Maribel Abruzzo

Utata Member

Bio

My first camera was the Kodak disc, which I received as a birthday gift when I was in junior high school. It was around that time that my father bought a Canon AE-1 and I became fascinated with the mechanics of 35mm photography. Granted, I really didn't know what I was doing until I took my first photography class in college, long before the age of digital photography. But my background in art honed my eye for color and composition and taught me to think conceptually.

I graduated college with a degree in art with a strong emphasis in art history. The artists that give me goosebumps are Gustav Klimt, Henri Toulouse-Latrec, and Leonardo da Vinci.

I worked for a number of years as a graphic designer before becoming a full time parent, and that was when I rediscovered my passion for photography. My oldest child's first three years were diligently recorded with that same old Canon AE-1. I received my first digital camera, a Canon G3, shortly before my second child was born in 2003, and I quickly fell in love with the seemingly limitless boundaries of digital photography.

And the rest, as they say, is history....

Testimonial

I can't say which is more remarkable, Marabel's "eye" or her eyes. There is an intimacy that comes from immersing oneself in another photographer's photostream - a sense of seeing the world through their eyes and getting to know that "eye" and how it sees. But in this case, it is not only seeing Marabel's world and children through her eyes - it is also a most intimate journey of seeing her eyes through her love of self-portraiture as well.

Bel's background as an artist is apparent in her selection of settings, colors, and composition. But it's her ability to capture intimate feelings that are found only in fleeting moments that demonstrates her success as a photographer. This is, in a way, the very nature of photography - to capture evanescent moments that communicate feelings and touch the viewer's deep places.

Bel's subjects become then, the medium she uses to communicate those feelings. In this case, she has a rich palette in her own self-portraiture, her children, an occasional underwater shot, and an eye for the perfect shot in the library. And here is where her "eye" meets her eyes - it's a beautiful palette as well. Her natural beauty, her beautiful children, and her education in color and form all are combined with grace and skill into these memorable photographs.

Please take a moment and wander through Marabel's world, and enjoy her eye and eyes. The feelings you encounter and the beauty you will see make it a most wondrous and delightful journey.

Testimonial written by James