In 2012 a fateful choice of a TV channel has brought me face to face with the atrocities of the Syrian rebellion. I was shocked that such crimes against humanity were happing at the literal door step of Europe and yet outside of the war-torn country, life went on as usual. So in the summer of 2012, finding myself unable to be a bystander any longer, with camera in hand, I walked across the Turkish border into Syria and thus The Unknown Photographer was born.

The Unknown Photographer:  Tom Daams (via facebook.com)

While wanting to share the raw images of war to raise awareness of what is truly happening in the conflict, I found myself also deeply affected by the everyday people that live on the frontlines and still manage to maintain their humanity, their kindness, their humor and undying hope for a better future. Men, women and children who live every day without knowing if they will see the next sunrise and yet still manage to show the kind of open-hearted hospitality to a stranger that is rarely found in our world today.