Working the Wire

Really enjoyed having my grandmother spend the holiday with my family this year. It’s rare that she’ll let me photograph her, but was able to make this portrait as she was lighting the candles to start the holiday.

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The MLK Memorial opened today (officially will be dedicated this Sunday), and as I’ve been photographing there since practically the beginning of the project, I’d been looking forward to seeing the finished product and the reaction of the public. Many people seemed truly touched by the memorial, lots of quiet tears, and happy family photos. Seems like something America really needed. And a nice addition to our National Mall landscape. Here’s a few of my favorites from today…

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin
AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin
AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

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2010 has been a year full of variety, from my trip to India in January, DC’s epic snowmagedon, the Tea Party Revolution, a variety of political rallies, and recent forays into sports and political coverage.

I am happy to announce that I am now an official member of the AP’s Washington DC Bureau, after working covering the metro area for the last four years. This will mean more political coverage, professional sports, and more time on Capitol Hill. I’m excited for the challenges ahead and looking forward to further growth.

In the spirit of looking back to look ahead, here is a selection of my favorite images that I made in 2010. Thank you for looking.

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In the spirit of family and Thanksgiving I wanted to share this photo from a recent trip to Mexico to visit my cousins and the newest member (and first new baby) of our extended family, Valeria. With another child on the way I was dying to make some portraits of my beautiful cousin Vivian and her daughter.

Happy Thanksgiving to all! Make some photos of family this season.

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Picking a few pictures to enter in WPOW‘s annual exhibition made me nostalgic for the trip to India I did in January. Here are a few pictures to share from the experience. You can read a bit about the trip in Momenta Workshop’s latest newsletter in which some of my work from India was featured.

Photo Copyright Jacquelyn Martin

Photo Copyright Jacquelyn Martin

Photo Copyright Jacquelyn Martin

Photo Copyright Jacquelyn Martin

Photo Copyright Jacquelyn Martin

Photo Copyright Jacquelyn Martin

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AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

It was wonderful to photograph this mass baptism that takes place annually in DC, and to be welcomed by the attendees. Between the mass baptism and the Glenn Beck rally the previous day I felt like I was back living in the South again. It’s been a very eventful summer but now that it’s fall again I hope catch up on the blog.

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I’m very excited that one of my National Spelling Bee photos from today was chosen for the NYTimes’ LENS blog Pictures of the Day. Excellent! It’s the last photo in the slidshow:

http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/03/pictures-231/

I’ll upload some Bee photos after tomorrow’s final.

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Photographed at DC’s immigration reform rally today. Here are a few of my favorites.

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

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After drying myself off from the snowpocalypse I am finally ready to post about my amazing trip to India in January of 2010.

I was documenting non-profits and working on my long term storytelling skills, something I don’t get too much practice with all the daily assignments in my job.

Wonderfully I was able to produce a story that we ran on the wire, and was also asked to write an article, and produce an audio slideshow.

I was thrilled to be able to come back with so much work to show from my short time in India – a country I cannot say enough about where  the people are just so warm and welcoming. The people I met really touched my heart and soul and were a privilege to spend time with.

Most so were the girls in my story from the Akhil Bharatiya Mahila Ashram.

See the audio slideshow  To Stand On Their Own: Indian Girls Ashram

I just fell in love with these 50 girls from all over India who get an education (that otherwise often ends after primary school) at the Ashram thanks to donations. There they are taught to be strong and independent – just what my mother taught me. Girls age 9-18 live at the ashram, in Dehradun, India, where they do everything themselves; clean, cook, serve each other, pray together, study, braid each other’s hair, and care for each other. Polite, friendly, inquisitive, bright, I can’t say enough about these girls.

There’s not a man in sight and it’s just the happiest simplest place that I think I’ve been to.

If you go to India please bring small presents to give. There is a real culture of hospitality and when I left the ashram every appendage available – including my ears – were draped with gifts from the girls. I have two bracelets, two rings, a necklace, earings (put in by the girls on the spot!),  a lovely shawl, and mostly a warm place in my heart for this special place.

Special thanks to all the girls at the Akhil Bharatiya Mahila Ashram, and to Mary Calvert and Jamie Rose with Momenta Workshops, Abhay Gupta, Manoj Sharma, the wonderful Madhvi Mittal, Melanie, Alpana Mukherjee with ADOPT ( a non-profit that provides rural women with private toilets and biogas cooking units, greatly reducing their home work load), and Mrs. and Mrs. Swamy with the Purkal Stree Shakti (where women’s cooperatives make the coolest quilts that you can buy on their website).

I hope the photos I made help the ashram in some way. Here’s a few to share:

All Photos copyright Jacquelyn Martin/Associated Press May not be reproduced without permission.

I’m thrilled to see that the story has gotten some really special play:

AP Audio Slideshow

Link to the article and still pictures

Photos in the Washington Times’ site

And some really cool play in Stars and Stripes (just wait for the commercial to stop loading about 5 seconds)

I miss you, India, I hope to be back soon.

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