After five years as a photojournalist at The News & Advance, I have learned that this job is less about taking pictures and more about getting to know the people I photograph.

Like Dominette "Diva" Yasin, a hairstylist who gave free trims to homeless men and women. Or Ethan Coleman, the last boy in his family to join the Marines, as he returns leaves for his first tour in Afghanistan.

I've been there in the happiest times and also the worst; simple moments and historic events.

I've seen thousands of Central Virginia seniors graduate from commencement exercises at a dozen or more schools.

I photographed the embrace of a father and his college daughter on the Virginia Tech campus, just hours after the horrific mass shooting on April 16, 2007.

I laughed along with hundreds of others while watching a mule dunk a basketball at Campbell County's annual Harvest Festival.

I've been to too many funerals.

While I've helped document this area, I can't help but be imprinted as well. I've learned that I love hushpuppies and slaw on top of my BBQ sandwich, good soul music and the sound of a dobro. I'll miss the mountains and the feeling of always knowing someone in a crowd around town.

What images of Central Virginia will stay with me as I make my new home in Utah? Here are just a few.

—Kim Raff