A Vision Without A Sight
photographers?
Bhavesh: Try to show the world the reality. What
I mean by this is not behind the scenes, but in front
of the scenes. There are lots of issues like gender,
poverty etc. and try to make photography a part of it.
Be honest to the world and most importantly to your
photography. And if you feel like lacking behind, don’t
worry there are many people already helping others.
Just get on with it and help yourself first.
Bhavesh is currently working with an IT firm and
takes a great sense of pride for his exceptional talent.
Photographs taken by Bhavesh and other blind
photographers from India have been appreciated and
featured on BBC to motivate the world. He is truly an
inspiring personality and we wish him all the best in his
future endeavours.Blind With Camera is a core project
of the Beyond Sight Foundation, non-profit organisation
based in Mumbai. The foundation aims to promote
participation of people with visual impairment in art &
cultural practices in line with the Article 30 of the UN
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
(UNCRPD). Blind With Camera project is the first of its
kind in India. The Beyond Sight Foundation is founded
by Partho Bhowmick, a working IT professional,
photographer, curator, speaker, writer and advocator
of Disability Art culture.We also got in talks with him
regarding the on going projects of Blind With Camera
and how has it all worked out for him till now.
Barkha: What was your vision behind starting Blind
with camera?
Partho: Social and cultural inclusion of people with
visually impairment through “clicking” and “access”
of photographs. Pictures coming out from Blind With
Camera is used for advocating equal rights for the
visually impaired, helping to empower them, providing
them earning opportunities and facilitating their
social-cultural inclusion, demystifying the polarity
between blindness and visual expression, helping to
sensitize people, spreading awareness and correcting
public perception of visual impairment and disability
in general.
Barkha: How does Blind with camera help the visually
impaired photographers? What are the projects/
activities you’re involved in?
Partho: To replicate Blind With Camera across
the world, we launched world’s first e-school of
photography in 2010 for the visually impaired (www.
blindwithcameraschool.org)
giving
step-by-step
guidance to them and training material for sighted
photographers to become trainers. Our exhibition,
Work of Blind With Camera was displayed in Liverpool
(UK), Delhi, Kolkata, Goa and many more places.Two
books were also published on Blind With Camera,
namely, “See As No Other” published by Penguin
Random House and “In Touch With Pictures” a multi-
sensory photo book, published by the Beyond Sight
Foundation. Our project also received some awards
such as “Karamveer Puraskar” in 2009, “Manthan
Award: South Asia & Asia Pacific on Digital Inclusion”
in 2014.
Barkha: Is there a special technology you’re
using to make photography possible for the
blind?
Partho: There is no special camera for blind, we
use normal cameras and some high end mobile
phone which has voice over to guide while taking
pictures. The most common is “Seeing With
Sound” technology and some other technologies
are also there. You can check them on our website.
We use adaptive technologies in making pictures
accessible to the blind, we use a combination of
raised / embossed touch & feel pictures, audio
description of pictures, large prints (18 points &
above). And for more info, you can always contact us
through our website, blindwithcamera.org.
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