When I heard we were doing a story on flowers, I immediately volunteered. I love flowers! I grew up surrounded by them. I used to cut them from our garden, and I took care of bouquets for my mom. I’ve always had wonderful memories of flowers, so I thought working on a story about them would be great. And even though I didn’t stop to think what I might be getting myself into, it was great.
I met a flower designer named Michaele Thunen, who invited me to a wedding. She created these phenomenal bouquets with herbs added to heighten the fragrance. They smelled wonderful!
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It is difficult for me to take pictures in a situation where I feel sorrow at the same time. Going to the first anniversary of the Columbine High School shootings in Colorado filled me with sadness. I suffered with all the people who were touched by this terrible tragedy. I don’t take that kind of thing very well, so I ended up crying. It’s sometimes difficult to walk that line between emotions and keep my composure. I was happy I had an assistant with me because I choked up and couldn’t talk very well. It was good he was there to help me along.
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I often buy flowers for my hotel room when I’m on assignment. It cheers me up when I have to stay in a place for a long time. When I open the door, my eye immediately catches the colors.
I bought a bouquet for myself when I was working in Holland. Then I went on to photograph workers cutting tulips in a field. As I was doing that, they gave me flowers. Then I took pictures of a man and his family who own a flower stand, and he had flowers delivered to me at the hotel. Before I knew it, I had five different bouquets standing in my room. For days I opened the door into an ocean of flowers. It was excessive, but fabulous!
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