Helene is a chemist and photographer who has been working with computers since 1964 when she was first introduced to programming at Sewanhaka High School in Floral Park, NY.  Her first freelance photograph was published in World Tennis in 1972 while employed by E.I.DuPont. 

At about the same time, scuba diving became a passion, and underwater photography was a natural expression of her desire to share the wonders of this new adventure.  Eventually, she was fortunate to study with several well known underwater photographers including:  Dave Woodward, Nancy Sefton, Jim and Cathy Church, and Martin Sutton.   Most of this photography was done during vacations to the Caribbean and Bahamas.

In 1992, DuPont transferred, Helene to their Diagnostic Imaging Department where she was a Technical Specialist for x-ray chemicals.  At that time a colleague, Dave Williamson, who is also a professional photographer taught her about the x-ray process.  As a small gift for a client, a tiger cowrie was x-rayed... and that was the beginning of the series of x-ray images of sea shells. Several private sea shell collections from Betty Jean Piech and Lisa Mery and some shells from the world famous Delaware Museum of Natural History form the bulk of this portfolio.

After taking early retirement in 1993, Helene began to explore opportunites for her photographic work.  In 1994, she was fortunate to attend two courses at the Maine Photographic Workshops with Jon Feingersh and Lou Jones who provided guidance, perspective and encouragement from their vast experience in the industry. As a result her work may be seen in art galleries and exhibition spaces from Maine to the Caribbean.

Later in 1994 she was introduced to Adobe Photoshop at Cecil Community College, North East, MD.  Their excellent facilities allowed her to complete certificate programs in Photography (including studio/commercial courses) and Digital Imaging . She also studied Web Design and created her first website in 1995. 

One of the most rewarding aspects of digital imaging, for Helene, is the restoration of portraits that have been badly damaged over the years. After finding a rare photograph of her grandmother, that was found in pieces in an old envelope, she decided to see what could be done to undo the damage that she found. Her family was so grateful that it led her to obtain a professional dye sublimation printer and offer this service to local businesses. Please contact her if you have any pictures that you would like to have restored.

After working to build a stock portfolio for several years, her photographic and digital images are now represented by Novastock and Alamy.com . Check out some of her local, national and international Awards .

She has been volunteering her web design skills to make free websites for missionaries through WebMissions.org. You can see some of her work in the Web Design page. She has also served as both the Communications Director and the Webmaster Director for that organization.

Helene would like to thank all the mentors and professional photographers that have shared their knowledge and experience with her over the years. May they be pleased with the work that they see on this site.

Please send comments to the artist via e-mail:  Helene@synergies.com