Humans of Columbia: Turning Pictures into a Story

If you have heard of the popular account Humans of New York, you will be familiar with this style photo assignment. Since I am clearly not located in New York, this project is titled Humans of Columbia. 

Before starting I was overly nervous to approach strangers and ask about their personal lives,  as I am a fairly shy person. To my surprise, I found my nerves were all for nothing. Through this experience I met some interesting people with inspiring stories. 

Sandra, on the right and Marcus, on the left, relax on a brick retaining wall as they look out toward the busy streets of downtown Columbia, MO. on Jan. 28, 2016.

Engaged couple, Sandra and Marcus, discuss their long-term relationship, as they approach the anniversary of the day they met on Valentine's Day at a local soup kitchen. 

Savannah Rudicel stops on Broadway Street to take a picture of the buildings for her journalism class in Columbia, MO on Jan. 28, 2016.

As a freshman journalism student at Mizzou, Rudicel hopes one day to become an international correspondent, much like her role model, Christiane Amanpour.

Jan. 28, 2016 Morgan Miller stops his walk through Peace Park in Columbia, MO to share a special moment with his dog, George.

Miller loves having his dog in his life, as he says George is the reason he is no longer on anti-depressants.


As you might be able to tell from these photos, you never know what different stories every person is going to have. To me I feel this project brings to life the old saying "you should never judge a book by its cover". Just because a person looks a certain way, doesn't mean they are going to have the story you would expect.

I am very glad I was able to step out of my comfort zone for this, because it was a truly great experience.