Some Thoughts on National Geographic Live with Ami Vitale!

I'm not sure I can explain to you the overwhelming excitement I felt when I found out that one of my favorite photographers, Ami Vitale was coming to Buffalo! No one ever comes here so it was a huge surprise! There was no way I was missing it, especially since it was at Kleinhans!

Ami gave a talk on Rhinos, Rickshaws, and Revolutions. If you are a fan of National Geographic you may have seen her recent photos of the passing of Sudan. He was the last male of his species, the Northern White Rhino. Ami told us about how she had done a story on Sudan and his daughters were being moved from the Czech Republic to Kenya and that she had grown close to their keepers. Close enough that when Sudan became too old for him to have a good quality of life and his keepers made the hard decision to put him down they had Ami come to Kenya to say good bye. If that doesn't tell you how special a soul Ami is then I'm not sure what will.

Ami dropped everything secure in her life to become a photo journalist so that she could bring stories to the World. She spent a decade covering conflicts that most people have forgotten, such as Kosovo and Cashmir. She made such strong connections there and through her photos brought those connections to the rest of the World. She has the ability to empower and amplify voices of the individuals like no other photographer I have seen.

But at one point, enough was enough, Ami couldn't be around war anymore. She wanted to take a break from everything, but then she was offered to do story about trees. And that opened her up to nature and wildlife conservation photography, which is my favorite. She got to go to China and observe how scientists there choose which babies should stay in captivity and which should be trained to go into the wild! She even had to wear a panda suit. Ami, once again, showed how special she is because of how she photographed one of the Pandas going into the wild for the first time: she donned a special camouflage suit that made her look like a bush while no other journalist thought to take Hope's feelings into account. Ami did and was rewarded by Papa Panda! She got to hold not one but two baby pandas. A dream come true for most people. (Obama only got to hold one if that tells you anything!!)

Ami Vitale and I!

I could go on and on about Ami's talk, (I took a copious amount of notes) which will stay in my heart and mind for a very long time, but I don't want to spoil too much in case one day you are lucky enough to hear her speak as well! I wholly encourage you to try to! And she has a book on her experience with the pandas coming out next month! You can pre-order Panda Love: The Secret Lives of Pandas by Ami Vitale at any of your favorite booksellers!!

Oh and not only was I able to hear her speak about her long and amazing career I was lucky enough to meet her after! I was a bundle of nerves, but I didn't make a fool of myself! In fact, even she agreed that we were kind of sharing a wave length! I couldn't help but mention how my work mirrors hers in a way I didn't realize until hearing her speech! She is frequently in the company of people who live their lives in service of orphaned wildlife, which is what I do in my rehabilitation work. And she told a story about how while at the World's Largest Camel Fair people would take photos of locals without even asking their names or even for something as simple as permission! This hit home with me because of my own photography project on Instagram called The Name of Strangers, where I do just the opposite of those tourists, I purposely go up to strangers and ask them their names, ask them the stories behind their names and ask if I may take their portrait! I was honored that Ami loved the idea and took one of my business cards. Having a World renowned National Geographic Explorer and Photographer think my idea is a good one means so much I cannot even begin to tell you!

The takeaway for me from meeting Ami was about how empathy is the most important thing individuals can use to make the world they want to live in, remembering to see the whole picture and look past the doom and gloom headlines because inevitably there will be something or someone who warms your heart just behind it!  

~Laura!