© Scott Lowden | IQ250
Recently, Capture Integration client Scott Lowden photographed the Frazer Center in Atlanta Georgia to celebrate the 1990 passing of the Americans with Disability Act, a landmark law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. Affording similar protections to Americans with disabilities as those protections of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the ADA helps make public spaces more accessible, as well as requiring reasonable accommodations in the workplace.
The Frazer Center grew from the Lane family’s Cerebral Palsy school, originally started in 1949 in the basement of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church. Growing from an original seven students to over 170 children and 90 adults on today’s campus, the Frazer Center is a staple of the community in Atlanta. Scott, in his own words, explains what drew him to the Center:
The Frazer Center is an inclusive community in Atlanta, where people of all levels of ability and disability gather, learn, socialize and share the joys and challenges of living. Even though I’ve been familiar with them for many years, it wasn’t until I was location scouting for an advertising shoot that I got close enough to realize just how important their impact is on the community. I was sincerely touched when meeting the wonderful people for whom they provide opportunities. This is not a place where they are hidden or sheltered. Instead, it’s a space for adults with a variety of abilities to gather, to learn and to flourish, ultimately striving for the same thing as all of us: the feeling of being integrated, that of belonging to the broader community.
When I approached them, trying to figure out a way to get involved and support their efforts, I learned that July, 2015 is the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disability Act – that’s when this project was born. The initial plan was to capture medium format portraits of 25 of their participants in environments familiar to them, to show where they volunteer or work. But, as an obvious extension of the shoot, we’ve also put together a short video to better present the people for whom this place makes all the difference. After a lot of coordinating with participants and crew, we spent several days getting to know these wonderful people: following them in their daily routine and being inspired when hearing about their hopes and dreams.
Take a look at the BTS video, and see for yourself just how funny and interesting these people are. Big thanks to Mad Hat Creative for jumping in and taking a personal interest in this project and handling the camera operating and post production.
© Scott Lowden | IQ250
© Scott Lowden | IQ250
© Scott Lowden | IQ250
Capture Integration was happy to provide a Phase One IQ250 for Scott to shoot these portraits with, and together with Capture One Pro 8, you can see the results of his project here: