Reuben Teo, a Malaysian designer and photographer started a charity project called My First Selfie in 2015 with his wife, Fann Saw. This self-initiative project’s main goal was to provide free portrait photos to the people from poverty-stricken villages and bring smiles through photography.
In rural Cambodia, many villagers does not have the luxury of owning a photograph of themselves. Reuben decided to do something about it and hence the project was born. He and Fann raised funds through friends and the public in order to kickstart this project. The first project (or Chapter 1, as they called it) focused on the children in rural Siem Reap. They managed to provide up to 600 framed photos to 600 children.
In October 2017, My First Selfie embarked on a 2nd trip to Siem Reap to accomplish another mission of spreading love through photography. Thanks to the donations they have received from their amazing and generous contributors, Chapter 2 became a reality and was a huge success. This time round, their focus were mainly portraits of the elderlies and their families.
On top of that, My First Selfie also distributed 300 sets of soaps, toothbrushes and toothpastes, 222 water filters (each useable for 2 years in a household), 2 wheelchairs, 1 bicycle and built 6 wells around areas in real need of fresh water. My First Selfie has also brought thousands of smiles to the community and hopes to continue with the help from everyone.
Don't forget to check out the highlight video at the end of this post.
More info: reubenteo.com
An old man enjoying his 1st portrait photo
An elderly woman with her new framed photos
A women is happy to receive her picture
A happy elderly lady showing us another great smile after receiving her first portrait photo
An elderly lady loving her portrait photo
First batch of framed photos are ready to be distributed
One of the 6 water pumps that we built for the villagers of Siem Reap
A little boy enjoying water from the pump that we built for them.
A man who lost his left leg to land mines receives his first portrait photo
A mother sharing a moment with her kids and showing them her new picture
The disabled man who received the wheelchair that the team got for him. This was his first time leaving his house and on his own. His reaction was priceless.
Villagers are so excited to receive their water filters
Water filters provide families with clean drinkable water. They can last for up to 2 years.
A group of villagers thanking My First Selfie using a self made sign
An elderly lady showing us her big smile after receiving her photo
A mother clears up a corner in her home to put up her families' new pictures
The kids were so eager and happy to see the outcome of the framed photos
An elderly woman collecting her water filter
A man proudly showing his newly framed photos
This boy recognised me when we went back to the same village from Chapter 1. He grabbed his picture I took of him 2 years ago and showed it to me