TULITA/FORT NORMAN
Maylene Andrew loves her land and has the photos to prove it. The Grade 11 student at Chief Albert Wright School now has an entire Facebook page dedicated to her photos of the Tulita landscape.

"I like photography because it expresses who I am," she said. "I also love being on the land."

Her Facebook page, Nature of Tulita, already contains some of her best work.

Andrew is a member of the school's photography class, which held its first exhibit on June 9. She said the event encouraged her to share her photos with others.

"It actually felt like a big accomplishment, people can see how creative you can be through your photos," she said. "I put a little short story behind each photo I've made."

Andrew said she's always been interested in art.

"I've been drawing since I was probably 12," she said. "I do a lot of writing, too. I try to make little short stories or novels."

Now that she's added photography to her list of talents, she said she hopes to expand her skills.

"I didn't know very much about photography before," she said. "Now I can see what I can do with it."

While she enjoys taking photos, Andrew said her passion is editing.

"I just like to edit photos, you can create more stuff into it," she said. "You can make the photo blurry in some parts, or make it stand out."

Her skillful editing has already resulted in unique pieces of art.

"The fist photo I like to call Moon Struck," she said. "I took the photo and I edited it and the sky looks really dark. The landscape just pops out green and black. It really pops out."

For now, she said she plans to concentrate on the Tulita area, but would like to include photos from other areas in the region. She said she has contacted friends in other communities, such as Colville Lake, asking them to send her photos which she would then edit.

"I want to try to get friends to send photos from their landscapes from throughout the Sahtu," she said.

Now that she's established her craft, Andrew said she is interested in pursuing photography as a way to make a living.

"I'm actually thinking about taking photography as a career right now," she said. "I might take photos and see if I can sell them to people."

In the meantime, Andrew said she's happy just to be doing what she loves.

"It's fun as well," she said.

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