About Laurie

I am 46 years old, married to my wonderful husband for 24 years. I have 3 kids, boys, aged 23, 19, & 16. I am mostly a mom, that’s what I’ve done for nearly ½ my life and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I started taking pictures before I was 10. My dad was an avid hobbyist and taught us how to shoot and process film from camera to prints. We had a nice little darkroom setup in our basement.

My first “real” camera was a 1939 Rolleiflex twin lens reflex camera that had been my grandpa’s. I obtained a Voitlander Besa L rangefinder at some point. My first SLR was a Pentacon Practika LTL that I got when I was 10. I had an Olympus SLR in 1979, and in 1981 I got a Minolta XD5 for Christmas. I still have the Minolta and do use it on rare occasions.

During high school I took 2 years of photography courses with Jay Smith, a former Senior Combat Photojournalist for the First Infantry Division covering Saigon and North Saigon in 1968-1969. He was an inspirational teacher and an exceptional human being. He died tragically several years ago when he drowned while on a fishing trip in Round Valley Reservoir; ironically the first place I went to shoot with my first DSLR camera. I had forgotten that he had died there until several months later when I started photoblogging and had posted some shots which drove a lot of traffic to my site when a local news story about the frequency of drownings in Round Valley had been broadcast.

About 4 or so years ago I stumbled upon my first photoblog; Kathleen Connally’s A Walk Through Durham Township, Pennsylvania. I didn’t know anything about photoblogging, I had never heard of it before, but I was hooked. I started every morning with a peek at her blog. I’ve had the opportunity to meet her and shoot with her as well as being a subject of one of her “flour” shots. Kathleen is fabulous talent and she's a lot of fun to be around.

Being a mom and all my kids’ activities caused me to put my stuff on a back burner. In 2005 shortly after my oldest son enlisted in the military I decided to pick up the camera again after 20 plus years of neglecting serious shooting. My husband got me an Olympus E300 DSLR for our anniversary. In 2006 I bought a Nikon D200. I currently shoot with a Nikon D700 full frame digital camera and an assortment of lenses. I also have assorted studio equipment to handle larger assignments.

I am happiest doing landscapes still lifes, and macros, but I enjoy shooting portraits, assignments, and events as well. I do some freelance photojournalism, in addition to stock and assignment photography and publicity work for several local orchestras and individuals. I have also done small scale promotional materials for several local organizations as well as doing web gallery and catalog photos for local artists. I have sold stock photos that were used in TV and print advertising as well as doing assignments for large and small organizations.

I post process using Lightroom and Photoshop CS2, but I try to keep my images looking as traditional as possible, with a few exceptions. I try to obtain results similar to what could be achieved with traditional film processing. I am not a fan of overly processed photos; it’s just not my thing. That doesn’t mean that I think all heavily post processed shots are “bad” since I find some to be quite lovely, but generally, I prefer a more subtle approach for my work. I do think there is a point at which it becomes more about computer graphics than photography, and while a great deal of talent, skill, and time goes into that, I prefer to spend my time behind the lens rather than in front of the computer.

If I’ve learned one thing, it’s that I still have a lot to learn. I also learned that it’s most important to have fun with it, and to have a passion for it. If you don’t have fun and passion, it will show in your work.

I don’t think of myself as a great photographer, I may never be a great photographer; but, I am definitely loving my work and I'm always striving to become a better photographer today than I was yesterday.

If you are interested in using my services for assignment, portrait, events, or would like to use any of my stock photos just shoot me an email with some details via my contact link and I will get back to you.

Please visit my other photoblog Capturethisphotography.com. Photos posted there are the same as on AM3, but are higher quality and landscape orientation images are much larger for better detail.

Photography Equipment

Nikon D700 FX (Full Frame) with MB-D10 Multi-power Battery Pack Grip
Nikon D200 with MB-D200 Multi-power Battery Pack Grip

Nikon 28-70mm f2.8
Nikon 70-200mm f2.8 VR
Nikon 85mm f1.8
Nikon 50mm f1.4
Nikon 60mm f2.8 macro
Nikon TC-20EII Teleconverter

Tokina 12-24mm f4 DX
Nikon 10.5mm f2.8 DX
Nikon 24-85mm f3.5-4.5 (I don't use this one at all not sure why I keep it. Probably not worth trying to sell.)

Tokina 80-200mm f2.8 (For Sale)

An assortment of UV, polarizing, ND, and Grad ND filters.

Op/Tech Camera Straps and rain sleeves.

Nikon MC-36 cable release

SMDV RF-N3 wireless trigger

Several Tri-pods, mono-pods and ballheads my favorites being from Gitzo (although I very rarely use a tri-pod).

Assorted gear bags and backpacks. My favorite being the Tamrac Expedition series 4 and 5x.

2 SB-800 Speedlights, 1 Vivitar Thyristor 285HV with slave trigger. Bowens 1500W/second 2 light studio lights, 1 Photogenics 750w/second studio light. Various light stands and umbrellas, reflectors and modifiers. 3 pocket wizard Plus II radio controls.

Assorted other gadgets and studio equipment too much to list here.