I am originally from Western New York dairy country, and grew up with parents who did art shows on the weekends. My Dad was a photographer and my Mom did most of the mat cutting and prep work for the shows while my Dad was teaching during the week. My love for photography stems from my parents and their love of natural beauty. My parents never took my siblings and I to Disneyland growing up, but instead went camping in state parks or touring the national parks of the West.

After college, I took a roundabout route to the Great Plains, where I have fallen in love with the prairies and the people and wildlife that live there. I spent three years in southwestern Saskatchewan and Manitoba completing a Master’s degree in grassland ecology. I then completed my PhD at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln studying grassland ecology and trying to understand ranchers’ perspectives on management.

I enjoy capturing the subtle beauty of the grasslands, and believe that my training in grassland ecology has allowed me to do this in a way that inspires others to appreciate the prairies as much as I do.