I studied biology at Humboldt State University prior to attending California College of the Arts in San Francisco where I earned my B.A. in illustration. After receiving a postgraduate degree from the Science Illustration program at CSU Monterey Bay I was awarded a UC Merced fellowship grant allowing me to work alongside amphibian survey crews in Yosemite National Park. Upon returning home to the bay area, I worked for several years as a scientific illustrator in the Herpetology department at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco.