“Photography started for me at fifteen when my uncle gave me his old darkroom equipment,” recalls Marieke van der Velden. At twenty, she began her career as an on-the-run news photographer, covering local events for newspapers. She drove in 2002 to Sarajevo to cover a personal documentary story on daily life. Ever since more international personal photo series have followed. In 2007 she was one of the twelve participants of World Press Photo’s annual Joop Swart Masterclass. Her photos have appeared in magazines and trade journals, ads and government publications, nationally and internationally. Organizations such as UNICEF, CARE International and AMREF Flying Doctors have sent her abroad some 25 times to photograph their projects and campaigns.