Julia Cumes is a South African-born photographer based on Cape Cod, MA. She’s passionate about storytelling and capturing real moments of human connection as well as expressive portraits. Her favorite projects are focused on women and girls and the struggles they face around the world as well as wildlife conservation and she has worked on stories with these themes both locally and internationally. Over the course of her career, Julia has photographed for magazines, newspapers, humanitarian and wildlife rescue organizations, businesses and private clients. Her work has appeared in publications such as the Boston Globe and New York Times and as well as a variety of other national and local publications.
“I strive to create photographs one can’t turn away from … photos that are powerful and capture in a unique way this extraordinary world we live in.” – Julia Cumes
“What I love so much about stand up paddle boarding is its ability to transport one, surrounded by nature, to a quiet, meditative state. On a perfect full moon, windless evening in late September, I got to photograph the nighttime version of this. Waterproof LED lights are attached to the bottom of the boards, illuminating the water below which meant the paddlers could see fish passing by. I photographed this from a jetty at a harbor near my house and was stunned by the beauty of it.” – Julia Cumes
“I watched this gorilla mother engulf her three month-old infant in an embrace in the Virunga Mountains of Rwanda. She looked up at my camera momentarily and I was so struck by her expression. I thought of my own childhood and the comfort of being held in my mother’s arms and knew exactly how that baby gorilla felt.” – Julia Cumes
“With a storm brewing on the horizon, Ikiwa Abdulla heads out at lowtide to gather shellfish in Fumba, Zanzibar. Abdulla is a participant in a shellfish program that hopes to teach women in Zanzibar how to cultivate shellfish. While women already harvest shellfish, the program will help replenish the already overfished stocks of oysters and clams and promote economic opportunities for women in rural villages in Zanzibar.” – Julia Cumes
Harpist, Katie Lynch, is photographed with the Quivett Creek Marsh behind her in Dennis, MA. Restoration efforts have helped bring birds, plants, and migratory fish back to this 265-acre salt marsh.