Maddison Woollard, Play ball (DOCUMENTARY & STREET 2026)

Coming from fashion and advertising where everything is about the perfect light, the perfect positioning, the perfect subject, I was craving something raw. Stories of real lives.
 I was in the Philippines for freediving, and every day we passed a village. I decided I wanted to go and say hello. I was a bit unsure, woman carrying two cameras, walking into a village no tourists visited, but instinct told me it was okay.
 This was the second day. A group of kids I'd met the day before offered to walk me into town, my own impromptu tour guides. On the way, we passed an abandoned dive shop where a bunch of kids were playing, running up and down the stairs with their basketballs. This was their playground.
 I'm not naive about my part in this image. I was a novelty to them, several adults stopped to ask if I was lost. The kids were full of life, performing a little, excited to be seen. But this was real play, play I never had to experience myself. Rusty nails, no shoe protection, heights that could break a bone, and these kids couldn't be happier.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.