____More than just a medium for documenting the world in front of me, photography is an art form wherein I am free to communicate a message for which words would simply not suffice. My camera and lens allow me to communicate to others the wonderment that nature instills in me when I am faced with the breathtaking scenery of our natural world. It is my goal that my representation of nature, through the lens of my camera, will convey my own appreciation for the environment and remind the viewer of the beauty that could be lost forever if we as a whole don’t take responsibility for our planet. I feel that mankind has a unique duty to safeguard and protect the environment in which he lives. The natural world, however, is often neglected or sacrificed for the seemingly “greater good” of mankind. But it is undeniable that the viability and well-being of the environment is a linchpin of Mankind’s own survival. Far from any extremist viewpoints on nature conservation, I feel it is entirely possible to strike a balance between living comfortably, having a prosperous economy and enjoying all the current creature comforts of this age while still preserving and fortifying the environment in an unspoiled state. With each image I put out, I intend to increase the viewers’ appreciation for nature and their passion for protecting it. By communicating the scene as it was through my eyes, hopefully others will see nature for the work of art that it is
____With my roots in color transparency film, I approach digital photography with the objective of accomplishing as much as possible for the image in-camera and on-location. With all the “magic” one can work on a photograph in this day of digital imaging and computers, it can be easy for photographers to get carried away with the click of a mouse and try to pass off a drastically altered picture as original. With this in mind, I never make any extreme adjustments to the image after I have clicked the shutter. Beyond normal, necessary post-production adjustments and processing, I never digitally remove elements from an image, combine multiple images or make major adjustments to exposure. My mantra is, “Don’t do anything to an image I couldn’t have accomplished with film.” This helps me convey the scene’s true beauty as it was viewed through my eyes at the moment of capture.

____I was born and raised in the suburban town of Irvine located in Orange County, CA where I had a quiet upbringing with my two older brothers, Blake and Drew. I was a good student, I have no fight stories or drug history, I never hung out with a bad crowd and I'm pretty much clean as a whistle. I used to be uncomfortable with that - safety, hard work and an ethical life seem to be frowned upon by some high schoolers (and adults I might add) - but now I'm proud of it.
____A lot of my work is from various spots in Orange County and other parts of Southern California. This is partly because those places are close to me geographically and partly because I grew up hiking through these areas with my dad, so I see them as beautiful, lesser-seen landscapes just waiting to be photographed. Ansel Adams had Yosemite, I have Laguna Beach. Okay, maybe that's a bit of a roseate view on this county. It's no Yosemite Valley and I am certainly no Ansel Adams, but there are still plenty of pictures to be had here.
____I currently focus my efforts on fine art nature photography, greeting cards, photography workshops, travel and nature stock photography. To see my stock photography catalog, check out that section of my website here. To see my portraiture work, check out that section of my website here.
____In addition to obvious interests like hiking, backpacking, traveling and outdoor activities, I also love movies, music, bowling, joking around with my brothers, hanging out with friends and I've been known to cut a rug like it's nobody's business when the mood strikes me. I also love hearing from other photographers, people that are interested in photography, anybody who like my work and even people that just stumbled across my site and want to drop me a line (unless it's hate mail), so contact me anytime.

____ I was lucky enough to find photography at the early age of 13. I elected to take a technology class in seventh grade that had various subjects we could study including architecture, robotics, lasers and wood shop. This class was taught by Mr. Tucker who, to this day, remains one of my favorite teachers of all time. He was a laid back guy with an accent from somewhere I never nailed down (Tennessee maybe?) and a great sense of humor. He really cared about his students and truly wanted everyone to learn something valuable from his class while having fun.
____One of the subjects available in this technology class was photography. It was a hot pick among the students and there wasn't enough time in the session to study every subject, so there was really no guarantee I would get to study it. Truthfully, I was itching to do the robotics unit and only had a slight interest in the photography unit. Thankfully, my best friend really wanted to do photography and was a driving force behind my decision to take photography over robotics. I'm sure glad he convinced me to join him because it obviously changed the course of my life for the best (I owe ya one, Mike).
____ I soon realized that I wanted to pursue photography more seriously and get my own SLR camera. My parents, who I thank immensely for always supporting me in my photography, bought me my first SLR camera for seventh grade graduation. It was an old Minolta XG-M manual focus, analog SLR camera bought from a local pawn shop. This thing was basically a light-tight box with a lens and light meter; everything was set manually. I was forced to learn what the various components of my camera were and how each one of them contributed to the final picture. I experimented with countless rolls of print film, trying out different apertures, shutter speeds and camera settings. I learned from my mistakes and grew from experience.

____With the exception of that one small portion of my technology class in seventh grade, I have received no formal education in photography. All of my training has come from personal study; reading, researching, testing and trial and error, but no formal courses.
____ The mode of operation I tend to take in regards to learning photography is to read something credible, like a book or article by a professional, successful photographer, then to go try it out for myself. I experiment with new techniques and try new tips I've read about. If it works for me, then I continue to apply it. If it doesn't work for me, then at least I have mastered it to a point where I could use it in the future. And if I need more data on a particular aspect of photography, the web lends me a hand as a great resource.
____ Books are the best source, in my opinion, for learning the theory side of photography. A thorough book written by a very successful and respectable professional can yield invaluable data. I always look for books that are written by professionals in my same field of photography and that have a proven track record of valuable final products. In other words, don't buy into data, in a book or otherwise, as given by someone who has not proven themselves as a successful photographer in that field.
____ As for learning the practical side of photography, well that's easy: I get my camera, go out and try it for myself. There is truly no better way to master photography than to experience it through practical application. Testing techniques out and experimenting with new ideas not only shows you what works and what doesn't, but it also acts as photographic "exercises." Just as your math teacher made you do daily "warm-ups" in high school, this method of trial and error gets you more comfortable with your tools and with applying the theory you have learned.