Photographer Xenia Viragh ’15 says she draws inspiration from her travels.

She has lived in six cities in her life so far, and has pursued photography in all of them. Her mother was a photographer, so her family has always had cameras lying around her house, allowing her to easily develop a love for the medium.  Although she started a photo blog on Tumblr during her year studying abroad in China, Viragh’s main blog, entitled “The Photo Capturer,” focuses on images she has taken over the past two years that depict the enigmatic culture of Thailand. Many of these photos tell a story through the actions or expressions of strangers.

“You always learn something new from the people you encounter when you travel,” Viragh said. “A really important thing for me was being able to talk to the people I took pictures of and ask for their approval of the photo. It makes the relationship really come through in the photo if the person is comfortable with you taking it.”

Viragh’s blog has about 100 followers around the world, some of which she knows personally, and some of which she does not but have contacted her about her work. She keeps in contact with the people she photographs and often emails them copies of her photos of them.

Viragh is currently taking the Photo I class and wants to study photography in college, but she does not plan on having a career as a photographer when she grows up.

“Photography is my passion, and maybe I’ll try a little photo journalism, but I think it will always remain a hobby for me,” Viragh said.