That look has continued into adulthood. A Woodbury resident, Ms. Lee has self-published a book of photographs she has taken over the years.

The book, "One Eye, Two Minds," is for sale on the Blurb website and is available at the Woodbury Public Library.

"For this book, I tried to make it show all the different talents I can do for photography - film, graphic design on computers, direct shots, photo manipulation of negatives," Ms. Lee told Voices.

She spent a great deal of time thinking about the title.

"One eye represents the photographer," said Ms. Lee. "Two minds represents myself and the viewer."

Ms. Lee's camera is with her wherever she goes. After she graduates from college, she said she wants to spend time applying for jobs as a photographer, perhaps with National Geographic.

Ms. Lee, a senior in college, is already an accomplished photographer. In 2008, she was a runner up in the China in My Eyes Beijing 2008 Olympics essay and photography competition.

When she was at Westover School in Middlebury, she received the Emily Christopher Award for Photography at Westover School in 2004 and 2005.

In 2006, Ms. Lee won the Excellence in Studio Art, Gail Whitney Stur Prize at Westover School; the National Silver Key Portfolio, Alliance for Youth Artists and Writers; the State Gold Key Portfolio, Alliance for Youth Artists and Writers; Best in Show for Photography, Alliance for Youth Artists and Writers and first place in the adult art hobbies division at the Bethlehem Fair.

Ms. Lee has a fighting spirit when it comes to her passion for photography. When she participated in the Center for Creative Youth at Wesleyan University and received her list of needed supplies, a camera was one of the items on the list.

Ms. Lee did not own a camera at the time, so she made one.

"I made a pinhole camera with an oatmeal box," she said. "The teacher asked if I wanted to use his camera. I said, 'no, I can take pictures with my camera that are just as good as others'."

Ms. Lee painted the inside of the oatmeal box black and would line the pinhole camera up with the subject. She would take a picture by pulling back a flap of black paint to let light into the camera.

Film records the image that comes in through the pinhole. Ms. Lee said she would take 20 pictures before learning how many seconds of exposure were needed.

As a college student, Ms. Lee said she struck a bargain with her parents - if she finished her dental courses in two years, she could switch to a fine arts major and study photography. "For two years, it was all science," she said.

An artistic person studying a technical subject for two years seems like an anomaly. It was tough, but Ms. Lee's fighting spirit shone through again.

"I really wanted to do photography and I'm willing to do anything I can to do it," she said.

Ms. Lee has traveled for her craft, taking more than 10,000 photographs in the U.S., China and England, to name a few locations. The front cover of the book is a photograph of her sister's foot, symbolic of her desire for her book to travel to different locations.

The back cover of the book features an underground tunnel in England, which she hopes encourages people to look through the book again.

Ms. Lee and her sister, Jin Lee, both graduated from Woodbury Middle School and Westover School. The similarities do not end there - Jin Lee also published a book of photography, titled "Where East Meets West," that is also available on the Blurb website.

Jin is studying for a Ph.D. in experimental psychology at a school in England and received a double major in neuroscience and biology as an undergraduate student. She conducts research on infant visual development by recording their brain waves.

Rona Lee credits her photography teacher at Westover, Michael Gallagher, as an inspiration.

She intends to publish another book of her photography in January. This one will be autobiographical, with explanations of the photographs in it, she said. A trip to China to visit with elders in the area where she grew up will likely yield photographs for her second book.

Ms. Lee chose not to offer explanations of her photographs in the first book, leaving it up to the reader to interpret the photographs. She will say this about the book.

"The photographs are pleasing to the eye," said Ms. Lee. "They also show the hardships - good days, gloomy days - people change the way our weather does."

She said she takes photographs that represent what she does each day. She once took a photograph of a butterfly on a flower, outside the restaurant her family owns, Ting Jiang Village Cafe.

Taking pictures of the natural art that exists in the world appeals to Ms. Lee.

"An animal is a subject, and you make art out of it," she said. "People, flowers - I just want a subject to be there. Even if it's just a table in good sunlight, I'd love to take a picture of that.

"Like the flower outside the restaurant. It's just a moment in time that people miss, and that's what I want to catch. It's not a waste, that you missed it, because I caught it for you."

Those seeking additional information may e-mail Ms. Lee at rongli.7@gmail.com or visit www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/810411 for "One Eye, Two Minds," and www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/863837 for "Where East meets West."