by Elise Goitia '18

Knox College student Mark Muniz '15 has been awarded the Grand Prize in the 2014-2015 Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM) Off-Campus Study Photo Contest for a photograph he took while studying abroad in Jordan.

His photograph, A Learning Moment, (shown above) was chosen from a total of 96 pictures, all taken by students who studied abroad through ACM.

Muniz said he chose to submit the photo based on what made the snapshot so memorable: the people it portrayed.

"In the previous year's submissions, there were a lot of landscape shots. But I knew what they were really looking for was something a bit more meaningful, something students would encounter every day or an example of interaction," he said.

Every day, Muniz, who is majoring in international relations and minoring in history, would walk to the bus from his hosts' house in Amman, Jordan, to get to classes. He would pass the bakery where the two young men, shown in the award-winning photograph, worked and sold their sweets.

"I walked past them every day and thought they were really interesting guys," he said. "I went to Jordan not knowing any Arabic, and a month or so passed before I finally knew enough words to go up to them to try to talk to them and take their picture."

Though Muniz had never previously done any photography, he chose to start taking pictures when he traveled to Jordan.

"I decided that if there was anything I wanted to capture well, it'd be this experience," he said. "So I bought a camera and brought it with me to places I went."

Muniz, who has already lived in other countries such as Japan and parts of Europe, chose to study in Amman, Jordan, because of his interest in traveling to a place that is completely unique. He considers meeting the people there one of the most significant parts of studying abroad.

"The people are one of the main things I wanted to remember when I came back from Jordan," Muniz added. "There will still be ruins and the city, but people are so important to remember. They are what makes a place different."

View all entries in the Associated Colleges of the Midwest Photo Contest.