My Origin Story
Virginia and Seth at Christmas - December, 2000.
“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.”
My journey began in the early 1980s. I grew up in the shadow of the Golden Gate Bridge to working-class parents. One of the luxuries we enjoyed was a Nikon and a few lenses. I was lucky enough to take a photography class during my sophomore year of high school. We took to each other right away. I quickly came to enjoy all aspects of my new hobby. I tried hard, with limited success, to come up with interesting compositions; then the fun began. I spent hours behind the lens, and in the darkroom, exploring all that the craft had to offer me.
I took a second, and more advanced course during my senior year. It continued to be an exploration that suited me. The portrait of my older brother and grandma at Christmas is one for the books. It’s still a great reminder to, “just shoot”; you never know what kind of gold you can unearth. The shot of the skim-boarder was my first attempt to freeze action. I’m stunned to this day that it turned out so well. It still may be the best shot of that kind I’ve ever captured.
Skim boarder in Santa Barbara, CA - May, 2001.
After graduation, I had to leave the Nikon behind. Thus followed “the disposable years”. I would have at least 2 to 3 disposable cameras on hand at any given time. I loved the randomness of my captures. I would save up my finished rolls to be developed at the local Walgreens every 6 months. The big “reveal” always had me rolling with laughter, “what the hell is that?!”, and “oh my god’s”. Even though I didn’t have a camera or darkroom of my own, I found ways to keep photography fun and in my life.
By my late 20s, and early 30s, the smartphone camera takeover had begun. They were, and are, so wonderfully convenient. During these years, I began to spend a whole lot more of my free time in nature.
My mother had taken up DSLR digital photography during her post-divorce reckoning. Being the ever-supportive cheerleader of her children that she is, she offered to lend me a mirrorless camera body and zoom lens. Even though it was years away, I had just received the key to my photography’s revival.
I used the Fujifilm X-A1 and XC 16-50mm sparingly in the coming years. I enjoyed playing with the different color profiles and film simulations that the camera offered. It wouldn’t be until January of 2016 that I finally graduated back to manual mode.
Instagram had been a child in those years too. More innocent, free, and truly about the photos than it is today. I became star-struck by the photos of the Milky Way galaxy, pun intended :). “How can I do that? I want to do that!” The table was set, all I had to do was serve dinner.
In the fall of 2015, I had the opportunity to take some time off of work to visit family on the East Coast. What was supposed to be a 6-week stay turned into 3 months. My drive back across the country in January of 2016 was life-changing. Before I made my 1st attempt at star photography, I got some well-needed advice at Lower Antelope Canyon.
I was on my way to Bryce Canyon National Park when I stopped in Page, AZ. It was a cold winter’s night as I perused the local bulletin board for interest. My eyes caught the Antelope Canyon tours brochure, and I knew I’d heard that name before. When I got back to my cheap hotel room, I excitedly booked a photography tour of the lower canyon for the next morning.
I knew it was the off-season, but I was shocked to show up the next morning to a solo tour. Luckily for me, the tour guide and I hit it off like old friends immediately! I’m eternally grateful to Armando and the Navajo Nation for sharing their sacred ancestral home with me for a short while. To this day, the slot canyon in northern Arizona is the most awe-inspiring nature I’ve ever witnessed. I was speechless most of the time that I was dazzled by the otherworldly landscape before me.
Lower Antelope Canyon, AZ - January, 2016.
Armando and the other tour guide intermittently played their flutes while we walked the canyon. The acoustics and the haunting beauty of the music are something I will never forget. I will also not quickly move on from the photography lessons I was given that day. The light in these slot canyons can be very challenging to work with. Getting the exposure you want takes some doing. This was the 1st time I had switched back to manual mode since high school. I couldn’t get the exposure I wanted to save my life. Luckily, Armando gave me a few pointers and I was off and running. That day changed everything.
I continued on to Bryce Canyon National Park to try my luck at photographing the stars. Bryce is a fantastic dark sky area; very ideal for night photography. I snowshoed the Navajo Loop Trail to Peekaboo Loop Trail. It was a crystal-clear night, and the stars were out in full force. I learned that night that I was not ready for prime time. Not a single frame came out in focus. Whoops! Experience is the best teacher. It was clear focusing at night was a different animal, and I needed help and practice. The internet is a great place to find answers to your photography questions. It’s great to have another photographer to be able to bounce questions off as well. Nothing will teach you as much as trial and error.
I did get one sharp image of the stars that night thanks to GoPro!
Bryce Canyon National Park under the stars - January, 2016.
My 6 weeks off of work to visit family somehow turned into 9 months on the road. I camped, stayed with family and friends, worked odd jobs, and travelled with my camera in hand. It was a glorious time. I hiked 90 miles on the John Muir Trail in the Sierra Nevada mountains of central California. I drove to the east coast and back. I hiked rim to rim to rim in the Grand Canyon. I saw multiple national parks I’d never seen before: Joshua Tree, Bryce Canyon, and Zion. It was an unforgettable period of my life, and a springboard for photographic experience and inspiration.
Zion Canyon Overlook Trail - January, 2016.
Looking up from the John Muir Trail - September, 2015.
Watching sunrise light spill into the Grand Canyon - March, 2016.
In the decade since my rediscovery of photography, I’ve continued to explore my love for the medium. I’ve improved vastly in all the areas of technical and subjective photography. I’ve honed my skills in my home state of Washington. Here in the Pacific Northwest, we are blessed by incredible natural landscapes, as well as incredible urban environments to capture. I’m blessed to be on this journey through life with a reliable Fujifilm camera by my side. I can’t wait to see what’s around the next bend, and would be tickled pink if you would join in the fun with me!
Mount Rainier under a blanket of Milky Way stars - July, 2020.