Taking the Plunge
For as long as I can remember I have had a camera and loved taking photographs. I am old enough to remember the days of film; dropping the rolls in the mailer, and waiting for them to return. I didn't have my first digital camera until I was in my teenage years. Finally about a decade ago I bought my first DSLR as a birthday present for myself. The learning curve was steep, but as soon as I had it in my hands I set it to full manual, and was determined to figure it out. I will be the first one to tell you that I have had zero training in the area of photography, didn't even take a class in college, so my knowledge beyond "Point and Shoot" was non-existant. There were a lot of really bad photos taken with that camera if I am honest. I would go out shooting, come home with 100s of images, and be happy with maybe 10 of them. But as I kept the camera in my hand and shot more and more, the number of images per outing came down and the number of images I loved went up. As with anything, patients and practice were key. As I grew as a photographer, I starting "showing" my work more, publishing to Facebook, and eventually setting up an online gallery to have a place for my work to be seen.
Friends, family, and people I didn't even know would comment on how much they "loved" my photographs. How I "had an eye" for photography. I chalked most of that up to them just being nice about my particular hobby, speaking in generous generalizations as people do when someone is showing them something they created or made. When in the presence of an artist and their work, most people do the socially acceptable thing and simply say how nice, or interesting the work is and move on, and that's simply what I assumed was happening here.
Then came the requests. Understand that portraiture is not exactly my cup of tea. I have never had a desire to shoot staged portraits and most certainly not a wedding! The problem was I started getting those requests. I graciously turned them down time and time again. I would acquiesce to close friends request for pictures of the kids for holiday cards, or some shots for recently engaged friends who I knew didn't have the funds for a "proper" photographer to shoot an engagement session. After a while I started getting people requesting actual PRINTS of some of my photographs. This, I must say, blew me away. People actually wanted my work, framed and on their walls. At first I would simply give them permission to grab the photo and print it themselves, as in the beginning I assumed it would be a one off thing for someone to ask for a print. Then came the signature requests. People were asking for SIGNED work, and again I couldn't believe it.
So after many years, much prodding, and encouragement from friends and strangers alike, I have decided to finally own up to my art. I am an artist and my medium is light. This new site is the manifestation of that ownership. I hope you will enjoy the galleries of work I am displaying here, and if you feel so inclined, purchase a print.
