january 2007 - Professional Photographer Magazine

get married outdoors it’s because they love
nature, and infrared creates more drama. I
think that’s what brides are looking for in
outdoor weddings.”
Until recently, Schumacher shot infrared
film with a Canon EOS-1v 35mm SLR.
Security personnel at airports refused to heed
her entreaties that infrared film canisters
cannot be opened under any circumstances.
Post 9/11, unexamined anything won’t fly.
So she converted her camera to infrared
without regret and travels easier. (For more
about the conversion technique, look in the
Bonus Content section at www.ppmag.com.)
That’s important; like photography, travel
holds a large place in her heart. Schumacher
has been to 29 countries on six continents.
“I haven’t been to Antarctica, but I’d love to
go. I really want to photograph penguins.”
The travel bug took hold in college in
Schumacher’s fourth year, when she was
accepted into the photography curriculum
in Semester at Sea, a four-month program
in which students sail around the world.
Onboard, Schumacher was known as “The
Hermit.” “Literally, I lived in the hull of the
ship where there was a darkroom,” she recalls.
“At every port we’d get off to photograph, then
I’d go right back into the darkroom. It opened
my eyes to both travel and photography.”
After graduation—with a degree in
finance, not photography—Schumacher
took off on a vision quest. In Thailand she
met some Australians who promised her
cheap rent if she moved to Australia. She
accepted the offer and soon got a job with a
commercial photographer. In 2001
Schumacher won the Nikon ACP Student of
the Year award and the prize was a dream
come true: a Nikon F100 camera. “It was
the greatest day of my life. It showed me
there were possibilities in photography.”
When Schumacher returned to Arizona,
Phoenix photographer Phyllis Lane encouraged
her to try wedding photography. Reluctant