It seemed like a misguided
idea: teaching photography to students with severe visual impairments.
Indeed, author and educator Tony Deifell had a hard time convincing
the Morehead School for the Blind to try the photo project. At
first they thought his idea was a prank. Then when he started teaching
the class, only three students signed up. One blind student even
asked, “What are you thinking, teaching photography to blind
students?”
Whatever he was thinking,
it was right on track. The photo class became very popular and
turned into an empowering experience for the students. They learned
organizational skills while planning photo shoots. Team projects
taught them to collaborate and communicate. They explored new places,
met new people and gathered new experiences in their search for
a great shot. During one photography class, a student said, “We
can show other people that there is more to being blind or visually
impaired than you think. We can do more than what you think we
can do.”
The resulting book,
according to publisher Chronicle Books, is being used as an educational
tool, helping the general population have a better understanding
of those with vision challenges. “Seeing
Beyond Sight is a rare book of visual art and an educational resource
that speaks with inspirational power, not only the visually impaired
community, but to anyone who has ever considered what it means to
see.” (www.chroniclebooks.com).
Deifell wasn’t sure how to teach the subject. He started by
giving his students technical tips like, “Hold the camera level.” He
soon discovered the teens’ greatest challenge was deciding
where to point the camera. The young photographers felt around, asked
logistical questions, and listened intently for subjects. To Deifell’s
surprise, the students took their best pictures when they ignored
his technical instructions and just took a shot that they really
wanted.
One girl named Leuwynda
took pictures of cracks in the school sidewalk. She then sent the
photos to the school superintendent with a letter explaining her
concerns, “Since you are sighted, you may not
notice these cracks. They are a big problem since my white cane gets
stuck.” Leuwynda’s request was granted; the sidewalk
cracks were fixed.
Deifell followed up with some students ten years after the class
ended. He found Luewynda, despite her impaired vision and cerebral
palsy, living in her own apartment and working at a grocery store.
The book has drawn positive
reviews in a variety of places. Blind author Kathy Knox read the
text while sighted people described the pictures to her. “Overwhelmingly, [my readers] were impressed
by the images and the words of the student photographers,” says
Knox. A New York Times reviewer raved, “You see feelings in
ways that you can’t with sighted photographers.” A Minneapolis
artist said the blind students get us “looking at the world
in a different way.”
Deifell, observing that
the project has empowered the participants, said, “The students are excited to be published … feeling
like they are heard and seen by the world.” One reader, Della
Baldwin of Lake Forest, Ill., observed that the pictures are beautiful,
and they show the students “as real people like you and me.” Baldwin,
who worked for years in special education for visually impaired students,
notes, “We relate to each photographer as a person, not a handicap
person.”
Ironically, the book
itself has a few accessibility issues. “Not
every picture has a caption,” says Knox, “but all of
them should—for this is where we see the students beyond themselves.”
“To Deifell’s surprise,
the students took their best pictures when they ignored
his technical instructions and just took a shot that they
really wanted.”
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Deifell
relates that the blind students often labeled their pictures with
Braille, which helped them to show off their photos. Printing in
Braille or using bigger and darker type would make the book more
accessible to the visually challenged reader. For example, Dee
Dee Witt, a PCA from Maple Lake, Minn., enjoyed the pictures. However,
she couldn’t read the small print, because she has dyslexia
and impaired vision. Perhaps including an editor who is visually
impaired could have been beneficial.
Good news: Deifell and are Bookshare.org creating an accessible
version of the book for the visually impaired audience, including
descriptions of the photos.
The Seeing Beyond Sight
project sends an inspiring message to the disability community;
our hopes and dreams can be realized. ![]()
For more info: www.seeingbeyondsight.org,
www.chroniclebooks.com,
www.benetech.com. For an accessible version of the book, go to www.bookshare.org/web/SingleTitle.html?
submittitleid=43362
