Steve Gottlieb, President, brings a distinctive background and skill set to VisionMining. After graduating from Columbia University College and Law School, Steve practiced environmental law in private firms and the federal government, where served as Assistant General Counsel of the federal Office of Management and Budget. He left law to become Environmental Director for the United States Synthetic Fuels Corporation. In his various jobs, he represented major corporations, managed a professional staff, reported to a board of directors, shaped corporate policies, served on White House task forces and testified before congressional committees.
  In a mid-life career shift, Steve became a professional photographer, producing advertising and annual report images for a long list of Blue Chip clients, such as Chase Bank, IBM, NASDAQ and Pfizer. He is the photographer—as well as author and designer—of six coffee-table books. One of his books, Abandoned America, was selected "Gift Book of the Year" by both People Magazine and USA Today. In 2003, Eastman Kodak designated Steve a "World-Class Kodak Professional Icon," one of only six photographers so honored. In 2004, Steve established Horizon Photography Workshops where he and ten other instructors offer workshops in a wide range of subjects. American Photo magazine recognized Horizon as one of the "12 Outstanding Travel Workshops in the United States." (www.horizonworkshops.com)
  Steve is an avid fan of classic movies and a competitive tennis player (he’s been ranked #1 in men's 35, 40 and 45 age divisions in the Mid-Atlantic region). Father of two grown sons, he resides in Chesapeake City, MD.

Karen Messick, Director, Business Development, has over thirty years experience in corporate executive leadership. As a recent (past) Vice-President and General Manager at Hecht Company and Macys department stores, Karen had primary responsibility for meeting an array of diverse challenges, including:
   >managed multi-million dollar sales goals and expense budgets, with hands on involvement in all aspects of the business
   >designed and implemented operating systems to increase efficiency
   >designed sales and customer service programs to improve staff-customer interaction
   >oversaw planning and managing new store openings and older facility renovations
   >coached her team to improve hiring and increase retention.
Karen has served as a consultant to The Baltimore County and Baltimore City Economic Advisory Committees. She received an MBA from Loyola College, Baltimore, Maryland and a Business Management Certificate from the University of Baltimore. Since leaving her executive position at Macys, Karen has begun a second career as a photographer. She's an instructor in digital photography in Johns Hopkins Odyssey Program and leads photography workshops. Karen resides in Towson, MD and loves to spend her spare time in South Bethany, Delaware.

Diane Shapiro, Director, Administration, has had a career that combines her love of photographs and words with her formidable management and organizational skills. At The Image Bank, then the world's largest, most prestigious stock photography agency, Diane managed a team of over thirty that served as the nerve center for 70 offices in 38 countries that marketed a collection of 2,000,000 images. She also spent a decade in book publishing, where she worked closely with such noted authors as Maya Angelou, William F. Buckley, Arianna Huffington, Arthur Miller, and John Updike. At the Wildlife Conservation Society, headquartered at the Bronx Zoo, Diane organized and expanded its century-old image library into a commercially valuable collection. Today, Diane consults with photographers to help market their work (www.image-insight-consulting.com), and she is an instructor at Horizon Photography Workshops. A summa cum laude graduate of the University of Rhode Island, Diane lives in Westchester, NY, where she is happily responsible for a menagerie of animals that range from cats to a bearded dragon.