CHEERLEADING
For this idea, I am interested in looking a the misconceptions of what cheerleading is and how it is no longer just sideline but a disciplined and competitive sport. I would be interested in following a team on their journey to a competition in order to document the hard work that goes into it. I would interview members of the team about their cheerleading journey, any challenges that they have faced and why they participate in the sport. I would also interview coaches about the time and energy that goes into the sport and all the behind the scenes action that you don’t see in competitions. It would also be a bonus to speak to a cheerleading association about the competitions they hold, why they are so important to promote cheerleading as a sport. In terms of photography, I would create almost a timeline of the journey that they go through. It would start at training sessions to document everything that goes into perfecting the routine, and finishing at competition with all the glitz and glamour, and the awards ceremony.
LONELINESS IN OLD PEOPLE
For this project idea, I would document the lives of elderly people who are living alone or in care homes, speaking to them about their experiences. I would speak to people who maybe don’t have any family left about how they feel in their old age and the things that could be done to improve their lives. I would interview people who work in the care homes/with the elderly about what it is like to see people living like this and how they try to help them. The photography would depict the loneliness they feel, possibly using black and white photographs to add more emotion to the images.
STUDENT FOOD BANKS
It has become a huge problem in Leeds that a lot of students are now relying on food banks. The universities have set up food banks so that struggling students have access to free food so that they can survive while at uni. I would be interested in interviewing the people who have set up the food banks to find out why they did it and how they came to realise that there is an issue with students being able to afford to eat. I would also interview students who are now relying on the food banks about why they are struggling so much and what can be done to help them get back on track. Photography would include images of the food banks and people using them to show just the types of necessities that students are now needing to access for free.
Photo Journalism 