KATHMANDU, August 27: The human body is a camera as the eye serves a lens, capturing moments that the mind then processes into memories and blinking eyelashes function like a shutter speed, controlling the exposure to light. Veteran photojournalists and seasoned photographers from different genres of photography have redefined photography, highlighting new dimensions and the power of photography at the MediaTalk series-xxxv, hosted by the Faculty of Journalism, DoMA, St Xavier’s College, Maitighar. Photography for them is an island of an ocean of writing, a space where they find and embrace their passion.

In celebration of the World Photography Day-2024, the college invited senior photojournalist Ram Prasad Humagai who heads the Photography and Art Department at Gorkhapatra Sansthan, documentary photographer Kishor Sharma, and journalist and photographer, Tulsi Rauniyar to discuss the theme “The Power of Photography” and explored avenues for the aspiring communicators and journalists.

During the event, Dr Augustine Thomas, S.J. The Principal of the College and Ashma KC, Miss Nepal World-2024 and the college alumna jointly unveiled The First Frame (link below) photobook, a project of Journalism students’ batch-2023.

“St. Xavier’s College is committed to the holistic formation of its students, and when this is achieved through photography their multiple intelligences, the result can be mesmerizing”, said Dr Augustine Thomas, S.J. the Principal of the college. He added, “On this World Photography Day, we recognize the transformative power of photography for students. The photo booklet we released today clearly shows that when given opportunities and effective mentoring, young minds can truly surprise us.”

“I refer to a paper from the American Psychological Association, which confirmed that people who take photos enjoy life more than those who do not, said Chun Bahadur Gurung, the Faculty Lead of Journalism and Mass Communication. He also highlighted that photography goes beyond capturing images and recording data, as it also contributes to human psychology and supports scientific communication. Gurung added, “The First Frame, a photobook, is the result of the hard work of the Journalism students from the batch of 2023. The college continues to adopt hands-on learning approaches that meet international standards.”