Hello, Kristine – Thanks for stumbling upon on my web site and for being inspired by it! I appreciate that very much.

Psychology and photojournalism is a very nice mix, and I think you can easily do BOTH as I have done, it just takes a little extra effort. I entered the mental health field in the mid-seventies and got my doctorate by '77; but it wasn't until the mid-eighties that I started exploring photography in earnest as an avocation.

As a mental health professional, I felt that I needed to have an enduring and compelling interest other than psychology to help keep my head clear. So many health professionals, including physicians, live their professions 24-hours a day, which I do not think is very healthy for them. Working with people is difficult and we have to have 'a life' for ourselves elsewhere lest we get too over-focused on those we serve.

This happens a lot, unfortunately, and it is never good. The patient suffers by becoming too dependent upon the excessively focused professional, and the professional themselves suffer from escalating stress with no adequate release for it elsewhere.

It used to be that people entered a profession and stayed active in it for life. It was thought that a profession that required so much education and training demanded such, and perhaps deserved such. And that's what people did, for generations it seems.

Today, however, job security is not what it used to be. Society is changing, the workplace is changing, and the astute person today will strive to be educated as broadly as possible in order to cope with changing demands.

Dr. Ellen in Australia Photo by Dr. Nicole Duplaix

It is a bit like private practice: you can't start out in private practice as a psychologist, you have to take small steps towards that goal in order to be as experienced as possible when you get there. So don't rush things!

Photojournalism is a wonderfully creative domain and it will serve you well. That, combined with a psychological understanding of humans and how they work, will only enhance your options; and it will give you an edge over other photojournalists who are more singularly trained. Your writings will definitely reflect your broadened world view.

Finally, I would say that being constantly creative is something that I treasure most in life. Creativity stirs and energizes me, and it washes away any fears and anxieties that might otherwise consume me.

I think that those who lack creative opportunities in life suffer dearly for it.