He freed me. He freed you. He freed every single one of us.
I say today Mandela is a very very
good man.
I became captivated by the stories of the men and women of South Africa that we know
and love today, but the one thing that drove me was to meet and photograph Nelson Mandela
but I was told by all and sundry it was never gonna happen.
This country you know we were prepared to see the most incredible race war, erupt.
There comes a time that
you either succumb or you fight back.
I felt so humbled to be part of such bravery.
When he walked out of jail we didn't even know were crying.
The whole world just came to a standstill.
We never imagined that Mandela is going to be president
That I'm going to be a member of parliament.
Happily, I lived long enough to experience
a change.
When Nelson Mandelaasked to see the portraits of these men and women that had become part of a project
that he'd inspired
that moment was the most humbling moment of my life.
Phillip Tobias. Dr Phillip Tobias.
I think you know him, that's FW.
Sorry Madiba you were saying, when you were in prison
Mandela represents an image of possibility.
He still had the capacity to forgive so many ugly things.
He respects all life. He doesn't even kill a fly.
Why is it that we admire people like
Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela? The answer must be
that it is because they are good!
Perfect.
I can see you!
At one point I looked up and every single one of the crew was crying.
And all I could think about was, I hope this is in focus.
Tilt it down a bit please. Perfect.
I chose to photograph a reflection of Nelson Mandela
so that when we look at that portrait we can reflect
on ourselves, we can reflect on his legacy
and we can reflect on our future.
Never, never, and never again
Shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience
the oppression of one by another. Let freedom reign!
God Bless Africa!