It’s time to update my website. I haven’t touched it for a while, and, for me, it’s a daunting task. Because most of the recommendations and testimonials on the site are from people I worked with over three years ago, I’ve been asking people I’ve worked with recently to write something. I recently received this one from Ioana Moldovan:
It was September 10th, 2015, when I had the inspiration to write Mary a message asking for her help. I had just returned from Ukraine, doing a story from the front lines of the war with Russia. I thought it was the most important work I had done that far and believed it needed a professional editor to give it the narrative arc I couldn’t. As a freelance, self-taught photojournalist from Romania, I had never worked with a professional photo editor before. The whole process was unfamiliar to me.
“Hi Ioana,” Mary wrote back, “it's hard to put in a little Facebook message what I can do, but basically anything you need.” At that moment, I was far from grasping the full extent of what that “anything” meant.
Ever since, Mary has been there for every important body of work I have done. She was never just an editor joggling images to send the right message, but also the person who challenged me to push my limits, to dig deeper, both into the story and myself. Mary has a sensitive eye, a deep and comprehensive view and a keen attention to details. She has this amazing ability to turn up the volume on a story and give its voice clarity and meaning. And she has the patience to make me understand why one photo is more suited than the other or why another approach might do the trick.
Working with Mary not only gave my stories the better look and feel they needed, but it made me a better photographer.
Now I know what “anything you need” stood for. It actually meant everything you need. I guess September 10th, 2015, truly was a day of inspiration.
Thank you, Mary! For precisely everything.
