I photographed the Gonzales family in Piedmont Community Park. I love this place because there are lots of beautiful mature trees, interesting structural backgrounds and room to roam in big stretches of grass. Often I get to know the people I photograph while we are walking around finding the best spots and the sweetest light for the moment.

Connecting with my clients is what makes the shoot. Sometimes that means interacting with them directly. Sometimes it’s quietly observing the dynamics between them and being invisible. I do what the situation calls for at any given moment.

I still go back to the bay area and absolutely love the natural beauty that abounds. There’s no place like it. I miss the ocean. Now I’m here in Austin. It seems each place I’ve lived—Austin, Boulder, Chicago, Santa Fe, Oakland —I always feel spoiled by the previous place, but there is beauty in it all—visiting one place over and over again but seeing with fresh eyes each time AND exploring somewhere new, finding each place’s special qualities of light and shadow, place and face.