I grew up in a career Air Force family. 'Brat.' Born in Honolulu Hawaii, we moved every 2 to 3 years all through my childhood until reaching the age of 11 when Dad retired and we settled in PA. This lifestyle made me accustomed to people of all walks of life and I always found community even if only for a short period of time. I was drawn toward photography as a young girl and influenced by portraits of my Mom that were taken by my grandfather. I gazed in wonder at the unique qualities of each one. In the early 80’s, I took a photography course and bought my first 35mm camera. Life took a few turns but I went into journalism in 2006 to present day with a city newspaper covering entertainment and human interest stories which quickly turned into a commercial portrait career. I dived into the education sector in 2014 with a PhotoWalk series in NYC. I have taught with several conferences through the years including WPPI in Las Vegas, PhotoPlus PPE in NYC, PPA Chapters, B&H Photo Event Space and B&H Photo Depth of Field. Then developing my own avant-garde company, Portrait Symposium. I decided to focus more and more on travel mixed with education instead of studio work and created PhotoCoteries in 2018 in dedication to loving the work while hosting experiences in Cuba, Morocco, Venice and beyond. I still own my perennial portrait studio showcased below.