What happens when you mix professional photographers with elementary school kids from Sderot and add a few cameras into the mix? The answer: A series of captivating images which will be featured in a unique exhibition

"Like every photojournalist, I spend a lot of time in Sderot," says Uriel Sinai, a veteran photographer and participant in a unique workshop held in the rocket-battered southern town. "Yet, being on the other side of it, teaching children how a photograph makes its way to the newspaper, that's a completely different experience."

Along with three other professional photographers, Sinai participated in the volunteer project which culminated in the "Local Testimony" exhibition held in Israel at the same time as the international "World Press Photo."

"We wanted to give the kids an opportunity to 'shoot' what they felt. To express their emotions creatively," says Judy Gonen, an art therapist who oversaw the project on behalf of NATAL, Israel Trauma Center for Victims of Terror and War.

A group of Sderot kids was invited to an intensive photography workshop in which they learned how to use cameras to convey a message. After the first stage, the children were paired with volunteer-photographers and set out to document everyday life in their frontline town.

"The kids and photographers really bonded. Within a few short hours they had produced exceptionally beautiful images," recalled Dana Wallfier-Lalkind, the producer of "Local Testimony. "We hope that this exhibition will raise awareness of the effects of trauma and its aftermath."

--NATAL is a beneficiary of Canadian Israel Emergency Campaign (IEC) funds. The above story was taken from YNet, an Israeli news site.