Charles Trainor, Jr., has narrowly escaped death on riot-torn streets, been smothered by the ash of an erupting volcano, and wrestled with the egos of presidents, sports figures, and Hollywood stars ... all in the pursuit of a picture. But throughout his long career as an award-winning photojournalist, Charles always believed that the most compelling pictures arise from the bonds of family. One of his best-known photographs for the Miami Herald features an image of a desperate young Cuban girl, adrift with her mother and grandmother on a raft in the Florida Straits. His two-decade project called ''The Corridor'' reveals family bonds that endure poverty and violence. Returning to the same rough, riot-wracked neighborhoods where he was once chased and beaten, Charles photographed subjects across generations, following their hopes and sorrows. And in a project that holds immense personal meaning, he produced a book called ''My First,'' a collection of photographs of his godson's first ten years, from his first day of life, to his first baseball game, to his First Holy Communion. Now, in his work with Bella Famiglia Photography, Charles has found a way to produce beautiful images of that most primary, most elemental of family bonds: The love of a mother for her child... Making beautiful images of pregnant women has become Charles's most recent professional endeavor. But he brings to the work a vast experience in journalism and photography that few others in the field can match. His photography has been honored by the Picture of the Year competition; News Faces by American Photographers Magazine; the Inter American Press Association; Sigma Delta Chi Society of Professional Journalist; National Headliner Award; Atlanta Seminar on Photojournalism; recognition by Robert F. Kennedy Awards; Columbia University's Pulitzer Prize as part of staff recognition for The Miami Herald's coverage of Hurricane Andrew and Elian; and the National Association of Hispanic Journalist.