Shirley holds a degree from the New School University, and has completed additional studies at Fordham University and the International Center for Photography. She was a founding partner and creative director for eight years of Somos Arte, featured in The New York Times in 2010 in an article titled “Helping Do Good by Looking Good.” At age 22 she started her collection LatiNatural , a work comprising over 150 portraits and nudes exploring the diverse experiences and body images of Latina women, which was later exhibited in New York City (at The Bolivar Arellano Gallery and The Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute, among others) and featured on Univision and the magazines Latina and Mija. LatiNatural also earned her a Mujeres Destacadas Award (Distinguished Women Award) from El Diario/La Prensa in 2005. Her commercial photography has been featured in Vibe, Crain’s, Siempre Mujer, Latina and Hispanic, among other publications. Notable clients have included Olay, Fruit of the Loom, Girls Scouts of the USA, Simon & Schuster (book covers), Pantene, Isaac Mizrahi, and the HBO New York International Latino Film Festival, for whom she collaborated in the 2008 campaign that won the PromaxBDA Bronze Award. Being partial to portraiture, she has shot a wide array of diverse personalities, including hip hop heavyweights RedMan and Asher Roth, and award-winning actor/playwright/director Danny Hoch.