Our Story

Priceless, yes photographs are priceless…

They are just a bit of ink and paper, yet the images contained reflect life, family, heritage, legacy, time…everything.

Hello, my name is Carolyn. I am a photo-addict. Just ask my kids. I have been a shutterbug forever.

While traveling, I started packing a little stuffed likeness of my dog Foto. Hanging from my backpack and pulled out to set near famous landmarks. Kids and even adults were fascinated and amused by “little Foto”. For fun I posed kids holding the toy dog.

But so often, a giggling child would make a somber look when facing the camera. Why? They know I am taking a picture, but believe it’s a significant moment and want to appear serious. Western children implicitly smile for a camera, having had their pictures taken almost constantly since birth. Yet an incredible number of the world’s children do not have a single picture of themselves! I wanted to change this. I can do something as simple as give away a photo and get others to do it too.

Sharing an image on a digital screen is not enough. Instead why not print and hand out a copy on the spot? Portable printers make this easy. This concept forms the basis of Dog Meets World and Take and Give Photography, literally the on-site capturing and printing of photographs for those without means to do so themselves. Foto, the dog, is the official icebreaker, ambassador and mascot to identify and connect all pictures.

The Vision for Dog Meets World

My dream is to establish a movement to photograph the children of the world. To seek children in their own settings, print their image to keep for a lifetime. We have replicated Foto, the stuffed dog, to enable scores of world travelers to participate with this intentional project. The dream of Dog Meets World is to empower travelers to make real connections to people in other cultures, in essence to become photo-diplomats. A picture makes anybody a “somebody”. Dog Meets World clothes people in acknowledgment and affirmation and feeds their souls, which indeed is priceless.

Download the Concept Paper PDF

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Praise for DMW

"Participating in Dog Meets World was a truly magical experience, bringing joy and wonderment to all I met."

John Carr, Phodographer across South America

"Dog Meets World unleashes the power of photography as a diplomatic and personal tool in building connections among the people of the world. It embeds a memory in photographer and subject alike."

Prof. Patrick Fleming, Fulbright scholar & Phodographer Cambodia & Kyrgzystan

"You will never know just how important that photo will be long after it is taken and given."

Delores Barr Weaver, co-owner Jacksonville Jaguars

"Dog Meets World went over fabulously in my village. It is a perfect option for Peace Corps volunteers like myself. I like the Foto dog mascot, kids like it, and it is a representation of the peace and the ideas of the project."

Kristen Woodruff, Phodographer Costa Rica

"The kids are absolutely loving Dog Meets World. For a majority, these were the first images of themselves that they have ever owned."

Marti Johnson, Phodographer Uganda