Artist’s Statement

     I use photography to explore the world and to express what I find to those around me. When I go somewhere to shoot, I go with a sense of adventure. I go to find something new or to find a new way of seeing something familiar. I travel through the world looking for scenes or moments, which I then present as photographic art.

     When I have my camera and I go into a forest, up a mountain, into a swamp, or through city streets, I go with a purpose. I find that I am more courageous and more wiling go deeper into the water, down a dark alley, or further out on a cliff to capture images than I would if I weren’t attempting to document the art around me. I am able to look at something commonplace and mundane, finding intriguing odd angles brought to life by a particular quality of light.

     With my portraits and candids, I aspire to represent a human subject’s personality or a unique moment as the members of a group interact. I photograph the people that I love to show them how I view them, beautiful as they are. I wish to document the lives of the wonderfully complex people around me.

     When I come home and upload the day’s or week’s worth of images, I engage in a different but equally wondrous act of discovery. I find things that I did not see before. Using post production, I am able to enhance color and sharpen lines to draw details out of the image that would otherwise likely go unnoticed by the observer.

     I do not attempt to show the world as it is; I show the world as I see it. Sometimes that world is full of bright colors and radiant light. Other times it is dark and foreboding, stirring a feeling of mystery in the viewer. At times, my images are quirky and slightly surreal, bringing a bright spot of hopefulness in an otherwise dark landscape. In some pieces, I strive to show a world that would be populated by friendly creatures, charming characters, and dreadful monsters. In other images, I crop out the rest of the wide world and present a moment of beauty.

     My art is approachable by anyone viewing it. My intent is to spark a sense of wonder and adventure, the feeling of getting lost in a place untethered by time. I want the viewer to be able to put his or herself in that place and create their own narrative.