Lensational & challenging photographic representation

About

Lensational is one of those organisations you come across so rarely - with enormous untapped potential for both impact and financial sustainability. Lensational's basic photographic training, using recycled cameras, gives a voice to women in underrepresented groups, allowing them a voice, an expression, and a place in the debate.

With an existing relationship with Getty and various corporate partners, the organisation hopes to correct the disturbing misrepresentation in stock photography - where nearly 90% of inventory comes from Europe and US, even when depicting a reality further afield. Lack of diversity in photographic representation cuts across gender, geography and social strata, in one of the perhaps last remaining storytelling frontiers yet to be questioned and shaken up. 

Lensational has the potential to correct that imbalance and become a major player in the provision of photography to media, agencies, development organisations and brands. In this case, ethically sourced photography could mean not only economic inclusion, with thousands of new photographer entrepreneurs created on the ground, but a window into new realities as told by a hugely diversified army of storytellers.