My grandfather gave my my first point and shoot camera when I was seven years old. It was wrapped in a box to look like, agast! a sweater! But when I finally got it open, I forgot what the other birthday gifts were that year.

My grandfather was an avid photographer- he inspired me as a small child and in the five years since his death in 2004, the memory of him studying the angles, tweaking the focus and generally driving us crazy while he got his perfect shot gives me hope when I'm being just as nutty about laying on the floor of a church or sidewalk that I have a little of his passion and artistic talent.

Documenting pretty things, ugly things, family things, travel things is in my blood. What's in yours?