CREATING IMAGERY THAT INSPIRES ACTION
In 2016 I was asked to help Lincoln Initiative and Amplify4Good create a set of social media graphics to support the 2016 Refugee Hackathon being held in Atlanta, GA. My project goal was simple: I needed to create images that inspired people to join the cause. As an editorial photographer who's covered war and tragedy, I knew I needed to source images that captured the desperate plight of a people fleeing violence, persecution, war, and worse. I'd never want my work to be considered exploitative, only beautifully informative.
The imagery I created for the 2016 Refugee Hackathon achieves and exceeds these goals.
Size Matters
A critical concern I had was to ensure that each of these share graphics highlight different information. By doing this, a quick scan of the organization's instagram feed would yield the visitor all the information necessary to join the cause, without having to click on a single image. This is a valuable tactic I regularly employ in branding ad campaigns for candidates, causes, and other clients.
Bold Colors
I love using bold and bright colors in contrast to darker backgrounds. It's especially important to create contrast between the imagery and overlaid typography to ensure that the text can be read at various sizes. Using bright colors for the background also means that the images stand out on a page with dynamic content, such as you might find in the advertising space on Facebook and other social platforms.
Beauty in Tragedy
Refugees are the most vulnerable people on the planet. Through my photography, and my design work, I always aim to beautify even the most hopeless of circumstances. By doing this, we can see the world in a more hopeful light.
