I got my first digital camera in 2003 when I was 15. It was a gift for Christmas, or maybe it was birthday...The point is, I LOVED it. It was a Fujifilm FinePix point and shoot camera with 3.2 megapixels. Up until this point, the only experience I had was with disposable cameras, and even that was limited. This was a whole new ball game.
I took it with me everywhere. Family, friends, and pets were all subjected to my endless shooting. I could not tell you at the time what exactly I loved so much about it. I am not a sentimental person, I rarely try to capture important moments or family events. But at the time, I was trying to capture everything.
It wasn't until we took a family trip to Yellowstone in 2004 that it finally clicked for me. Nature. This was it. This was how I could combine two things I enjoyed into something I was really passionate about.
I love nature, it always makes me feel at peace, brings a calm over me that I rarely feel anywhere else. I prefer camping and hiking to cities and hotels. I don't want to sit around at a beach or a pool. I want to explore, to climb mountains, to breath fresh air, to feel the silence. And with a camera I could capture that beauty. I could hold on to that feeling. I could share that beauty and that feeling with others. I could freeze a moment, a place, a time...
During our trip to Yellowstone I tried to capture all of the awe inspiring views, the quiet lakes, the peaceful forest. While these images are not technically perfect, their composition leaves something to be desired, I still look at them and they still bring me back to that time and feeling. They still make me happy. And sometimes that is all that matters.
Over the years, nature has been the primary subject of my photos. I shoot what I love. Occasionally I go outside of my comfort zone and try still life, product shoots, food, all with mixed results... but I always return to nature. I always return to what I love.
