Landscapes Archives | All the Magic

Bearing Witness: Documenting Displacement and Resilience in Eastern DRC

by Crystal StaffordDocumentary, Landscapes, Photos February 7, 2025October 9, 2026Comments are Disabled

The humanitarian crisis unfolding in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is both staggering and deeply personal. As a documentary photographer, I’ve spent over a decade documenting the impact of projects working to provide aid during humanitarian emergencies around the world. While documenting displacement in Eastern DRC, the stories I encounter in and around Goma …

Shattered Windows, Unbroken Spirit

by Crystal StaffordDocumentary, Landscapes July 8, 2024October 9, 2026Comments are Disabled

Hanna Pavlovna and her husband, Oleksandr, once lived a quiet and fulfilling life with their five children in the peaceful village of Velyka Pysarivka, nestled near Ukraine’s northeastern border. Their days were filled with the rhythm of farm life—raising rabbits, planting grapes, and nurturing the land that had been in their family for generations. Life …

Finding Hope in Lozova: A Ukrainian Mother’s Journey Through War and Healing

by Crystal StaffordDocumentary, Landscapes May 26, 2024October 9, 2026Comments are Disabled

From Bombardment to Bravery: Alina’s Story Begins Alina and her daughters are just a few of the many women and children affected by the war in Ukraine. On February 25th, 2022—just one day after the Russian invasion of Ukraine—Alina Kravchenko’s life changed forever. Her husband enlisted to defend their country and was sent to the …

Mado

by Crystal StaffordDocumentary, Landscapes October 16, 2022October 9, 2026Comments are Disabled

When I first met Mado in Febraury of 2016, she was a little over two years old. She was so severely malnourished that she couldn’t walk or even stand. She sat in her mother’s lap, lethargic and still. Her arms barely larger than my thumb in diameter. We were there with a team of community …

Seven Minutes

by Crystal StaffordDocumentary, Landscapes, Life, Photos June 29, 2022September 29, 2022Comments are Disabled

SEVEN MINUTES I was living in a hospital in Kananga in Kasai Central Province in 2012, shortly before the start of ASSP. My church hired me to renovate the hospital, but the funding was sparse. My room was a barren, concrete box with no electricity and no running water. Hopefully I would be able to …

Playa Guiones Reopens After COVID 19 Pandemic

by Crystal StaffordAbove Guanecaste, Landscapes June 1, 2020October 9, 2026Comments are Disabled

Today, Playa Guiones reopens after COVID 19 pandemic. We gathered ourselves up at first light and headed down to celebrate with the rest of the community. Antonio ran around in the sand with the babies while I snapped a few drone shots. Faces were beaming all over the beach. We are all so happy to …

San Blas Island Paradise

by Crystal StaffordHDR, Landscapes, Travel March 31, 2019May 14, 2019Comments are Disabled

We got a rare glimpse of old world Carribean while sailing the San Blas Islands on our honeymoon. On our first night, we buoyed next to this idyllic tropical island. After that, we visited several more of the 365 islands dotting the turquoise waters. Each of the islands we visited was as pristine and untouched …

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I got a[nother] drone and it changed my life.

by Crystal StaffordLandscapes, Life January 30, 2019April 26, 2019Comments are Disabled

I must admit, photographing the beach day after day has gotten kind of old. BEING on the beach will NEVER get old for me. But these beach photographs can all start to look the same after awhile. But then I got a drone. His name is Andronio II (I crashed Andronio I in the Skeleton …

Walikale

by Crystal StaffordDocumentary, Landscapes, Life December 26, 2018April 26, 2019Comments are Disabled

I traveled to this little village in Nord Kivu to interview women who have survived sexual violence. The only way to get there was by UN helicopter because rebels have cut off access to the region. You would never know by looking at this photo that war has wreaked havoc on the area for decades. …

If I Could Be Anything

by Crystal StaffordHDR, Landscapes, Magic December 25, 2018April 26, 2019Comments are Disabled

If I could have any job in the world, it wouldn’t be a photographer. It would be someone studying photography. I would just attend photography workshops all year round and with all of my favorite photographers in the world’s most beautiful places. I would be constantly learning and constantly around like minded-ish individuals who love …