I think that photography has allowed me to have a voice. I used to stutter, and once I overcame that struggle, it felt good to tell people they were beautiful and special.

The photograph is to a great degree evidence of the conversation I had with the person. It's a part of my visual diary.

When I approach a person, I feel a certain way. If I don't feel that way, I'm not going to approach that individual. "I see something in you" - I want the person to know that.

I think what it was with the war photography was the concerned eye, the desire to document these situations to show the world the horrors of war. It inspired me to document prostitution; inspired me to document homelessness in America. We are the richest country in the world, yet we have people suffering, so it helped me to look at things in that manner.

I read a recent statistic that eighty-seven percent of women are dissatisfied with themselves, and over forty-seven percent of men. My work is visu-medicine to heal people and see beauty within people.

I place myself in situations where a lot of people are going to be, and bring a particular body of work that reflects the people already there. You have to study your subject.

The images of war inspired me to create, to go to different situations and communities, to document the human side of people, to show a side that we don't see.