I hate those biographies where the person writes about their own life in the third person. It seems pretentious to me. If someone else thought I was interesting enough to write about, that would be one thing, but as I have not yet found that person, it falls to me to tell you about myself.
I've been shooting for over 30 years - longer, really, if my childhood ambitions are considered. My mother gave me my first camera when I was about 8 years old and I can remember wandering around my neighborhood taking pictures of just about anything that I found interesting. Of course, mom limited me to the amount of film she would purchase and develop for me and most of the images were not worth saving. As far as I know, few images from those days survived.
So, while I was interested in photography as a child, and remained interested throughout my life, I didn't undertake the craft of photography seriously until 1979 when I purchased my first 35mm SLR camera, a Canon AT-1. I still have this camera, though I'm not sure they even sell batteries for it anymore. This camera was all manual and had a matched needle exposure meter and I only accumulated three lenses total to go with it and its successor the Canon A1. With those two cameras and three lenses and a lot of reading, I did my best to teach myself photography. I was moderately successful.
Photography has never been a full-time job for me. I was in the Navy (submarine force) from 1976 to 1996 and when I retired I started to work full time for a high tech company in Portland, Oregon. During those years I shot weddings while stationed in Upstate New York, a lucrative endeavor but too stressful for my taste, and worked with models in just about every pace I lived. I also shot landscapes, seascapes and some nature work and as interesting as those genres are, I always found myself drawn back to shooting images of people and events rather than places and things.
For most of my many years as a photographer, my wife, Wanda, has been my muse and inspiration. She's waded into icy streams, climbed trees, gone into caves, has been body painted, walked on hot sand, and contorted her body into many positions while I created my images. I like shooting in water so much that she jokes that I'll travel 100 miles out of my way to find a stream or lake in which to pose her.
In July 2002 I found a great online community of photographers at
Photography-on-the-Net. The photographers there, many of them full time professionals, were quite open and sharing with their knowledge and experience and I learned a great deal more about the craft of photography from this great community, especially about many of the more advanced aspects of lighting control and exposure. Along with a number of well-written books, POTN is one of the resources I most highly recommend to novice photographers.
In 2006 I began a series of projects which I hope culminate in a couple of books. The first project,
The Fae in Us All, started out with the simple concept that within each of us there lies a little magic and exhibits itself through our interests. You can read more about the project at the link.
Two years later I began the Women & Chains project which consists of three related series of images. Each model chosen to participate in the project completes each set of images - one in the studio, one out-doors, and another in a house or other interior setting. Both of these projects are nearing completion.
As for the rest of my life, I'm a grandfather with 4 wonderful grandchildren thus far, and I've been married to my high-school sweetheart since 1978. I'm a non-theist and believe strongly in the separation of church and state. Politically, I'm an Independent and though I've voted for both Republican and Democratic candidates in the past, I find that the Republican party has succumbed to its right wing elements to the extent I simply can't support any current candidates from that party in its present incarnation. I'm socially liberal, but I consider myself a moderate in all my other political views.
I love to read, especially science fiction and fantasy novels, since I read for escape and not just for knowledge. My music tastes are eclectic and I enjoy everything from classic rock to modern country music.
I find inspiration in the works or Julie Bell, Boris Valejo, Luis Royo and other fantasy artists. If you like my work or want to participate in any of my projects, please feel free to contact me. I can make prints available and I'm always looking for new models.
