WINNERS
The Cool Kids
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PhotographerJulie Fowells, United States
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PrizeHonorable Mention
I'm insecure and painfully shy by nature, and often left behind... but on occasion find myself in the company of the cool kids. These moments fill me with doubt. I somehow manage to convince myself that nobody really likes me, and the best way to ease this discomfort is to wield a camera like a shield, or a layer of safety glass. Sometimes it feels like taking portraits is a way to legitimize my presence among them, as if interacting in some kind of strange official capacity gives me the right to be there. It’s taken me quite a while to figure out that I’ve probably been accepted all along.
