Meet the photographers : Female photojournalist award

Brenda Ann Kenneally

A grant gives you the finances, of course, but it also gives you that pat on the back, that nurturing that you need to realize that people are actually getting your work.

Speaking of Troy: In these situations, there is always a lot of action but not a lot of movement.

The people I photograph: They did not mind if these pictures portraying them were exhibited in New York or in Paris but it was completely different if they were exhibited right across the street. There is a lot of gossip in these communities and people do not see their own lives as other people might. It is interesting to see what people care about in a picture. You would see a picture of poverty while they would see it on a more personal level.

Justyna Mielnikiewicz

Thanks to this grant I will finally be able to finish my work and bring to light the missing elements.

In news, you go where they send you, in documentary you go to places of your choosing because you believe that an issue is important.

My photographic work is a journey to personally understand what a situation is about. And it is extremely complex with endless layers of understanding that overlap.