Christian Sampson, a photographer from Peru, Indiana recently shared his album, “A Visual Depiction of Mental Disorders” on his Facebook page.

Sampson planned on doing a series on physical illness (cancer). Later he switched to the portrayal of mental disorders. He wanted to show the daily life of common man battling with the unseen mental disorders. He wanted his visual photo’s to connect with a large number of people.

21-year-old Christian Sampson was short of funds for the project but it did not stop him. So he got his friends to act as models. Sampson compiled a list of mental disorders. He narrowed the list to 12 disorders containing serious disorders to common issue. They are ranged from Schizophrenia to Insomnia.The photos were planned in a way to accurately match the description of the disorders.He shot the photos within eight weeks. The tone of the photos were deliberately kept dark.The purposefully dark visuals are emotively powerful in their narration of the mental illness.Since Sampson wanted to say that people really suffer from the disorder.Sampson is planning on more such albums themed on mental disorder’s. He actively seeks ideas and suggestions from his followers on social platforms.

Young Sampson is a print photographer as well. He takes on commission work for weddings and does portrait pictures as well.Though a print’s man, Sampson says mental illness remains very important for him as he has people living with it every day.

What started as a simple school project now has become the powerful pictures of mental disorders. The photos are finding empathy from people who face mental disorders. Considered to be a sensitive topic, Sampson’s handling of the subject has been much appreciated.

You can follow his work or contact Christian Sampson here.

1 Panic

2 Tourette’s

3 OCD

4 Paranoia

5 Anxiety

6 Bipolar