Noah Hawthorne Photography | San Francisco Wedding Photographer » Cape Town

Iliso Care Society

Noah Hawthorne — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 15:47:00 +0000

This Monday I was fortunate to visit the Iliso Care Society, a small non-proffit organization run by Vivian Zilo out of her home in Khyelitsha’s Site C. Her efforts were truly inspiring. The organization operates with the help of several volunteers who make meals five days a week, providing food for TB patients, HIV/AIDS victims, elderly, homless, orphans and vulnerable children in the the area. School children who don’t have access to food at home are also provided with a soup meal during their mid-day break. The society also offers a support group for those who are HIV positive so that they can share their experiences in a comfortable home-based setting.

Vivian is always eager to share her project and experience with visitors. If you are interested in hearing more about what she does, feel free to send me an email, or contact Vivian directly at ilisovivian@yahoo.com . It was wonderful to find such a generous and giving group of people, so interested in improving the lives of the community around them.

Penguins? In Africa?

Noah Hawthorne — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 07:20:00 +0000

So one of my favorite sights thus far have been the penguins. There is just something about the creatures that can melt your heart. They are so incredibly cute, and it’s always a shock to think that I’m hanging with these creatures on a beach in Africa. These birds are awkward on land, but amazingly fast and graceful in the water: amazing swimming companions when I manage to brave the chilly water for a quick dip. These were all taken at the famous Boulder’s Beach, near Simonstown.

Cape Town

Noah Hawthorne — Mon, 28 May 2007 19:05:00 +0000

I’ve finally arrived. After 4 long days running through airports and a whirlwind 2 day swing through London, I have made it in to Cape Town. I’ll be living and working here for the next 3 months (through the end of August), and am starting to branch out and explore this new place called home. For the next three months I’ll be working with the Desmond Tutu TB Center on an epidemiology project tracking the impact that tuberculosis and HIV jointly (called co-infection) are having on the populations in the townships of the region. I’ll spend time in the townships of Mzamomhle, Nyanga, Delft South, Nolungile (also known as Site C, Khayelitsha),Kuyasa (also known as Harare, Khayelitsha), Wallacedene, Kayamandi (near Stellenbosch in the west Coast Winelands subdistrict), Mbekweni and Phola Park. These should be some really different areas, and I’m excited for the chance to experience them all. South Africa is an amazingly diverse place, with 14 official languages and a host of different cultural influences. It’s so easy to get caught up in the Western European feel of central (and wealthy) Cape Town, so I’m very glad to get the chance to work in these other areas every day to get a feel for what the real Cape Town experience is like for the majority of the population here.

After living in Cape Town last year, I am actually reasonably familiar with many of the main attractions of this rather developed and touristy city. However, before I was staying in an English suburb called Rondebosch, a rather well-to-do area near the foot of Table Mountain, the dominating lone mountain that presides over all of the Cape Town landscape. This time however, I’m staying in Bellville, an Afrikaans area which is quite different. Ironically, I’ve had little use for the Xhosa that I’ve been trying to learn over the past 3 months, as most people speak either Afrikaans, English or Sutu. However, I’m sure I’ll get the chance as I branch out a little further during my stay. Anyway, enough with the travel essay for now. Most of you are here for the pictures…so here we go.

First a few from London. See if you can recognize any of the landmarks:

Next a group from Cape Town. These are a group from the waterfront area and Kamps Bay, one of my favorite beach areas, with the Atlantic on one side and Table Mountain on the other.

Africa

Noah Hawthorne — Fri, 18 May 2007 16:43:00 +0000

Well, the time is almost at hand. After working all week to finish up with my last few weddings- I’m now on the final home stretch. I’ll be leaving for South Africa this Sunday, stopping off in London to see some friends of mine along the way.

I’ll be staying in the Cape Town area for a bit more than 3 months while working with the Desmond Tutu TB research center. They have some really interesting projects, and this should be a great opportunity for me to combine my love for Africa with experiences in public health and photography.

And, after the “work” is over in Cape Town I’ll be meeting up with my assistant Grant to go into Botswana for two weeks, where we’ll take pictures around the Okavango Delta and up into the Kalahari Desert. Should be lots of fun- and something really different from wedding photography. This is really something that I feel will help keep me passionate about what I do, and help to give me a new perspective on both life and photography. Be sure to check back to this blog often, as I’ll keep up with the entries- and while there will likely be fewer wedding photos for a while, I’m sure I’ll come up with some fun adventures.

Cape Town Wedding Photography

Noah Hawthorne — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 01:14:00 +0000

Exciting news! I’m just finalizing plans for travel to Cape Town, South Africa for this coming summer. After living in Cape Town this past year for four months, I’ll be returning this coming summer to do a combination of tuberculosis epidemiology research, and a number of photography projects as well. I’ve been to Africa several times now, and it is truly a wonderful place. While this means that I will be unavailable to shoot weddings in the San Francisco Bay Area between the months of June-August, I will be available for South African clients within the Western Cape region during that time. Below is an image taken from the top of Table Mountain, above Cape Town- certainly one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been.