THE BLIND, SEEN is a first-of-its-kind book that compellingly captures the inspiring life stories of my parents Harold and Gail Snider, both of whom were born blind.
THE BLIND, SEEN gives an unprecedented insight into the lives of two blind people who experienced the full range of modern life. My parents learned braille as children and became young scholars, and fell in love and created a family. Their journey as the parents of sighted children, as professionals with responsible jobs, and as world-traveling intellectuals who could speak multiple languages is an inspiring story that celebrates their independence and dignity.
This unique book has two primary elements that have never been combined before - photography and braille. It is a story for both blind and sighted audiences. THE BLIND, SEEN then is truly bi-literal.
Thin and beautifully transparent braille pages will exactly match a traditional printed narrative with pictures and captions, helping both sighted and blind audiences make a journey together. In my main narrative I will be able to take a dual audience to a place they’ve never been before. As I present my experience of discovering my parents were different than other parents, I'll also draw on many interviews with Harold and Gail, family members, colleagues and friends that will give a wider view of how this couple overcame blindness to create lives impressive by anyone’s measure.
Photographs have been selected from a lifetime of images by family and friends as well as my own extensive photo essay about the everyday aspects of Harold and Gail's lives. The pictures will be in sync with the first-person narrative that ties the book together, and captions will subtly address both sighted and blind readers.
The book will take readers through their education and work, where braille has literally opened doors, to the realities of raising two sighted children in a world where the blind often go unnoticed.
This is a story that, even without braille, has been fascinating to network television audiences and the readers of The New York Times. Combined together with braille, in this format it is also a stunning tactile experience for the sighted audience, one that can break down presumptions not just about blindness but about braille as well.
THE BLIND SEEN’s creation was motivated by the crisis in braille literacy among blind children in the United States. Currently only 7 percent of blind children can read and write braille, leaving 93 percent unable to access a wide range of material.
The end goal is to create a public awareness among the general public that braille readers can realize their full potential in life while also demystifying blindness for the sighted reader.
Watch the original 11-minute video, The Blind, Seen, which the book is based upon:
PROJECT OVERVIEW
THE BLIND, SEEN exists as a first draft hard copy, as seen in the picture above. It needs to be edited into a print-ready version to be acceptable to book publishers.
This proposal aims to turn the first draft into a final version within six months.
We’ve teamed up with the Creative Visions Foundation, a 501(c)3 tax-exempt charitable group to raise the funds to bring this book into its final version. With their fiscal sponsorship, all funds donated to THE BLIND, SEEN qualify as tax-deductible charitable contributions.
Award-winning editor and art director Sandra Eisert, a pioneer in many arenas, will collaborate with me to create a polished design presentation that will flow and look classic in a standard binding.
We need to raise $50,000 to complete the project. This is to be applied toward covering fees related to pre-publishing, and to provide a stipend for me to rewrite the narrative and complete the book, as well as Eisert’s complex editing and design work.
Creative Visions Foundation will receive all the funds and administer the grant, and provide IRS tax-deductible documentation to donors.
Donors will be prominently acknowledged in the final version of THE BLIND, SEEN. Their names will appear in print and braille, and they will receive a signed copy with an archival print photograph from the book.
Donations of any amount will be gratefully welcomed.
GO TO THE DONATIONS PAGE.
I discovered an early passion for photography’s magical power to hold beautiful moments of time forever.
That magic led me to New York City where I earned my Bachelor of Fine Arts as a Photography major from the School of Visual Arts in New York City in 1992.
I began my path as a visual storyteller, learning from and working beside some of the greatest visual journalists of the time.
As a photojournalist and writer, my articles and pictures have been published in The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Associated Press and other print and online publications.
As a video journalist, cameraman and editor, my documentary video productions have been broadcast on ABC News Nightline, NBC News in Washington DC, ABC World News Tonight, HBO, Al Jazeera English, and National Geographic Online.
I’m the Founder and Executive Producer of The Photography Channel, at www.photographychannel.tv. The website presents 20 high-resolution videos about photographers and their stories.
In this field of work, I’m frequently asked about the most unusual story I live in the middle of – and that is what it’s like to live in a world of visuals when I am inspired so deeply by my amazing parents who both happen to be blind. I know this coincidence has given me a unique understanding of how the blind are seen and un-seen. It is time to tell that story and bring these two worlds together so they can appreciate and celebrate one another.
To earn a living and support my family, I'm a real estate advisor in Washington, DC with the Mollaan Babbington Group of Compass.
If you'd like to join our mailing list, email davidsniderphoto@gmail.com.
Sandra Eisert is The Blind, Seen’s co-producer, editor and designer. She has edited, designed and/or created strategy for over 100 books with nearly eight million copies in circulation, covering topics from travel and disasters to mental disability and thinking styles.
A groundbreaker in high-profile content and communications challenges, she was the journalistic founder and designer of the first major internet news site, mainstream MSNBC.com, work which visually changed the face of the internet and paved the way for robust content management systems. She also spearheaded creation of the Department of Defense’s Public Web Program.
Eisert was the White House’s first picture editor and has edited on staff for three presidents, representing both parties. Although she began as a writer and copy editor, she has been a magazine art director, a newspaper design director, and managed hundreds of special projects as she’s edited for news organizations like The Washington Post and the Associated Press. Among her many awards, she owns a key part of a team Pulitzer Prize for spot news, is a two-time Distinguished Alumna of Indiana University, and has received all three of National Press Photographers Association’s top awards for achievement and contributions to the profession. Currently she is the eye behind TheProfessionalEye.com, working with image creators from around the world.
As the first woman or minority in almost every job she’s had, she is accustomed to paving new roads and is a strong believer in seeing our differences as strengths. In her work in journalism education she has stressed individual potential and the importance of diversity in our ability to understand one another. To her, the greatest value of journalism, and especially visual journalism, is its ability to break down the barriers of stereotypes and help us truly see one another in a compelling and personal way.
Videos copyright David Snider / The Photography Channel
Pictures of book pages - copyright Seanie Blue
Contact David Snider: davidsniderphoto@gmail.com