Ngoc grew up in Vietnam, attuned to the ocean, the blue of the sky, and the green of the trees. She stumbled into photography while working on a black and white feature film. With the director and cinematographer, she pored over black and white photography books and fell in love with the art. Today she shoots interiors, food, and gardens for many international publications including Architectural Digest, Elle Decor Italy, and Martha Stewart Living. She is writing and shooting her first book, Bringing Nature Home, for Rizzoli in Spring 2012.

Question and Answer with Ngoc Minh Ngo:

Trend you miss: It seems to me that fashion was more elegant in the early 20th century.

Design inspiration: Garden designer Piet Oudolf constantly amazes me.

Collection: I grow the plants I love in my garden.

Influential movies: I love movies, and though I don't embrace the work of Lars von Trier as a whole, I do find unparalleled flashes of visual brilliance in his films. I love the work of Terrence Malick.

On the nightstand: Fearless by Tim Lott (a book that my nine year old daughter recently read and loved), Mondrian: Flowers by David Shapiro, Mourning Diary by Roland Barthes