Being A Photographer

I’ve been a photographer since the 2nd grade when I “borrowed” my dad’s brand-new Polaroid camera and drug it up into an orange tree. I remember the magic as an out-of-focus photo of two baby doves in a nest appeared before my eyes. Years later, in college, I studied at Brooks Institute in Santa Barbara and then earned a BFA in photography from the University of Arizona in Tucson. [more below]

These days, I mostly create images for people who have things to sell — food, flowers, wine, a unique place to stay and so on. Every once in a while, I come upon an inspiring scene that just catches my eye — like the juice-stained hands of my youngest son Tony holding fresh-picked strawberries. Making images like this takes me back to the magic I experienced nearly 40 years ago up in that orange tree.

It’s a privilege to work as a photographer. Contrary to the expectations of many, there is no glamor (at least not in my end of the biz). My reality is loads of hard work, many long days, lots of heavy gear, technology that keeps changing, legions of neophyte shooters entering the industry and… the opportunity to be a communicator of behalf of others. It’s the satisfaction of doing meaningful work as a communicator (assisted periodically by a couple of Advil) that keeps me moving forward.