Unknown Heroes - by Phil Borges

The power of photography to emotionally move and focus society's attention is clearly evident in the work and art of Phil Borges. Phil's latest photographic achievement is now a milestone publication, Women Empowered: Inspiring Change in the Emerging World. It is a testament to this Visionary's sensitivity and craftsmanship as well as visual evidence of the slow and often painful emergence of women's rights in developing cultures. We are proud to share Phil's telling images, his personal thoughts and his heroes in this article.

For Phil's complete bio, be sure to click here. Better yet, you should meet Phil, experience his passion and see his work in person. Click here for Phil's complete calendar of lectures, exhibits and workshops.


For more than 30 years, I have lived with and documented indigenous and tribal cultures around the world. When I first enter a remote village, I’m usually greeted by the children. My photographic equipment gives me the perfect opportunity to interact without having to use words.

Phil on location in Ethiopia
© Jason Sangster

Typically the young boys are the bold ones, wanting to help or hamming it up for the camera. The girls, with few exceptions, are more hesitant and remain at the edge of the group. Over the years I came to accept this difference as normal. I thought this was an inherent quality of “girl-ness” and “boy-ness”, because it was prevalent in so many cultures.

Then I began to realize that these differences are learned as part of a pattern of discrimination against women and girls. While the women’s movement in the West has made great progress, I continue to be shocked by how women’s rights are compromised in the developing world. It occurs in every arena: education, division of household labor, political representation, access to credit, available health care . . . the list goes on.

As an example, in most of the rural communities I visit, girls are responsible for collecting firewood and water – tasks that can take several hours a day. They also help their mothers with the washing, cooking, farming and child care. One reason given for sending boys to school and not girls is that their domestic work is critical to the family’s survival and their time cannot be spared for education.

So, while most women serve as the primary caretakers in the family, they have no chance to learn even basic skills, like reading or math, that would allow them to carry out their roles more effectively. It is common for women to have little or no say in community decisions and to have marginal access to land or other assets.

In 2004, I began documenting CARE’s humanitarian work. The cornerstone of their program to eliminate global poverty is empowering women and girls. After a year and a half visiting dozens of CARE projects and meeting hundreds of participants and staff around the world, I, too, came to believe that the most efficient way to alleviate poverty and reduce population pressures in the developing world is to empower women and girls through education, economic opportunities and open discussions about rights.

I witnessed what’s possible when a woman no longer struggles each day to survive in the face of hunger and disease. I have seen the spark ignite when a woman realizes that she can create lasting change for herself, her children, and her community. When women are free to make the most of their skills and ideas, they create a rising tide that lifts all boats.

Here are a few of the extraordinary women I have met who have broken through a cycle of repression or cultural tradition that limit the well-being of their communities - women heroes, remote and unknown, on the vanguard of a global shift toward gender equality.

Fahima, 39 in Kabul, Afganistan
© Phil Borges
Canon EOS-1DS, 24mm, F/2.5 @ 1/125, ISO 200

Fahima, a teacher since 1985, was one of thousands of professional women who lost their jobs when the Taliban came to power in 1996. In defiance of the Taliban and at great risk to herself, Fahima opened a clandestine school for young girls. At one point, 130 girls were coming to her home each week to study math, science, and the local language, Pushto. When the girls were asked why they were going to Fahima’s house, they said she was their aunt. Although harassed by the religious police and threatened with beatings and worse, Fahima continued operating her school for girls until the fall of the Taliban in 2001.

Abay, 29 in Awash Fontale, Ethiopia
© Phil Borges
Hasselblad 503CW, 80mm, F/11 @ 1/125, Tri-X film rated at 200 ISO

Abay was born into a culture in which girls are circumcised before age 12. When it came time for her circumcision ceremony, Abay said, “No.” Her mother insisted: An uncircumcised woman would be ostracized and could never marry, Abay was told. When her mother’s demands became unbearable, she ran away to live with a sympathetic godfather. Eight years later, Abay returned to her village and began work as a station agent for CARE, supervising the opening of a primary school and a health clinic and the construction of a well. After five years, she finally convinced one of the women to let her film a circumcision ceremony. She showed the film to the male leaders. They had never seen a female circumcision and were horrified. Two weeks later, the male leaders called a special meeting and voted fifteen to two to end female circumcision in their village.

Ahki, 32 in Tangail, Bangladesh
© Phil Borges
Canon EOS-1DS, 24mm, F/2 @ 1/1250, ISO 250

At age 13, before she had even begun menstruating, Akhi was sold into a brothel by her aunt. After working for several years, she became highly depressed and attempted suicide. Her failed attempt brought about an epiphany: Her life could be used to improve the lot of her fellow sex workers. Akhi accomplished the near-impossible task of gaining support from religious, political, and social groups to create an organization to advocate for sex workers’ rights.

Despite being arrested three times, she prevailed and, in 1998, formed the “Nani Mukti Sangha” organization. Since the group commenced, condom use in the brothel has increased from near zero to eighty-six percent, and the number of 12- to 13-year-olds recruited into the brothels has decreased. Today, she continues to fight tenaciously for sex workers’ rights, and is said to have such a forceful personality that even the police are afraid of her.

