Photography has always been a part of my life. As a youngster, I read photographic books but then didn't have a camera. My first love was a Stereo Realist, which was long after the 3-D craze of the 50's. That camera taught me to work only with a wide-angle lens, which even today I find - when I want real impact - I use a wide-angle lens.

After several years I moved up to a Pentax Spotmatic 35mm camera which brought on a new and different experience in photography - in that I could use a compliment of different lenses.

During this time, also, I began traveling and taking photos of my experiences. When I returned home, I would find places to sell the photos and soon agencies started contacting me to buy my photos. I joined the Photographic Society of America and exhibited some of my work through them, winning several awards and honorable mentions. Robert Rufa, the editor of "Travel" magazine, wrote that if I could couple words with my photos then I would really have a product to sell. So with his advice in mind I started adding text to accompany my photos.

My illustrated articles soon found their way into “Travel” (now Conte Nast), “The San Antonio News Express,” “Modern Maturity,” “The Kansas City Star,” “Scholastic Magazine,” “Unity Magazine” and other publications. When my work wasn’t accepted for one reason or another, editors would still write back to give kudos about the photography.

Just recently my writing was included in the anthology “Angel Animals – Exploring Our Spiritual Connection with Animals” edited by Allen and Linda Anderson (Plume Penguin Books ISBN 0-452-28072-9). Also a photo of mine won an Honorable Mention award in “Popular Photography and Imaging” magazine (September, 2004 - page 25). One of my photos was chosen for the “Texas 24/7” book (DK Publishing ISBN 0-7566-0084-7) I also have a collection of my portraits on the Zone Zero web magazine. And I have written about Kennebunkport, Maine as well as the Missouri, Ozarks for a travel webzine. You may wish to read these essays or view the photographs and you can do so by clicking on the grey titles.

For 18 years I worked as an artist at Hallmark cards, which allowed me to learn how to see and look for that unusual perspective. That job taught me to see details that helped to make something different. Certainly, when taking photos I applied what I was learning to my photographic work, too. I have taught photography classes for a local junior college which helped me to share my talent in teaching others the art of photography.

Besides traveling in my own country my journeys have taken me all over Western and Eastern Europe, Iran, Lebanon, and I have made friends in every country I visited. One winter I wrote “Once Upon a Bavarian Winter” (Publish America - ISBN: 1591296412) a book about a stay with a Bavarian wood carver and his family. While living with the German family in the deep snows of an alpine winter, I found that I loved the company of foreign people. I realized - like traveling - I was learning so much by being with these people. In December of 2005, I returned from  my first trip to India where I spent three weeks photographing a wonderful culture and people. In January of 2006 I spent another six weeks in India where I took some 8,000 photos for two projects I am putting together about the southern part of that country.

Now, I have totally switched to digital photography and am using a Nikon D-50 camera. I primarily use three lenses. I use the 28mm f2.8 wide angle Nikon lens, 50mm f1.8 Nikon lens for available light and my general lens is the Nikon   24 -85mm f2.8- f4.0 medium zoom.  Digital allows me to immediately see what I have shot. This ability somehow has again brought back a special love of photography. It makes it more fun!