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Scott Duncan in Afghanistan
By Scott Duncan
Professional photographer Scott Duncan has traveled all over the world. From South America, Africa, Australia, the Far East to just about everywhere in between. On a recent to trip to Afghanistan, Duncan had the chance to witness an amazing transformation take place right in front of his lens; a group of traditional Afghani women were able to find happiness through sport.
Scott Duncan has a very dynamic photographic style of effortless versatility. From portraiture to photojournalism, it is no wonder he would be interested in a story like this.
This was actually Scott Duncan's second journey to Afghanistan. His first experience there was to photograph the American troops in 2003. On this second trip, Duncan was eager to revisit and observe the changes that had taken place.
The Taliban had controlled Afghanistan for five years, coming into power during Afghanistan's long civil war, from 1996 to 2001. Its all-encompassing rules had governed the behavior and lifestyle of Afghan citizens with an iron fist. Women especially had been repressed by strict governmental rules and regulations that controlled every aspect of their daily lives
"These young girls have experienced all kinds of awful things in their lives. They have never been allowed to enjoy any kind of freedom," Duncan explains. "But through soccer, they are experiencing a freedom that they have never known. I can almost see the transformation taking place when the girls emerge from the locker room wearing their running suits. They still have their arms and legs covered, but they are finally allowed to run, play, laugh and have a good time. It is truly amazing to see that kind of change, and I was lucky enough to capture it with my camera."
Due to the nature of the changes that are taking place in Afghanistan, Duncan has to make sure that he is ready to capture any moment on camera fast and that requires absolute trust in his equipment. "It's still a war zone - you have to react quickly, and there are no second chances," Duncan points out. "It only adds to the challenge that Afghanistan is one of the dustiest and harshest environments on earth. There was always the concern that digital files could get lost or damaged with these extremes."
In such an unforgiving environment, Duncan had to make sure that he had the most reliable equipment possible. In addition to the backup batteries and cables and
drives he regularly carries with him, Duncan had to make sure that the images he took would make it home with him. His Lexar Professional CompactFlash memory cards proved to be invaluable during this trip. "One of the great things about the cards is that they are so durable and reliable. They stood up to the abuse of Afghanistan's dry, dusty, and extreme environment. Fortunately, there weren't any problems when I downloaded the files from the cards with my Lexar card reader," Duncan notes. "Through it all, my Lexar cards worked great and I didn't have any problems with them. As always, they kept my images safe."
With help from his Lexar Professional CompactFlash cards, Scott Duncan was able to deliver enduring stories and representations of the brave women of the Afghan women's soccer team to the world. Their story takes a big step in showing the world how great things truly can come out of adversity.
Scott Duncan Bio
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