Light Meter – Lisa: The Biography

“I don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl but it’s a photographer,” said the doctor to my mom as he was delivering me. Alright, alright maybe he actually said ‘redhead’ and not ‘photographer’ but my line is funnier.

At age 6, my parents gave me a Yogi Bear 35mm camera and the love of picture taking was instant. I began posing family, friends and neighbors right away. There’s some proof around the house that I got my hands on a Polaroid as well. While growing up I studied album covers taking careful notice of how people were arranged, light and shadows. The funny thing is that I wasn’t even all that aware that what I was doing was shall we say, odd, for a kid and later a teenager. I’ll speed this up a bit, at 20 I was a full-time staff photographer for several local papers and a graduate of New England School of Photography.

Disney as a company was a part of my life like most kids. My parents took my brother and I to Walt Disney World and Disneyland a couple of times. We went to movies, watched TV shows, and listened to soundtracks. In my late teens and early 20’s I started tagging along with my dad on business trips to Orlando and taking vacations with friends.

The real Disney fanatic in me sprung to life in 1998 when I spent the Summer in southern California. If my memory serves me right, I only went to the park once or twice back then and the fact that Disneyland was a mere 15 minutes away was torture. From my friend’s driveway I use to watch the fireworks. Just 6 months later I moved to CA. With a So Cal Resident Annual Pass in hand and friends to play with, I hit the parks weekly if not more. It was our hangout where we felt safe and could be our true dorky selves. Sometimes we did nothing more than have dinner and walk around. My favorite thing to do was to sit in Town Square and watch the characters interact with guests.

As for Walt Disney World, I started buying annual passes in 2004. With an abundance of information online here on AllEars.Net, and other sites I absorbed the material like a sponge and joined a few communities. It’s amazing how the Internet can bring people with a common interest together from various states, let alone countries.

Inbetwixt all of my photography gigs I’ve accumulated more than 5 years experience in retail camera sales. Deb asked me to assist those of you who have and those who are looking to purchase point and shoot cameras, including high-end models. I’ll guide you through the lingo, what to look for and how to get better results from what you have. Deb, thanks for inviting me to be a part of Picture This!. Feel free to ask me any questions except when the 3 o’clock parade is.