Photography is Jamie Russell’s, a resident of Cheektowaga and 2010 graduate of JFK High School, passion.

“It’s what drives me to wake up in the morning, it is indispensible as oxygen. With camera in hand, I have a voice that could not be heard otherwise. Photographs are unsurpassed in their ability to convey almost any school of thought possible. Better than both written and spoken word, a photograph is an undeniable visual representation of reality,” Russell wrote in her essay to Sigma Corporation of America.

Sigma Corporation of America, a camera company, recently held a contest for high school photographers across the country. Contestants were asked to send five photographs that they had taken and write an essay to describe their creative process. Online voting determined the top three choices and judges then picked from those top three to win a $5,000 cash prize and a $1,000 gift card to be used toward Sigma products.
Russell entered the contest and was fortunate enough to have been in the top 10 for the entire running. At the completion, she came in second place with the most votes; however, the judges selected her to win the entire contest.

Her topic was poverty. Her five submitted photographs included a broken television outside of the Buffalo Central Terminal 9BCT), her favorite spot to shoot, signifying how both things in their heyday as huge advancements, but were then left behind; a dilapidated room containing a sleeping bag in the BCT; a hole in the wall with a ratty shirt hanging on a wire in a small room in the BCT; and a homeless man named Bryan who she met outside of the Buffalo City Mission.

In her freshman year of high school, Russell began playing around with her camera. With each click came a progression of unforeseen passion. At first Russell wanted to be in the wedding photography business, but than one picture by Todd Maisel of a hand from Sept. 11, 2001, changed that. Russell then began focusing on the ever-present, but hardly touched topic of poverty.
“Poverty is so prominent everywhere and everyone can relate to it,” said Russell. “Photographs of poverty can be used to show people what they tend to disregard because people don’t want to see the bad things. If they are exposed to it they realize what is going on in the world they live in.”

Sigma’s general manager wrote a note to Russell stating that he was excited to watch her photography career blossom with much interest. When Russell accepted her award at Sigma headquarters in Long Island she received a tour of the facilities, met with Sigma’s top executives and worked with one of their photographers.

Russell plans on majoring in photography with a minor in journalism this September at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

“I’m hoping to use the cash prize toward the semester at sea program,” said Russell. “I’ll have the opportunity then to capture the world through my lens and establish a bigger portfolio. This would be one of the most beneficial life experiences I will have to be able to capture the essence of other cultures and poverty-ridden cities.”

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