Way to Go: Lea Jaffe, Long Beach

Lea Jaffe, a sophomore at Long Beach High School, was... — Lea Jaffe, a sophomore at Long Beach High School, was runner-up in the "Cell" Yourself Friday contest coordinated by Professional Women Photographers, a New York-based nonprofit professional support organization. Credit: Long Beach City School District

By MICHAEL R. EBERTmichael.ebert@newsday.comFebruary 5, 2015

A Long Beach teen with an eye for photography is the second-place winner in a national competition.

Lea Jaffe, a sophomore at Long Beach High School, was runner-up in the "Cell" Yourself Friday contest coordinated by Professional Women Photographers, a New York-based nonprofit professional support organization.

Jaffe entered the contest during a class trip to the PDN Photo- Plus International Conference and Expo, which was held at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Manhattan in late October. The contest challenged participants to arrange a series of props and lighting to their liking for a photograph submission, with winners determined at the end of each day.

Jaffe's winning submission featured a person's hand holding a sparkly mask with the mask's shadow visible on a backdrop.

"I thought that most people would use several elements laid out on the table, but I wanted to focus on one and decided to use its shadow," said Jaffe.

In addition to being a photographer, Jaffe plays the viola in her high school's symphonic orchestra. She also is an active member of the school's stage crew and Model Congress.

The conference and expo was attended by more than 22,000 professional photographers and enthusiasts. It also featured more than 200 exhibits and 80 seminars, keynote presentations and other events.