I began my photographic odyssey in New York City in a humble but creative environment. This taught me to pay attention to the world around me. My formative years at school, raising a family, and completing a full military career also taught me to extend my view of life and accept that I was responsible for any limitations I set on myself.

Photographically, the majority of the early years were spent as a wet-process traditionalist honing skills, while serving a strong need to capture and present what I saw and felt inside. Fortunately, my mentors and guides understood the creative process and fostered in me a willingness to experiment and take risks with the work. The camera is a tool for me that serves vision because it allows me to capture what I have already seen inwardly. It is then my choice to use the pure honesty of the lens or create more.

Light, color, and motion are all key aspects to my current work and how I maintain the dialogue. I choose to enhance certain aspects of a photograph and am willing to combine imagery to compliment the story and to change movement to enhance the feeling. In the wet darkroom I was a master of dodging and burning to enhance aspects of a photograph and have now learned equivalent skills in the digital darkroom. All of my work is image based.

I learned long ago that the impact of an image and the artistic value are in large part based on emotion and the viewer’s eye. Everything I produce comes from somewhere inside, though I do have a deep respect for the serendipity of life. I cannot expect that all I produce will be appreciated, but if part of what I see is enjoyed and understood, I will have succeeded.