Way to Go: Rosemary Vargas, Malverne

Rosemary Vargas loves photography because it's a way to capture fleeting moments, and now it's helped her capture a spot in a national showcase.

The Malverne High School senior will have one of her photographs exhibited this summer in the Photographic Society of America's 7th Annual Conference in San Francisco. Her work was selected out of 402 entries from 86 high schools, school officials said.

Her winning photo, titled "With Love and Kisses," features friend Candice Sabdul, a Malverne junior, posing on the ground and puckering in front of a wall of graffiti. The photo was taken in SoHo in Manhattan.

"I wanted to get something that brought out her personality, and the wall inspired me," said Vargas, 18, who called Sabdul "bubbly and colorful." Of her passion for photography, Vargas said: "A picture to me holds memories that sometimes you might forget otherwise."

Vargas said she became interested in photography as a hobby two years ago after taking a class at her high school. She used a Fujifilm digital camera to snap the winning pic.

At Malverne she is a member of the lacrosse team and National Honor Society. She plans to study biochemistry this fall at Buffalo University.