How I got started

          First, I must thank you for taking your time to view and explore my photography. My photographic journey began long before I even knew I would have one. At age 13, my family and I had moved across the country from Philadelphia, PA to Phoenix, AZ. I assumed Arizona was pretty much a flat sandy cactus filled landscapes as far as the eye could see. It quickly became apparent that this was not true. In my junior year of high school, I took a photography class that had still used film. I learned how to develop my own photographs as well as the very basics of how to make a photograph, or so I thought. A few years later, I had purchased my own digital camera. I would take photos of almost anything, but more and more I found myself drawn to photographing nature and the landscapes surrounding me. I began searching the web and reading photography books and finding photographers and artists who could inspire me. The desire to travel and be outside with the camera became stronger and stronger. Eventually, I began going on a few short trips with friends to explore new places and it started to become a regular occurrence to be outside looking for something to photograph. It wasn't until I took my first solo trip to photograph the Eastern Sierra area of California in 2012 when I realized that this was what I wanted to do in life. My camera has taken me to some of the most beautiful landscapes in the western United States, and I expect it will take me to every corner of the world to further my exploration. I am eager and excited to see where this journey in life will take me. 

Artist Statement

         The photographs you see on this website are a labor of love and passion that I put my blood, sweat, and tears into, quite literally. These are the experiences and moments in nature I wish to share with the world and invite you all on this journey with me. I think it is important to note that all of the images you see on my website have been "processed" or "edited"  to some degree to showcase how the scene looked to me as an artist. You can be assured that when viewing my photographs that all aspects of an image have occurred during the time of pressing the shutter of the camera. I use adobe photoshop to process these images and bring them to life. Much of this processing is simple RAW adjustments making sure that things such as color, contrast, clarity, highlight and shadow recovery are to my preferences. Some images may be blended together to compensate for bright highlights or deep shadows as to avoid extremely bright areas and extremely dark areas just like in a real darkroom. A handful of images have also been blended together combining multiple focal points to achieve maximum depth of field and focus for ultimate detail. None of the images in my galleries are composite scenes (two separate scenes from different dates and areas combined together). All wildlife images posted on my website are of truly wild animals photographed in our National Parks and public lands. No animal is ever baited or harassed to get the shot. I am always sure to practice leave no trace principals and make sure the landscape is left better than I found it (removing unwanted trash, etc). It is imperative that these lands remain free and wild for generation after generation to enjoy and explore. 

Publications/awards:

Publications include: Arizona Highways Magazine, Digital Photo Mag, Images Arizona, The Arizona Republic, Rio Nuevo Publishers, Outdoor Photographer Magazine

-Finalist in Weather Channel's "It's Amazing Out There" Photo Contest (Sandman) 2018

-National Geographic Your Shot Daily Dozen Selection (Fortress in the Clouds) 2018

-Grand Prize Winner (Serenity) Outdoor Photographer Magazine "The American Landscape" 2018      

-Published "Glacier National Park, Reflections. Rio Nuevo publishers 2018

-International Landscape Photographer Of The Year 2017 Top 101 ranked image (Somewhere In Hiding)

-3rd Place (Consumer) Epson Pano Awards, Digital Art Category 2017.

-Honorable mention (Light of the New Year) 2016 Arizona Highways Magazine photo contest.

-Highly Commended (The River Speaks) 2016 USA Landscape Photographer of the Year photo contest.

-The Big Interview eight page feature in Digital Photo Mag UK October 2015 issue.

-Grand prize winner (Mountain Minions) 2015 Arizona Highways Magazine photo contest (published).

-Honorable mention (Days End) 2015 Arizona Highways Magazine photo contest (published). 

-Photographer of the Month for November 2015 on apertureacademy.com. You can read the full interview here Aperture Academy Interview.

-Highly commended (Glow of the Gods, Light Through the Valley II) 2014 USA Landscape  Photographer of the Year photo contest.

-Fan Favorite (Light Catchers) 2014 Arizona Highways Magazine photo contest (published).

-Honorable mention (Parade of Autumn) 2013 Arizona Highways Magazine photo contest (published).