Photographer Ray Briggs of Okushi Photography recently shot an emotionally charged, powerful portrait that implores people to stay home so that we can protect our health care workers. His wife Mary, the subject, is a nurse on the front lines of the COVID pandemic.
Deb Schwedhelm is a wife, mother, former nurse in the US Air Force and professional photographer who specializes in shooting underwater. Her photographs have been exhibited widely and featured in numerous publications throughout the world. Visit her website here.
PetaPixel: First off, tell us a little bit about yourself and your background. You were a nurse in the Air Force before becoming a photographer, right?
Deb Schwedhelm: I grew up in Detroit, Michigan. After two years of nursing school, I decided to enlist in the Army Reserves. After boot camp and Advanced Individual Training (to become a Unit Supply Specialist), I returned to college and finished my Bachelors in Nursing. I then decided to become an Active Duty Registered Nurse, which I continued to do for 10 years. In 2003, I separated from the military in order to pursue a cochlear implant for my hearing-impaired daughter. In 2006, I purchases a DSLR and begin teaching myself photography -- a longtime dream of mine (more on that below).