Stem in Abstract

We cannot see anything until we are possessed with the idea of it, take it into our heads,
—and then we can hardly see anything else.
- Henry David Thoreau

Purchase prints

Now…Paul over at Paul Lester Photography has tagged me for a series of questions–eight things you probably don’t know about me. I’ve thrown in a bonus #9 for good measure.

1. I learned to read at age four, thanks to an older second-grade brother who taught me letter sounds, then loaned me his library books and flashlight. I spent many a late night reading under my blankets.

2. My least favorite subject all the way through school was math. My favorite was creative writing.

3. I can trace my love for macro nature photography back to childhood, when I would watch “Land of the Giants” on tv every afternoon. I also liked turning over rocks to see what lived underneath, and imagining what life was like for those tiny creatures.

4. I’ve never received a speeding ticket, but I flunked my first driving test by taking a nervous-twitchy man from DMV across railroad tracks as the lights were flashing. (Have you ever seen a train’s light up close? VERY bright!)

5. My first photo sale was a color macro image of miniature mushrooms growing across a mossy log. A magazine editor ran across the photo on my website gallery and emailed me.

6. I’d skip a fancy cruise for a one-week campout in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with my camera.

7. I’ve never tried sushi, and don’t plan to. Ever.

8. I grew up in a northern California town, population 5,000. It has since enjoyed a boom and currently stands at around 5,500. One local character says he’s moving if the traffic gets any worse.

9. I’ve been writing professionally for 26 years, and took up photography after spending a two and a half year stint as a computer columnist for Newsday. Part of my job involved reviewing digital cameras, which hooked me in a hurry on digital photography.

Now…in keeping with the pass-it-on theme, I’ll tag five of my favorite photographers. Maybe they’ll have time to reveal some of their own little-known history.

Laurie Jackson
Dan Ransom
Robert Trancho
Diane Varner
Michael Brown