Stories behind the frame

The trips that changed how I see.

Places are beautiful. The people inside them are what make me keep looking.

Two men in blue robes crossing calm water in a small blue boat — Blue Crossing · Egypt

Story 01 · Egypt

The trip that taught me courage.

Egypt was the first trip I pushed my parents to take. I saved for better lenses and arrived determined to photograph everyday life, not just landmarks.

Watching two men in blue robes drift by in a little blue boat changed something in me. Before Egypt, I looked for beauty in landscapes. After it, I looked for the human moments within them, and learned to observe without interrupting.

Black and white photograph of a couple sitting on the grass in a Paris park, mid-conversation — The Way He Looked at Her · Le Marais

Story 02 · Paris

The city that keeps telling love stories.

I first saw Paris at seven in a turquoise beret, with a Nutella crêpe and an endless supply of Eiffel Tower photos.

At sixteen I returned with my camera and wandered differently. My favorite photograph is a couple laughing in Le Marais. The way he looked at her made the whole park disappear. I still wonder who they were.

A striped hot air balloon floating above a pale desert ridge at sunrise — Above the Desert · Egypt

Story 03 · Egypt

The photograph I am proudest of.

A hot air balloon over the Egyptian desert, from the same trip. It is still my favorite thing I have made.

It was one of my favorite moments of the whole trip: the slight gust of wind, and seeing the world from a completely different perspective. I love that I caught it straight on but from up in the sky. The magic of a balloon and its colors against those sandy mountains is why I keep coming back to this one.

A woman sitting cross-legged on the grass with her head tipped back, laughing

A colorful wall of art postcards in Paris

A line of surfers waiting beyond the waves under a pale blue sky