I’m an amateur nature photographer who has been photographing the outdoors since 1982. I also consider myself an amateur naturalist since I tend to be project-oriented in my photography. Once my camera and I are focused on a particular subject, I try to learn everything I can about its life, habits and behavior. These two passions, love of nature and photography, have brought me many hours of enjoyment over the years.
A third passion of mine (one that I’ve had much longer than the first two) is a love for reading. I consider books to be treasures—glimpses into the minds and hearts of others, both those alive and those long gone from this world. No matter what the subject, good writing often reveals as much about the author as it does his subject. We’ve all heard the saying that “a picture is worth a thousand words.” That saying is neither true nor false. It really depends upon the picture and the words that are being compared. I’ve seen many wonderful, exciting, inspirational pictures that can’t easily be described with words, but I’ve also read many passages that create a mental imagery unmatched by any photo I’ve ever seen. Composing a photograph has even been compared to writing. A great subject doesn’t automatically translate into a good image: its success depends on how well the elements of the scene are composed or structured within the frame. Similarly a great thought is not so easily translated into good prose: it is dependent upon the choice of words and how well they are structured within the sentence or paragraph.
There will obviously be both pictures and words on this website. I’m a much better photographer than writer, but one of the aims of the website is to improve my writing skills as I share with you some of my favorite images and experiences. I’ll also discuss photographic techniques and share biological information about some of my favorite subjects.
Although strictly an amateur, I’ve had images published in National Wildlife, Southern Living, Texas Parks and Wildlife, Wildlife in North Carolina, Nature Photographer, Birds and Blooms as well as other regional magazines and newspapers. The use of some images have also been donated to national, regional and local conservation organizations.
In 2010 my wife Sandy and I moved into a new home in Seven Springs, NC──on 25 acres of land that I am landscaping to attract wildlife. With both of our sons now grown and on their own, we now share our home with four dogs (all strays that we have adopted over the years). A one-acre backyard pond is the setting of my current project: documenting the beauty, life and fascinating behaviors of the wood ducks that feed daily on my pond and nest yearly in the seven nest boxes on the pond.