About Maricruz Alvarado

Maricruz Alvarado thought she could transform her friend Elizabeth's despair into something enjoyable -- with the help of her camera.

Click on photo for larger image.

"I can express her feelings and reflect them," Alvarado said.

The 14-year-old East Side High School freshman first began pursuing photography thanks to a school class in August 2001. Her award-winning photograph, was originally a project assignment but became much more when it was given an honorable mention for this year's Weekly Photo Contest. It was the second time she's submitted to the contest, but her first win.

Maricruz tends to enjoy reading when she's not snapping pictures, but her real pursuit is engineering, which she hopes to study in college once her years in high school are completed.

The Menlo Park resident is the youngest of three children. She'll be utilizing her camera frequently this summer, but only when she isn't working in a program for children at Belle Haven School. Alvarado says that her photography would be quite different without a human presence.

"I don't think pictures are fun without people," she said.

-- Tyler Hanley