Nancy Ostertag

Nancy is a writer and photographer in New York who grew up with cameras as an integral part of her family culture. "If photography is a language, I'm a native speaker." Nancy started her career as an intern for Annie Leibovitz after studying Philosophy at Rutgers. "I had no experience. I walked into her studio with a blank resume and asked for a job." In the mid-nineties, Nancy followed another passion and moved to Los Angeles to work in the film industry. "I was one of those kids who watched my favorite movies repeatedly and could quote every line." She started shooting stills for Roger Corman productions, falling in love with the process of filmmaking. Nancy later worked as the photo archivist and staff photographer for the American Film Institute. "For seven years, I was immersed in a world of storytellers." It was at AFI that Nancy began collaborating with filmmaker Vanessa Ruane. Now on the East Coast, Nancy has spent the last fifteen years working for The Travel Channel, Discovery, and National Geographic. She is currently the photo editor for NatGeo's partner, Lindblad Expeditions.