About

I learned to work in a black-and-white darkroom in sixth grade. In high school, I did a little freelance photography for the school newspaper and yearbook, but photography took a back seat while I was busy building a career as an engineer and manager.

After retiring, I returned to photography by acquiring some well-worn, second-hand, professional-grade Nikon equipment. Despite the “pro” gear, I am very much a hobbyist photographer. I always want to improve my skills, but I have absolutely no desire to become a professional photographer! I was hired once, many years ago, and it went horribly wrong—so never again!

Being a hobbyist has actually created an interesting challenge. In many places, simply showing up with a serious-looking camera can lead people to assume that I am working professionally. Some locations have restrictions on photography, while others are concerned about commercial photography, so I sometimes find myself having to explain that I am just an enthusiast pursuing a hobby.

That leads to a question I occasionally get: “Why do photography if you can’t get paid for it?”

My answer is another question: “Why do people do crossword puzzles?”

Not everything we do needs to have a financial payoff. For me, photography is about curiosity, learning, solving visual problems, noticing things I might otherwise overlook, and continually trying to get a little better. The reward is the experience—not the paycheck.

I also have some challenges when it comes to the more “artistic” side of photography. As a stereotypically severely myopic, dyslexic, autistic, asthmatic photographer, I don’t always find it easy to see photographs in the way other photographers seem to. I often find myself exploring ways to develop that visual awareness—to learn how to see, how to tell stories, and how to translate what I notice into an image.

I may never become an “artist” in the conventional sense, and that’s OK. I’m here to learn, experiment, and enjoy the process.