About Steven Shpall

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Sitting at his desk, pondering a portrait, Steven Shpall noticed that his reflection in the desk was far more interesting than the image alone.

The result was a tandem self-portrait of sorts.

"It just sort of happened," said Shpall, who also placed first in the Views Beyond the Peninsula category and second in Peninsula Images, with an honorable mention in the Manipulated Images division.

Shpall's interest in the human face extends beyond the digital darkroom. A Mountain View-based dermatologist, he looks at patterns and spots every day, and uses the camera to document change over time.

"Dermatology is all visual so to explain things to people you need to use pictures," he said.

Now, as a portrait photographer, Shpall is taking his work home with him.

--Colleen Corcoran