Photojournalist Ellen Harasimowicz has been busy working on three new books. Her first book Northern Uganda 2008 available through www.blurb.com is an anthology from her trip to Uganda with World Vision. The second book Ellen illustrated with her photography, The Hive Detectives, is a children's science book about colony collapse disorder among honeybee populations slated for publication in the spring of 2010 which is part of the Scientists in the Field series by Houghton Mifflin. The third book, Citizen Scientists, to be published in 2011 by Henry Holt in New York, deals with projects in which average citizens help collect data for scientists. Ellen has shot two of the four chapters already. The first was Monarch Butterfly tagging in Wachusett Meadow in Princeton, MA. Monarchs were caught and tagged with small decals so they could be tracked when they traveled south in the fall. Ellen and Loree Burns, author of the two science books, will be going to Mexico this February to document the Monarchs which migrate there in the winter. The second photo shoot was the Christmas Bird Count in Central Park earlier this month. Ellen explains, "Citizens count the birds they see on a particular date at several sites around the country and the data is collected" in this way valuable information is learned about bird behavior and conservation.

What Ellen enjoys most about her photography is the process. She loves new adventures, meeting new and interesting people, "...and puzzles, and every job I photograph is just that, a puzzle. Sometimes I do research in advance and other times I just run out the door with my cameras. Creating the book on Uganda, was a way to process the trip. I was a graphic designer for years before turning to photography, so combining the two was so enjoyable. I spent countless hours doing research, working on layouts, and fine tuning. That's how I spent the majority of last summer when I wasn't working for the Globe or other freelance clients."What I enjoyed most about working on the other two books was learning about the subject matter: the plight of the honey bee, the migration pattern of the Monarch butterfly...and trying to make the best compositions to illustrate these books. I would have to say that if I ranked what I enjoy most about photography it would be the actual experience of photographing and then seeing the images for the first time."

"I feel my best images are made when I can just go out and shoot in silence. I look and sometimes I just wait for the right moment for things to come together. Nothing pleases me more than capturing a peak moment seen through my lens. This is especially true in my sports photography because the emotion is so genuine and raw. Sports are all about men's and women's accomplishments and pushing the human body to its limits. One can capture great emotion during sporting events.

Sometimes when I photograph, the camera serves as a barrier between me and my subject. In northern Uganda, the situation there is so incredibly sad that I was able to keep my emotions in check every time I put the camera to my eye." When asked what she most would like to shoot, it's "everyday scenes in developing countries where human fortitude is pushed to its limits. One of the most rewarding parts of being a photojournalist for Ellen is when people are moved by her images. When she presented her photographs from Uganda in a slideshow at St. Theresa's in October people were so moved by what they had seen. "Ten people chose to sponsor children through World Vision. That was the most satisfying moment I've had as a photojournalist."

What is Ellen dreaming up next? "For the past six years I've been photographing a lobsterman in Maine. I try to get up to midcoastal Maine as often as I can, but finding the time has been difficult. My goal, and the lobsterman's, is to finally put these images into some format before this time next year either as a magazine article or a book. Another goal would be to travel to other developing countries to document the situation there. I've spoken with people from World Vision about possibly going to Rwanda in June, but things are pretty volatile there at the moment so plans are tentative.",/p>

What advice does Ellen have for aspiring photographers? "There are four things needed to be a good photographer. You need to have good equipment, know how to use that equipment, have a good sense of design, and you need to shoot often...very often. The more you practice your craft the better you'll become. Good (read expensive) equipment will enable a photographer to capture things so-so equipment cannot, but if you don't know how to use this good equipment you might as well photograph with a point-and-shoot. Formal education isn't necessary - reading lots of books and periodicals is okay - but it helps if you want feedback on your work. Young students should look for mentors. The obvious place to find mentors is in the classroom.

As far as showing your work, young photographers interested in photojournalism should do freelance work for a local newspaper, preferably a weekly with longer deadlines than a daily paper. Those interested in art photography should enter their photographs in as many local competitions/exhibitions as possible. They should apply for grants, as well."

Ellen gets her inspiration from always keeping her eyes open for possibilities and by pursuing things that truly interest her. "We've always told our children to follow their passion and do things they love to do. I love to photograph. When the Globe asked me more than three years ago if I wanted to work for them, I was terrified that I wasn't good enough. But I remembered something that world-renowned photographer Joe McNally told me during a workshop...'The job you fear the most is the one you must do.' We only get better at our craft when we push ourselves beyond what we perceive to be our boundaries." To see more of Ellen's captivating work, visit her website at www.ellenharasimowicz.com.