter Jashira on their horses

Lina and Thea mount up!

Hanging out in the main square

Welcome to La Florida!

For three days the students from Grupos Flormorado played hosts to the Shutterbugs in their town of La Florida, located about 90 minutes west of Bogota. These city kids got a chance to bond with their Colombian counterparts and got an appreciation of what it is like to live in a small farming village in Colombia. Check out the videos and photos below from the kid's time together in La Florida. The first video is of Tatiana, Maria Jose, Johan and Jhon Stiven from Flormorado performing a traditional Colombian dance to welcome the Shutterbugs. The second is of the kids being kids and beating the heat by jumping in a nearby stream.

Janommys (above) and Francheska love animals

Both groups of students pose for a photo at a welcome reception thrown for the Shutterbugs in the town meeting hall

Tatiana and Maria Jose all dolled up for their dance presentation

Miguel with his mom Luz Mary at their food stand in La Florida

Nidia holding a dead snake the students found on a walk around La Florida

Johan outside La Florida

Lina and Thea, Mother and daughter Photogs!

Erik playing with a neighbor's goat

Shutterbugs Meet Partners / Exhibit Opening!

Catherine greets her public and signs postcards

The Shutterbugs met their partners from Grupo Flormorado today and they all enjoyed a wonderful two hour bike tour of historic Bogotá courtesy of Mike from Bogotá Bike Tours. Then after having lunch we went to the opening of our exhibit, Asi Soy Yo, where the students were greeted by many supporters, including famous Colombian sculptor Gabriel Beltrán.

Touchdown in Colombia!

Shutterbugs near our hotel in Bogotá

Posing with a Mime in downtown Bogotá

Museo del Oro in Bogotá

Janet taking photos at the famous Museo del Oro in Bogotá

Hanging our show in Bogotá

Our first day in Colombia was an exciting one as the Shutterbugs adjusted to a different culture.  The highlights of the day were visiting the world famous Museo del Oro (Gold Museum) and hanging our exhibition, Asi Soy Yo, which opens Sat. night.

Leaving Philly

Rashawn with Mom

Today we started our long awaited trip to Colombia. We all got together at 4AM in front of Stetson where WOO WOO Transportation (thanks Marcus!) took us to the airport for our 6AM flight.

ASI SOY YO Exhibition on June 23 in Bogotá!

As we get ready to hop on the plane to Colombia we are excited to announce our first exhibition in Colombia, ASI SOY YO, which will take place on Sat. June 23rd. The Shutterbugs will be exhibiting their work alongside their partners in Grupo Flormorado. In addition I will also be showing work along with fellow instructor Camilo Arango and renowned Colombian sculptor Gabriel Beltrán. The Shutterbugs are excited to be having their first international show! Check back for more info. on this historic event!

Shutterbugs Show!!!!

The Shutterbugs had an amazing opening last week with tons of visitors and many prints and postcards sold! (with the proceeds going to help pay for their trip to Colombia with me next month).  If you missed it you still have time to catch them this Sunday, May 20th, from 2-5 at their panel discussion and at their closing on Saturday, May 26, from 2-5PM.

Shutterbugs/Colombia Exhibit Preview at Fairmount Arts Crawl

Shutterbugs Franchesca Robles and Jonathan Gonzalez at the 

This past Sunday the Shutterbugs had a preview of their new exhibition "Who We Are / Quienes Somos" at the Light Room Gallery as part of the Fairmount Arts Crawl. Don't worry if you didn't make it, the big opening reception is Friday, May 11 from 5-8PM! Go here for more info.

Boathouse Fundraiser!

Shutterbugs all dressed up!

Shutterbugs and Lightroom members along with Steven Berkowitz.

Steven Berkowitz gets his award from Light Room co-president Al Wachlin, Jr.

Trio Crisol ROCKS!

We had a great turnout at the Fairmount Boathouse.

Thanks to Terri from the London Grill for the awesome food!!!

The Shutterbugs and the Light Room had an incredibly successful fundraiser last Saturday at the Fairmount Boathouse.  Everyone had a great time checking out the Shutterbugs, eating awesome food from the London Grill, and grooving to the amazing music of Trio Crisiol. The highlight of the night was the honoring of Steven Berkowitz, who has inspired and taught generations of photographers in Philadelphia, including Shutterbug teacher Tony Rocco.