FAQs
- How did you get started doing this type of work?
It all started when I was a young child in a small town in West Virginia right on the Ohio River. My grandmother would let me hold her 35mm Canon Compact. It had automatic advance and rewind it was a big deal. I would look through the view finder, compose shots and pretend to press the shutter button, though since it was film I rarely got to "waste" ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂany pictures (if only she could see me now). That camera was one of her most prized possessions, and she only got it out on special occasions. Back then I thought she was protective of it because it was an expensive device and a present from Grandpa, but she taught me that it was so priceless to her because it was what she used to capture memories: her family was in that camera. She helped me realize that family is what it'ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs all about and photography helps us remember all those important moments. I have come a long way from being a pretend photographer sneaking shots with my grandmother's camera, but I still remember the lessons she taught me every time I pick up a camera. Since then I've got involved with photography every chance I could. I was almost tackled by high school football players while I took pictures of their games from the sidelines, and then I spent hours in my high school's darkroom processing the film and printing pictures for the yearbook and newspaper. Around then I transitioned to digital photographs, and the first digital cameras I used saved the images on floppies. In college, I took three independent studies on photography and photo editing on top of a full graphic design course load, and I was often awake all night to meet a deadline and then shooting an assignment the next morning. After graduating cum laude with a bachelor'ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs degree from Wheeling Jesuit University in 2007, I moved to Columbus, Ohio, where I lived and worked as a graphic designer and photographer happily for five years. In 2012 I moved to Virginia Beach and I love being so close to the ocean. I am very excited to continue my journey of love, life and art here with my loving and supportive husband, Jason and our son Hayden.