Soraya Matos is a travel and social documentary photographer currently based in San Francisco, California. More than a traveler of the globe, she is an explorer of ideas, using her camera to ask important questions that make us wonder about our society in an ever-expanding, interconnected world. Soraya graduated from Wheaton College with a concentration in Visual Sociology: Photojournalism. She speaks English, Portuguese, Spanish, and French, and is constantly seeking ways to connect with others. Things that inspire her: golden hour, the smell of brewing dark roast coffee, abandoned and forgotten places, innovators and shakers, and lastly, the magically unparalleled force of the ocean.
A day with the California ‘Weed Nuns’
You may know them as the ‘weed nuns’ or Sisters of CBD; I spent the day with the Sisters and produced a body of images that gives an insider look of the lives of the Sisters of the Valley in Merced County, CA.
The Sisters. belong to a highly specialized and devout order, one dedicated to cultivating cannabis and using it to create salves, tinctures, and oils for the ill.
From morning until sundown, observing and visually documenting a day in the life of Sisters of the Valley; I instilled trust, a female bond, and was invited into their home with an inside look on their every day- that no other [male] photographer has reached.
The sisters have an empire and a woman revolution brewing on their hands. Their healing power and cannabis business model has helped them fight local government and expand exponentially (they’re business has grown 10x since February). But most importantly, their mission and activism has helped shaped the way society views cannabis culture and helped many spiritually connect and be free of pain.
To view more of Soraya’s work please visit her website.