Sharon Attia

Sharon Attia is a social media editor for The New York Times who recently graduated with a degree in photojournalism. When she was 18—not that long ago! — she had to physically flip her camera around to take a selfie.

Arleigh Haskal

Arleigh Haskal: I’ve been behind a camera most of my life, from dress up photo shoots to capturing the corners of my hometown Los Angeles. Photography has always felt right to me. Through it, I share my personal, passionate and quirky take on the world. My photographs were first published in my school’s literary journal, freshman year. Praise for these images provided me further opportunities to engage on campus, and soon I was photographing for the school newspaper. With a focus on cultural and campus life, I particularly enjoyed shooting behind-the-scene images of productions and sporting events, and my work has earned me several Scholastic Golden and Silver Key awards. The summer following my junior year I experienced the honor of a lifetime when I joined 22 young female photographers from around the globe in The New York Times project #ThisIs18 capturing what life is like for 18-year-old women. Seeing my photographs of Hélène in print and on The Times’ numerous social media platforms was extraordinary. This year, as I prepare to graduate high school, I am photographing senior portraits for classmates in need and exploring ways to bring my photography passions to my college life. ​

Hélène Françoise Philippe

Hélène Françoise Philippe: I am a Los Angeles based artist and community organizer. I attend art school, studying painting, screen printing, installation work, fashion design and much more. I run a business organization called Honeymoon Supply and our mission is to have fun while healing the world. We host events such as art shows to help raise money to provide local shelters in LA with art supplies and organize workshops. I am working to make my project grow and also open up a space of my own to host shows and offer a space with cheap or free art classes to help build a stronger community.

Sandra Stevenson

Sandra is originally from Albuquerque, NM and was raised in Cheyenne, WY. After receiving a B.A. in English from Syracuse University, Sandra spent four years working at NBC – first as a Page and then working on various news programs. From there, she became the program coordinator for the Black Filmmaker Foundation. During her time there, she held a deep commitment to helping people of color enter the film industry at various levels.

Sandra then returned to the news industry, by taking on a position at The Associated Press, where she spent eight years moving up from photo assistant to overseeing photo news coverage for Latin America and the Caribbean. She also took time to work on an advanced degree in multimedia from L’Universite Toulouse in France. Sandra was a contributing writer in the book “Unseen: Unpublished Black History from The New York Times Photo Archives.” Most recently, she was the picture editor and co-curator on the book “This Is 18.” Currently, Sandra is the Associate Director of Photography at CNN.

The New York Times

Since 1851, the New York Times has been on the ground reporting stories from around the globe that no one else was telling. How we tell those stories has changed, but our mission to seek the truth and help people understand the world has remained constant.