Biography
Missouri Years
I grew up in Missouri - Kirkwood for the first 12 years and then Patton (rural Missouri) through high school (late 70's). It was about the 10th grade that my English teacher (thanks Al !!) introduced me to photography. My first experience with a real camera was when he let me use his Nikon SLR during one of our high school baseball games. I thought that was really cool, so I saved up some money from working in the hay fields, begged some from Mom and Dad, and bought a 35mm Mamiya MSX 500 with two screw mount lenses. I had a ball traipsing year round through the hills, creeks and fields of Bollinger County, Missouri, taking photos of everything outdoors. I would then turn in the rolls of film to Walmart and anxiously wait for the prints to be returned.
Colorado Years
I used that Mamiya half way through my college years (Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs) until my parents bought me a brand new Nikon FE for a Christmas present one year. That new camera went with me all over the state of Colorado. Any time I didn't have a military commitment, I would grab my Nikon, hop in my Ford Bronco, head to the mountains, and go hiking, backpacking, camping or cross-country skiing. I always returned with a couple rolls of film that I couldn't wait to get developed.
Air Force Years
After initial pilot training at Lubbock, Texas (friendly people, challenging for landscape photography), marriage, and C-130 training at Little Rock, Arkansas, I moved to North Carolina and got to see the world courtesy of Uncle Sam. As always, my Nikon went with me and that's when the wanderlust really hit. Any place I hadn't been to yet was a place I really wanted to go!
Family and Commercial Pilot Years
After eight years in the Air Force I felt the draw of commercial aviation, got hired by Delta Air Lines, and moved to Atlanta where we are still busy raising our 3 children. The past 14 years have seen more camcording than photography, but the love of photography never went away. Three years ago I started flying internationally, went digital, and my passion for photography was re-kindled. I can't say enough about digital (currently Canon EOS 40D) and how I feel it has improved my photography. I hope you enjoy the results here on my web site!
