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The novelty of the photography subsided until I graduated from high school, when my uncle gave me my grandfather's Nikon F and a 50mm lens to take to college. To this day, that is the most meaningful gift I've ever received - my grandfather died in February of my junior year. I was 17, and the entire family was devastated by the loss. Grandpa always had a camera around his neck, photographing and filming us through the years. His simple portraits - and being able to shoot with his camera - still inspire me.

How have others described your work?
A photographer/friend of mine wrote this a few years ago... "The one consistent element seems to be an aura of wholesome light-I'm very conscious of the quality of light-the subjects seemed to be bathed in this, well, benevolent light."

I always ask new clients what they like most about my work. What images they were drawn to. And often it's my colorful portraits. They love the rich saturated color, and ask how I achieve that. The thing is, I don't spend a lot of time in post. I like to get the shot I want in camera...

When I walk into a location, or build a set... I look for that balance and completeness... in the composition, the lighting, and the color. I guess this is where my love of Fauves and Impressionists and Romantic period painters comes to life. I love photography. It's like painting with light and color.

What makes it possible for you to evoke so much emotion in a photograph?
I really want to know the person and their story, and not just show up, set up lights, shoot and leave. I love people. Their stories inspire me. I love talking with them, getting to know them, and making them feel comfortable in who they are, no matter what their story is. Building that connection, naturally. Especially in my documentary work. I try to have fun with them. But sometimes, there is that serious shot. I try to create an open space for a person to feel that emotion, to leave room for that moment to develop. I guess sometimes, my job as a photographer is to open a door, and wait... for that perfect moment. Starting my career in photojournalism, as a film photographer, I learned not to click a million shots, but to follow my intuition and wait for the one that's right.

How did you choose your current documentary project?
It just kind of happened. I volunteered several years ago to take portraits of the women of Magdalene, an organization that helps women recover from a history of criminal prostitution and drug addiction. I just kept volunteering as much as possible. I love what they do locally, and I'd love to see a program like this develop in other cities. Then I started shooting for a book that is coming out this year, written by women from the program. And I realized, I wanted to get deeper, get to know them more personally... their stories.

With this project, I want to explore addiction and women's sexuality, as it relates to our culture, and more specifically, how all of this happens regionally. Through the years, I've seen the results of alcoholism, physical, sexual, and emotional abuse. I have questions about how these issues form a woman's identity, body image, sexual identity, self esteem, financial self-image, and how they affect her choices, if and when change happens for her, when she experiences hope, grace, surrenders to it, and what recovery looks like for her.

Where do you seek inspiration?
Music, art, poetry, and film. I love living in Nashville, we have such a rich community of musicians, in all genres of music. I live in a culture that embraces and supports creative work. Film and cinematography are also a huge influence on me. Especially the work of Ingmar Bergman and cinematographer, Sven Nykvist in Fanny and Alexandar - a brilliant, vivid and deliberate color palette - and Persona - incredible lighting, pacing, mystery, surrealism. And speaking of surrealism, artists like Ren� Magritte... I saw an exhibit of his paintings in Denmark a few years ago. He challenges perception in his work. He dices apart what we think is truth and reassembles it, allowing us a new perspective. What a great thinker.

What are you like to work with?
My past experience as an art director has taught me how to handle big production shoots, so I just try to make sure all the details are taken care of and that I have a great team on board to get the job done. But we love to have fun too. I've been known to have a "tell", when I get "the shot"... I do a little hop or get a big goofy smile on my face. I was on a shoot recently, with a female artist. Every time I got a shot I liked, all she could see my big grin behind the camera... she started laughing... and well, let's just say, we got some great stuff in only a few frames.

What do you think of the changes in photography today?
Stock photography is such a big part of the scene today. It's a huge market that I can't ignore any longer. I think a lot of stock has ordinary everyday looking people, which is great. But the emotion, the "it" moment that comes from working with someone who isn't a model, is often missing from stock. Plus, the generic, lack of context. I've polled some of my clients about this. Sometimes art directors have a budget only for stock, and they end up stretching an idea to work with existing images.

I haven't shot for stock. I guess I've always liked shooting a specific assignment to tell a story or communicate a specific idea, that is unique to one story or brand. Building brand equity and maintaining brand integrity over time is critical in today's market. Especially in a market flooded with so much imagery, on tv, outdoor, in new media, on the sleeve of our morning cup of coffee, and especially with guerilla marketing. The only way to stand out is by building on a company's most important asset, it's brand. And I think often, for budget purposes, original photography is overlooked as a way of building the asset of a brand.