Artist statement

I have always loved being out in nature. As a teenager I joined the Boy Scouts and spent every opportunity camping out. I loved summer Boy Scout camp.

Also, as long as I can remember I have always loved photography. I can clearly remember getting a Kodak Brownie camera for my fifth birthday. In high school I took pictures for the yearbook and I built a darkroom in my older sister’s bathroom, but only after she went away to college of course.

My love of nature and photography led me to beautiful Sonoma County in Northern California to pursue fine art nature photography as a full-time career. The attractions of Sonoma County for me are many-the rugged and dramatic coastline, lush forests with their towering redwoods, gently rolling hills dotted with gnarled and majestic oak trees, the pastoral atmosphere of farms, ranches and vineyards.  

As a fine art nature photographer I have what appears to be a significant handicap. Because of an illness I had many years ago, walking is very difficult for me. I am forced to find beauty and wonder literally at my feet, or within a very short distance from where I park my car. The challenge of working with my physical limitations however has really been a wonderful gift. I have discovered intimate and glorious worlds that most people would never perceive.

When looking closely at a Pacific Madrone tree, I noticed that the patterns, textures, colors and shapes of the bark are incredibly complex and convoluted, yet these elements can all fit together to create a perfectly balanced composition of superlative beauty. This led to my first body of work from Sonoma County called, “Bark!”

For me photography is all about feeling. Emotions are paramount. Seeing is secondary to feeling. Before I can make a photograph, I must wait for a feeling, an impression. Depending on the image, these feelings will express themselves among a wide range of positive and powerful emotions-wonder, joy, beauty, exhilaration, amazement, calmness, serenity … the list is long. These experiences intuitively tell me, “This is the photograph that I must make.”  

This can only happen for me when I am totally present in the moment. This is the essence of how I create photographs. In the present moment my mind is silent and still and there are no thoughts or judgments. I am centered in the quiet awareness of my body and my body is my guide. This gift is the result of several years of formal Zen meditation practices.

My photography is about the wonderful and positive emotions that I experience in nature. My hope is that when you look at my photography you may feel similarly inspired. In today’s highly stressful world, this is the gift I’d like to share with you.