WENDY HURST PORTRAIT

Because of human trafficking and domestic violence, many women--and  children-- will never be known as more than a statistic. The Red Dress Dinner is an annual event put on by women for a local charity. This year they selected Sheroes United, an organization established to eliminate human trafficking, domestic violence, and support Women Warriors (first responders to those two specific issues). These issues are how I learned about The Red Dress Dinner, and I was honored to run their red carpet photo booth for the evening. I can't rescue everyone affected by abuse. Maybe nobody can. But we can try-- one dollar, one conversation, maybe even one photo booth at a time.        The Red Dress Dinner       Sheroes United Here are some highlights. (Celeste Gleave (center), founder of Sheroes United) (Elaine Lewis (second from right), Red Dress Dinner VP) (Madison Staszkiewicz (right), Red Dress Dinner President)

Sarah Abraham, Model & Activist "Turn the lights out and see what happens. Sometimes it's a gift."  Gregory Heisler is iconic in the photography industry. His manner when designing photographs for 70 different LIFE Magazine covers and many an advertising campaign since the 1980s goes beyond just lighting a photograph. When he works with an individual, he seeks to create an experience that brings context and feeling together into a photograph that invites a viewer to "sink their teeth into it." Of course his advice was specific to lighting a photograph, and it's excellent advice, but it also perfectly described in words what I've been grasping to convince myself: it's time to do what's next. I've been working with a colleague to organize group shoots for other photographers for the last 18 months. My portfolio has grown, my skills have grown, and I've learned a great deal about how to negotiate the obstacles of that world. But in d