Simply being alive makes me feel thankful. I'm thankful for a God-given joy of being able to show people, through my eyes and limited skill set, a universe that both surprises and rewards me. I hope I can inspire others to look at the world with a new perspective, and find the love, the humor, and beauty of both God's and Man's creations.

This blog is about my passion for light-drawing. That is what the word photography literally means from its Greek parts, drawing with light. Like all other things in life, I am still learning and experimenting. Sometimes, I fail, and sometimes, I surprise myself.

In any case, I hope these stories amuse, entertain, and inspire you to just get out and draw with the light you have.

Scott Kelby's Worldwide Photo Walk 2023

September 29, 2023 • Leave a Comment

I'm going to be leading a photo walk in Oregon City, Oregon, on October 7. We'll be a part of the largest simultaneous gathering of photographers in the world.

The concept of a Photo Walk is simple. Photo Walks are created by Walk Leaders in cities all over the world. Walkers meet up at a pre-designated location to spend a few hours socializing, capturing images, and sharing with like-minded people.

At the end of the Photo Walk, most groups convene at local restaurants or taverns to share their images and experiences over food.

In addition to the event, photo walkers will be able to upload their favorite picture to our popular Photo Walk contest for a chance to win prizes from industry related sponsors. We will have 1 walker grand prize winner, 1 leader grand prize winner, and 10 finalists to be selected by Scott Kelby himself. Prizes have not been officially announced yet but could contain a camera, software licenses and membership, up to $750 worth of industry gift cards, camera bags & more!

This isn’t just a walk—this is a walk with a cause. While the event is completely free and you are under absolutely no obligation to donate, the event does support The Springs of Hope Kenya Orphanage, an organization that feeds, houses, educates, and empowers young orphans so that they can grow up to not just survive, but succeed. Scott is asking that each person who participates donates to help make a difference in theses children’s lives. Every dollar counts. You can donate here: https://worldwidephotowalk.com/donate/

Regardless of whether you donate or not pre-registration is required, and will allow you to enter the contest after the event. Head on over to https://worldwidephotowalk.com find a city near you, and complete the free sign up form! Or, sign up for my walk in Oregon City if you will be in the area: https://tinyurl.com/3jeyddvd

2022 Year-End Recap

December 30, 2022 • 1 Comment

In spite of some on-going health issues that have lasted for over two years, I was still able to get out and about enough to satisfy my hunger for creating beautiful images. Gotta keep on movin', ya know.

So, here is a short slideshow of some of my favorite shots from 2022.

2021 Year-End Recap

January 07, 2022 • 1 Comment

As the current pandemic continues, let's hope we are closer to its end than to its beginning, so we all may be able to get back to a normal life in 2022. Nevertheless, in spite of any monkey wrenches COVID may throw our way, there is always something interesting or beautiful to photograph.

Here is a short slideshow of some of our favorite shots from 2021.

Mount Hood Unmasked

September 21, 2021 • 2 Comments

Mount Hood is one of the two icons for the State of Oregon. The other is Multnomah Falls. Whenever one thinks of scenes from Oregon, it's almost inevitable that Mount Hood or Multnomah Falls comes to mind, sometimes both.

At the end of each summer, Mt. Hood is usually mostly bare. This year (2021), however, was unusually hot and lacking in precipitation for a long stretch of time, so the mountain was quite exposed. Much of the rocky detail that is usually hidden by snow is now visible to explore.

During a recent ride to Lost Lake in anticipation for a nice sunset shot, I decided to take a longer and less paved route and go through Lolo Pass, which provides close-up views of the western face of the mountain.

This shot is a down-rez of a 181 mega-pixel photo. You can click on the picture to open a viewer in which you can zoom in and out and pan left and right to explore the mountain in minute detail.

Drone Panorama of Smith Creek Development in Woodburn, OR (Feb. 9, 2021)

February 10, 2021 • Leave a Comment

I finally took the plunge and purchased my first drone, a DJI Mavic Air 2. After reading a lot and watching many YouTube instructional videos, I took the drone out for my first flight and photo session. This isn't anything fantastic, but more of an attempt to record something novel on my debut flight, rather than just some mediocre stills of some housetops.

We used to have a very large, wild, and undeveloped field in our neighborhood that I would wander in from time to time to photograph sunset landscapes and whatever wildlife I could get close to. But now, it's being developed for housing, so I thought I'd take it's picture during the beginning phases of construction.

The photo is almost 500 MB in size, so I have uploaded it onto a site that will allow you to click, scan, pan, and zoom to explore its details. Have fun, and see if you can find me. I'm the dark figure standing at the end of a street next to some barriers, looking like he's working a drone controller.

Click on the picture.