The First Frame: Journalism student’s journey of visual storytelling
KATHMANDU: The journalism students of a Jesuits-run college, St. Xavier’s College, Maitighar stepped out of their class and captured the photo stories from the Himalaya, the hills, and their own communities.
The batch of 2024 continued the legacy of their seniors and published the photobook, The First Frames Vol 2.0. Fr. Principal, Dr. Augustine Thomas, S.J. and Fr. Director, Dr. Boby Joseph,S.J. jointly unveiled the book at a mega event organized today to celebrate Christmas-2025 in Maitighar, Kathmandu.
The publication highlights student’s exploration of storytelling through photography, reflecting the lives, livelihood and cultural diversity of Nepal. “The students stepped out of their classrooms into the hills, valleys, and communities, capturing real-life experiences in images that almost come alive. To illustrate, the photos reflect life so vividly that they feel like you could pick them up from the pages and speak with them face to face. Such an impressive edition,” said Dr. Augustine Thomas, S.J. The edition serves not only as a stepping stone for photo journalism but also as a platform, allowing junior students to use theoretical knowledge in a real-world setting.
“The photobook published by St. Xavier’s College, possibly the first of its kind in Nepal, is a project by junior Journalism students,” said Chun Bahadur Gurung, the adviser to the project. He added, “I’m delighted to see students capturing stories from Jhapa, Dharan, and Gorkha, and shedding light on the airport without aircrafts in Arghakhanchi”.
A list of literature on photography and photojournalism included in it, can also serve as a reference for researchers. One of the student contributors, Garima Shrestha shared: “Barpak, a name that echoed my ears countless times, but had never got a chance to visit the epicenter of the 2015 earthquake. I’m excited that the book project took me there and had an opportunity to capture the stories of Barbak: after a decade of Earthquake.” Mani Prasad Karmacharya, Adjunct faculty of photojournalism led the photobook project with Binod Prasad Adhikari serving as contributing editor and Chun Bahadur Gurung as adviser.
