Picture of Health

A pretty picture isn’t exactly what Francisco Chanes’ job is all about.

As principal medical photographer for the UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange, it’s his task to shoot photos of everything that goes on in the complex--from surgeries to doctor-patient visits. As a teaching hospital, UCI uses the often graphic photos for educational purposes.

Chanes, 36, has been at UCI for nine years. He originally wanted to be a commercial photographer, but a chance college internship changed his mind. The transition, though, wasn’t always easy.

“It definitely took a while to get used to medical photography,” said Chanes. “Probably the worst was going into the morgue and doing an autopsy. I used to get really wobbly. It’s hard to get used to the smells, but after a couple years I got used to it.”