Image Essay by Mary Dineen
Artist's Statement
My photographs reflect what I love. Most of my work is macro, since texture and detail fascinate me. As a child I wanted to be an oceanographer or an archaeologist, observing and recording what I saw. Photography satisfies that desire.
When I’m taking pictures, everything else falls away. My focus is entirely on seeing, and I’m relaxed and alive in a way I never am outside of meditation.
I love showing my work, especially when people respond with passion. A photographer from Italy once wrote to me, “Flowers should elect you their queen.” That kind of response makes me both happy and humble. I see myself as simply documenting the beauty that exists in the natural world, and I want to continually improve my ability to present it.
Having worked in many different fields, I feel blessed to be able to do what I love, capturing nature moving through its cycles of birth and death.
Mary Dineen lives in Arlington, Massachusetts, with her partner, the writer Jennie Rathbun, and two orange boys. She’s been a professional nature photographer for six years and has participated in the Boston Arts Festival, Coolidge Corner Arts Festival, Art Beat Somerville, Arlington Open Studios, and more. Her work has been published in Digital Photo U.K., Redivider Literary Magazine, and Grace Ormonde Wedding Style.
In 2011, Mary won the grand prize in the Massachusetts Audubon Society’s photo contest. In 2012, she won in its pro category for wildlife images.
For more information, see her website Mary Dineen Photography.