-- Phil Borges

In Search of Greener Grass by Mark Alberhasky

Mark Alberhasky is not only a Visionary Photographer, but also holds the singular distinction of being our only physician. (Every distinguished group should have its own doctor.) Photographer, author, inventor, and physician, Mark’s passion for all things photographic leads him down uncharted paths all over the globe. Mark is a Nikon mentor for the Mentor Series Worldwide Treks. His award winning photography is distinctive for its graphical strength and bold use of color. By all means, tour Mark's website and experience his eye. And whenever you have a chance to attend a seminar conducted by Mark, sign up. Our thanks to Mark for sharing his unique perspectives and art on Visionary Photographers.


We all know the quote so I won't even waste the space.

I'm also pretty confident that we've all been guilty of searching for something better than what is at hand. From a photographer's perspective, the attraction of greener grass can be especially alluring. "If only I had that 22 megapixel body. My images would really rock."

OK. Reality check. You can make images that rock with a 4 megapixel camera.

Yes, it's true that higher end equipment can make getting great images easier, but the serious hardware for making images is between your ears. (Well sort of, I mean having done lots of autopsies I can tell you that the cerebral hemispheres are closer to soft, but you get the idea).

We usually don't think about the "grass is greener" quote in reference to taking photographs in the field. At least most people don't. Vincent Versace did in his book Welcome to OZ.

"The grass is greener on the other side because it's backlit."

Spoken like a true photographer.

But the idea that a better subject or better lighting may be just down the road is a temptation with a wicked propensity to warp the space time continuum. If you're anything like me it goes like this...

You're driving down the road in photo mode, suddenly intrigued by what appears to be unfolding around you. The light starts to get magical so you begin looking in earnest for a subject worthy of the fleeting moment. Your inability to find the necessary subject manifests itself as increased pressure on the accelerator. "Surely within the next mile I'll find that break in the trees and get the unobstructed view". There is a Nature's Best award winning shot out there! You spend the next 10 minutes in hot pursuit of the unknown, and then realize, "Damn, the light is gone."

It's not always a 10 minute fling down the road. Sometimes the feeling builds for hours, because you know you are in an area of real wonder and you do have some time to invest in finding just the right place to capitalize on good light. But the end result can be the same. You waste so much time looking that you're not making images. Don't get me wrong, it IS worth the time to find the best possible combination of subject and light. But don't fall prey to the search in and of itself. At some point it is important to realize what good photography is all about. A good photographer can look at a scene or subject and because of his experience and expertise, craft a powerful vision from what is at hand. Under conditions that may not be ideal. Even with equipment that may not be optimal for the situation. Anyone can take a great photo when everything falls into their lap. Good photographers "take the lemons and make lemonade".

Recently I had the pleasant fortune of visiting Oregon to teach at a photo event. At the conclusion I made arrangements to stay in the area and explore. One day was spent visiting Crater Lake National Park. I couldn't get there until about 2:00 in the afternoon. Realizing the best light was hours away, I decided to take in the scenery at a leisurely pace and find where I really wanted to be late in the day. It takes quite a while to drive around the rim of the crater and vantage points with good views are scattered, separated by a lot of hillside blocking everything. I was getting a little antsy as the sun began dropping toward the western horizon. Just as the angle of light cast serious shadow into the crater I found my spot and made a satisfying panorama.

Moments later the crater was in shade and over for the day. But there was still a good hour before sundown, and lots of western view with forested landscape that could yield compelling vista. I just needed to get in the car and find it. That's when I heard the siren's call.

"You'll have a better view around the bend, hurry up."

Before I knew it I was a third of the way back around the crater getting into a bad angle for anything productive. Fortunately, I calmed down and decided to head back to where I'd come from, park, and walk around where there was at least some vista to see.

As I was standing there waiting for the sun to drop low enough to backlight clouds, and bring out the good colors, I realized the sun was in my eyes, bothering me. So I stepped into the shadow of the single tall tree in my field of view, and thought, "Hmmm. That's kind of interesting." Since I had my tripod and wasn't rushed I decided to play with HDR (high dynamic range) technique and shoot multiple exposures to deal with the harsh lighting conditions caused by the sun still somewhat high in the sky.

As time was passing I noticed the cloud coverage building and thought backlighting might not be too far off. I happened to shoot another quick HDR sequence with the sun still near the edge of the clouds.

Two minutes later it was completely behind the clouds and everything went flat. I had hopes that as the sun reached the "cloud crack" near the horizon there might be at least one more image. I tried this with a longer lens just before the globe of the sun actually dropped into the narrow space of cloudless sky and became uselessly bright. A totally different feel.

So now the show is pretty much over, and I'm thinking about the 2 hour drive back to my hotel and dinner at 9:30 because I stayed for the end. As I turned to head toward the car, I see the moon over a tall tree silhouetted against the dimming sky. Who knows how many miles away, an airliner was rising into the night, leaving amazing rust colored contrails in a perfect diagonal right across the moon. The camera was still on the tripod. Now that's my idea of a photo finish!

Be critical. Take a judicious amount of time to find and plan your images. But don't become a victim of looking for "greener grass" when there might be great shots right where you are.

I'm reminded of a line I heard from Bob Krist, "Never leave good light, looking for better light."

Spoken like a wise photographer.

-- Mark Alberhasky