Jennifer Murphree of Holly Pond sees the world through a different lens.

Nature, in particular, is awash in color and texture, from the flutter of a bird’s wing to the soft ruffled edge of a rain-soaked rose’s petals. She uses her camera to capture the wonder of the natural world, whether it’s family pets, birds soaring across the Smokey Mountains or cattle in neighbor’s pasture.

Her series of photographs featuring a full moon are particularly stunning, framed by an array of foliage.

Murphree has autism so forming a connection with others can be difficult at times, but she’s found photography is a way to reach out and grab others and make them look and see and feel the beauty of the things she sees all around her.

Jennifer has been taking photos since she graduated high school at Holly Pond. She used graduation money to purchase a camera, and she hasn’t stopped snapping since.

“She loves taking photos of birds. We spent five hours on the side of the road in Guntersville while she took photos of eagles, and when the weather gets warmer, she wants to go to Wheeler Wildlife Refuge to take photos there,” said her mother Tina Murphree.

Jennifer hasn’t had any formal photography instruction, but she’s spent the past eight years shooting constantly.

“Anytime she has question or problem, she’s always looked it up herself. She googles it or looks it up on youtube,” Tina Murphree said.

Jennifer hopes to make money from her photos, that’s why she saves her money and invests in cameras, lens and other equipment.

“She’s very good at catching children in their natural element, not posed,” Tina Murphree said. “She’s won several awards, and she has ribbons from the Cullman County Fair that line the walls of her room.”

Among those awards are for a juried photography competition in Gadsden, and she’s also had her work displayed in a museum there. Currently, several of her photos are on display at the Cullman County Courthouse.

“We were out at Duck River Dam a while back, and she was taking photos of this old house with an old 18-wheeler trailer and an oak tree beside it, and I asked her, ‘Why are you taking photos of that?’ and she said, ‘I like it. It’s old,’” Tina Murphree said. “And then I saw the photos when we got done and was amazed how she was able to capture the beauty of it it all.”