Thursday, March 01, 2007


Since I was 10 I knew I wanted to be a photographer.


Here is the National Geographic story for those of you who asked...


When I was 6 I lived in Johnstown, PA. Johnstown is located deep in a valley so it is very prone to flooding. In 1977 a series of storms hit over a very short period of time causing a major flood. This was not the first flood in Johnstown, (you can read more about it on the Johnstown Flood Museum website if you're interested). Over the next few days my mom and I explored different parts of the town and at one point we went to a memorial service for those who had passed away. A National Geographic photographer happened to photograph us leaving the church. I remember her telling me about him and how he followed us around for a while that day. (I think he thought my mom was hot!). We all pretty much forgot about it, but 4 years later my grandmother was flipping through her latest issue (she was a life long subscriber) and came across our photo which I am posting here. It is located in the August 1980 issue in an article about water. I realize it's not the most exciting photograph, but seeing myself in that magazine had a very powerful affect on me. (I'm the short one with the long braids. My mom is next to me and still has that dress, btw!) At that moment I knew what I wanted to do. I can't explain why, I just did. So that's my story and my 15 minutes of fame.

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