An artist living in New York’s Catskills can find many sources of inspiration, from the beauty of nature to the region’s vibrant history.

You don’t have to go far to see the wonders of nature. I went on a walking trail with my Canon EOS 40D camera and while I walked, I saw along the path so many brightly colored mushrooms. On that day, I got interested in taking photos of mushrooms, wanting to later research and learn about them.

When I was younger, one of my family members who’s a skilled photographer gave me a Canon camera to learn on. I didn’t know much back then about photography, but I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for the great support from my family.

In 2023, I took a teen photography class at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts which helped me learn the history and the technical side of photography. Once I learned to use a camera’s “manual mode” and its different settings, I was then able to experiment with different compositions.

One of my favorite types of pictures to take is of local wildlife. I put sunflower seeds on my back porch and then sit at a window inside, using a 75-300mm zoom lens to take photos of the birds and squirrels that come for the seeds. The birds I frequently see are black-capped chickadees, mourning doves and, sometimes, blue jays.

Throughout my time at Manor Ink, I’ve used my photographic skills to take pictures of the talented local artists that I’ve profiled in articles. That has been a wonderful experience, primarily because I found it fun to photograph them and their amazing art work.