I became a photojournalist at age six when, along with the usual pile of hand-me-down clothes, my sister also passed on a used Brownie camera. Three years later, I entered the Little Miss Moraga Pageant with the single goal in mind of winning the second place prize, a brand new instamatic.

This was the only time in my life I was thrilled to win second place. While my cameras have changed and I no longer burn my fingers on Magic Cubes, I can’t remember a time in my life when I wasn’t documenting my friends, my family, and my environment.