These past few months have been full of uncertainties, and it has become apparent that the world will continue to be full of challenges and ambiguity for the foreseeable future. Not only is the COVID-19 outbreak taking a toll on many people’s physical and mental health, it is also having an unprecedented impact on the global economy. This economic upheaval is felt strongly in the photography community—especially by freelance and independent photographers. Despite event cancellations and project delays, photographers continue to create and share their passion through their online portfolio.

At Format two of our core values are Care and Impact, alongside our mission to help photographers seamlessly run and grow their business. We’re driven by our passion to enable the success of every photographer—supporting them with the tools and resources to make their online portfolio and creativity stand out. That’s why we created a $25,000 fund to help photographers facing financial difficulties due to COVID-19.

When we first conceived of this idea, we expected the response rate to be in the hundreds. As time went on, the list of applicants grew to over 26,000 photographers from across the globe. We were able to give 50 applicants $500 to help towards bills, rent, and food for their families.

We truly wish we could have helped more people, but we are a small, self-funded 40-person company.

We’ve compiled a list of resources to help photographers during the global pandemic. You can access them below.