Guerchom Ndebo: reframing the Congo

It wasn't a camera that first sparked Guerchom Ndebo's interest in photography. It was a mirror. Growing up, his mother worked as a seamstress, and as a child he was always fascinated to see her clients' reactions when they tried on their new clothes, looked at their reflections and saw themselves in a new way. "I was curious, I wanted to share their emotions," explains the 22-year-old Congolese photojournalist. Guerchom now uses his photography to help others see his homeland in new ways, holding up a mirror to the Congo. It's a country that has been photographed extensively by outsiders – from Alice Seeley Harris's anti-slavery images in the 19th century to Richard Mosse's 2014 Deutsche Börse Prize-winning bright pink landscapes – but Guerchom's images give an insider's perspective.

Currently a student in Communication Sciences at Bujumbura Light University, Guerchom got his first big break in the photography industry with his series Congo's Charcoal. It was developed as part of the Congo in Conversation project spearheaded by Canon Ambassador Finbarr O'Reilly for the 11th Carmignac Photojournalism Award.

Originally, when Finbarr was named the winner of the award, he'd planned to report from the Congo himself. But when the Covid-19 pandemic hit, he revised his vision, switching roles from photographer to curator. The result was a collaborative website offering Congo-based journalists and photographers – Guerchom among them – a platform to share the multimedia coverage they were producing and an outlet where narratives about the country could be told by the people who lived there.

Participating in this year's Canon Student Development Programme (CSDP) has helped Guerchom to keep pushing his pictures, and his career, to the next level. "I've learned so much, it's been really significant for me," he says.

A key benefit of the programme has been the chance for Guerchom to receive one-on-one mentoring from Francis Kohn, AFP's director of photography. The main element they've focused on is editing, something that younger photographers – and also some very established photographers – can find tricky. "You can take lots of great pictures, but then you have to really home in on what's essential to the story and trim down," Francis explains.

Francis adds that, for him, it's Guerchom's ability to get straight to the point that stands out. "In his images, he's able to translate complex stories into something that people can understand in a simple way. That's a really hard thing to do. I find there's a real maturity to his work."

Francis, who began his career nearly four decades ago as AFP's Washington correspondent, admits it's a tough time to be starting out in photojournalism. "But I would never discourage anyone from joining the industry. You can make it if you have talent and determination," he says, adding that the Canon Student Development Programme is a great way in.

Guerchom agrees. "For those of us who don't have access to more traditional routes into the photography industry, the mentoring programme is the best way to learn fast," he says. "I hope this opportunity will continue to be expanded to more photographers from under-represented places like the Congo and other African countries."

As for his own future, Guerchom says he's dreaming big: "I'd like to keep working hard so that one day I might be a Canon Ambassador myself, sharing my experience with others, working on big subjects, getting published in big magazines and having exhibitions so the public can see my work," he says. "Telling stories through images is my passion. Every day I'm improving so I can make these dreams a reality. And when I have done that, my biggest dream is to keep telling more stories."