I grew up with photographs-the black and white snapshots of relatives I never knew-the stately portraits, the antics caught candidly, and their fondness for each other. Photographs from the LIFE magazines, National Geographic and the US Camera books of the 50s, showed me many places documenting the lives of the people who lived there. All these things shaped my intuitive sense of photography as I work today. I still feel drawn to the still image, fascinated by its capabilities to capture life in a fleeting moment. My photographs are “straight”-no filters or digital manipulation unless color and density need to be improved. I prefer to edit and crop when I am photographing, rarely cropping a finished photograph. I study the quality of the light in relation to the subject matter, finding a balance or tension in order to create an image. Traveling has provided me with many places to explore and photograph. Visit my website www.annetconverse to view photographs-which I continue to add-and the book and video for sale.