Hi NPN!
My name is Brenda Petrella, and I’m a nature photographer based in the beautiful state of Vermont. I’m the founder of Outdoor Photography School, an online resource that teaches both photography and outdoor skills through articles and videos, and I’m the host of the weekly Outdoor Photography Podcast.
Prior to photography, I was the principal investigator of a molecular cancer research laboratory and later oversaw biomedical safety and compliance at a biomedical research institution. In late 2016, suffering from a major burnout and depression, I made the difficult decision to close the doors on my scientific career without much of a plan other than to honor my love of the outdoors and pursue a long-standing interest in landscape and nature photography.
I fully immersed myself into the study of photography much in the same way that I approached my graduate studies in molecular biology - all in. And I never looked back. You can see some of my work on my website at https://www.brendapetrella.com (it needs to be updated!) or on Instagram.
Around 2018, I started a tutorial YouTube channel as an experiment and discovered another passion, which is teaching photography and sharing my reverence for nature with others who also want to connect with the natural world through their photography. It was that experiment that prompted me to create Outdoor Photography School.
My approach to photography is what many would call slow or contemplative and non-iconic. I much prefer to photograph small scenes and the little stories that nature tells than the grand landscape, although when the mountains call, I listen!
When I’m not doing photography, creating content, or teaching, I love to hike, bike, snowshoe, paddle, do creative projects with my hands, garden, and spend time with my 3.5yr old daughter (Maya), puppy (Cedar), and two rescue cows (Ms. Bovine and Ferdinand).
I’m looking forward to answering your questions for 24 hours starting at 9:00am (EST) on August 3rd. Here are a few rules:
AMA Rules:
-
Please only ask one question by replying to this topic a single time, using the yellow Reply button at the bottom. It’s also helpful to scroll to the bottom while reading the topic to make sure nobody else has asked the same question first, before you ask.
-
Please don’t ask more than one question, so everyone gets a chance.
-
Please do not reply to anyone else’s post. The only purpose of replies here on this topic is to ask the author one question. Create a new topic if you’d like to discuss a related topic in more detail.
Posts not following these guidelines may be removed by moderators to keep the Q&A flowing smoothly. Thank you!